Alexis Swendener, PhD

I am a sociologist motivated to advance health equity, particularly focusing on rural population health and how work, family, and gender structure health and well-being.

One stream of my research focuses on not only what people are doing at work or within their families, but how they feel about their labor in these roles--and how this in turn impacts their health and relationships. I have studied these processes primarily within rural and farming families, as this context involves balancing several types of work and family roles. Other projects focus on farm women specifically, exploring gender identity/self-perception as well as farming identity and employment motivations.

Within other social contexts, my work demonstrates a commitment to understanding the consequences of social inequality and advocating for health equity for marginalized and underserved groups including sexual and gender minorities, racially/ethnically minoritized groups, rural populations, and intersections of these groups.

I earned my PhD in Sociology at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and am currently a postdoctoral associate in rural health equity at the University of Minnesota School of Public Health.