Katie (Kathleen) Steeves, PhD

Assistant Professor of Sociology

Katie is an Assistant Professor of Sociology specializing in gender, religion, micro-sociology and qualitative research methods. Katie’s passions include teaching theory and introductory sociology courses and working with undergraduate research assistants. Her current research attempts to explore the experiences of women in religious leadership positions, investigating and encouraging the budding relationship between sociology of religion and feminist theories in sociology while also connecting with and contributing back to religious practitioners. She is also involved in research on flourishing congregations in Canada as part of a national team exploring definitions and experiences of flourishing in several case study congregations.

  • PhD, Sociology (McMaster University)
  • MA, Sociology (McMaster University)
  • BA, Sociology (Crandall University)

Expertise

Gender, feminism, Sociology of Religion, Sociological theory, Symbolic Interactionism, Micro-Sociology, Self and Identity, Qualitative Methods

Selected Research Grants & Funding

2021-2023: Social Sciences and Humanities Research Counsel of Canada Insight Development Grant: Religious and Gendered Selves on the Front Stage of Leadership, $44,196.00 CAD

2020: Council for Christian Colleges & Universities Networking Grant for Christian Scholars (with Michael Wilkinson (PI), Cathy Holtmann, Joel Thiessen, Mark Chapman and Sam Reimer), $38,000 USD

Recent Publications

Selected Publications:
  • Steeves, Kathleen. 2023. “Symbolic Interactionism,” pp. 457-462 in Varieties of Qualitative Research Methods: Selected Contextual Perspectives edited by J. Okoko, S. Tunison and K. Walker. Springer. DOI:10.1007/978-3-031-04394-9_71
  • Steeves, Kathleen. 2021. “Preserving a Place for Interpretive Work in Canadian Sociology: a Reflection on Dorothy Pawluch’s Contributions.” The American Sociologist.  https://doi.org/10.1007/s12108-021-09518-9.
  • Steeves, Kathleen, Jennifer Williams and Samantha Clarke. 2019. McMaster University Graduate Thesis Toolkit. https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/macgradthesistoolkit/.
  • Steeves, Kathleen and Deana Simonetto. 2018. “Using a 'Visual Interview Guide' as a Method of Qualitative Interviewing” pp. 178-184 in The Craft of Qualitative Research edited by S.W. Kleinknect, L. van den Scott and C. Sanders. Toronto: Canadian Scholar’s Press.
  • Pawluch, Dorothy and Kathleen Steeves. 2018. “Constructionist Reflections on Noetics” pp. 83-98 in Lawrence Krader: Beyond the Juxtaposition of Nature and Culture edited by C. Levitt and S. Sander. Frankfurt: Peter Lang.
  • Steeves, Kathleen. 2017. “Experiencing a Call to Ministry: Changing Trajectories, Restructuring Life Stories.” Qualitative Sociology Review 13(4).

Affiliations & Memberships

  • Canadian Sociological Association (CSA)
  • Society for the Scientific Study of Religion (SSSR)
  • Flourishing Congregations Institute Member at Large

SOCI 101 Introduction to Sociology
SOCI 240 Individual and Society
SOCI 356 Self and Identity
SOCI 335 Classical Theory
SOCI 336 Contemporary Theory
SOCI 385 Qualitative Data Analysis in the Social Sciences
SOCI 390 Special Topics in Sociology