Katrina Hoop

Professor Hoop was drawn to the field of Sociology because it offers a unique perspective on how people make sense of their lives, understand each others' experiences and change the world. Her many areas of interest include social movements and language, the immigrant experience, youth culture, religion and effective teaching strategies.

Her recent work focuses on the dynamics of social movements, language, and identity. In particular, she studies the "strange bedfellow phenomenon," looking at unexpected collaboration between divergent interest groups, including the anti-gambling, the anti-USA PATRIOT Act legislation and the anti-human/sexual trafficking movements.
Furthermore, she has researched how break-dancers learn to dance, religious conflict in a Unitarian church and high school drop-outs in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Her current research focuses on the experiences of recent immigrants to Portland, Maine, the challenges in teaching Sociology and how to incorporate Service Learning in Sociology courses.

She has presented her work to the American Sociological Association, the Eastern Sociological Society, the Association for General and Liberal Studies and is actively involved in the New England Sociological Association.