Jennifer Kayahara
PhD Candidate
Sociology

KMDI Fellow: 2007-2010

PhD Thesis: Predicting Online Political Engagement

Supervisor: Barry Wellman and Shyon Baumann (Sociology, KMDI)

Profile
[KMDiary 2009 Volume 10 Issue #7]

KMDI Graduate Fellow Jennifer Kayahara is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Sociology. Her dissertation explores whether the Internet has amplified or dampened existing class, gender, and racial inequalities in political engagement. In her work, she differentiates between the Internet as a tool for information gathering, the Internet as a medium of communication, and the Internet as a forum for public discussion, and examines how each of these roles interacts with activities such as volunteering for political campaigns and donating to political candidates. She also gives particular attention to how differences in technical skills and attitudes toward the Internet correlate with different uses of the Internet.

Jennifer has previously worked as a research assistant for Professor Barry Wellman, studying how the residents of East York incorporate the Internet into their everyday lives with an emphasis on what types of cultural activities they engage in while in front of their computers. Their findings were published in an article in the Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication in 2007. Jennifer is currently working as a teaching assistant in the Department of Sociology for two courses that reflect her ongoing interests: Technology and Society, and Culture and Social Structure.

Jennifer has been active in service to the University, having served for three years as a member of the Graduate Sociology Students’ Association and as a departmental representative on the Graduate Student Union council. She also served as treasurer for the Knowledge Media Design Society.