Biography

Dr. Stephanie Nairn is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Central Florida. Her research has spanned several topical areas in Sociology including medical sociology, science and technology studies, and consumption and food studies. She earned her doctoral degree from McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Her past research was an ethnographic exploration of the re-emergence of immunotherapy for food allergy and focused on the ways clinicians and scientists navigated and negotiated uncertainty and ambiguity in their domains of practice. She also explored the development of a clinical practice guideline for immunotherapy documenting the uptake and integration of ethical principles as ‘evidence’ in clinical practice guidance for food allergy immunotherapy. She also led a pan-Canadian study exploring how to improve opioid-related interventions for young people who were using or at-risk of using opioids. Her work involved research and collaboration with experts in clinical psychology and psychiatry and in-depth qualitative research with youth about the opioid health crisis and soliciting their suggestions for how to improve and reduce opioid-related harms among young people.

Her current research explores the ‘pharmaceuticalization’ of food examining how new ‘medical’ and ‘pharmaceutical’ foods are changing perceptions of food, consumption, and characterizing the clinical and scientific rationale underpinning their development(s). She is also collaborating with a non-profit organization to identify and characterize the substance use interventions currently available for young trans and cisgender women. Her teaching interests including topics related to medical sociology, science, technology, and knowledge, and the social determinants of health and illness. She also currently teaches a modality of dance called “GROOVE” with kids and adults.

• Office Hours
• Research Interests

Download CV