Denise A. Copelton

Denise A. Copelton, Ph.D

Professor and Chair (Sociology)
(585) 395-5668
dcopelto@brockport.edu
Office: Hartwell Hall 205 C

Education

  • PhD, Sociology, Binghamton University
  • MA, Sociology, Binghamton University
  • BA, Sociology, SUNY Geneseo

Areas of Specialty

  • Sociology of Health & Illness
  • Sociology of Food & Nutrition
  • Sociology of Families

Courses Taught

UNDERGRADUATE

  • Introduction to Sociology
  • Health, Medicine & Society
  • Sociology of Food
  • Deviant Behavior
  • Sociology of Families
  • Research Methods
  • Aging & Society

GRADUATE: (FOR MA IN LIBERAL STUDIES)

  • Families & Society
  • Social Science Perspectives on Health & Medicine

Research Interests

My current research centers on the social experience of illness. I am interested in the social experience of living with celiac disease, an auto-immune disorder triggered by ingesting gluten, a protein in wheat, barley and rye. The only remedy is lifelong adherence to a gluten-free diet. I examine the challenges persons with celiac face as they attempt to obtain a diagnosis and, once diagnosed, how they negotiate the diet within the context of families, friends, and a social landscape of food not conducive to gluten-free eating.