Overview

My major scholarly focus is on social class differentiation in contemporary societal development. I am working on a new method for measuring social class. I am developing a "life course " approach, partially inspired by Weber's definition of social class ( "life chances "), to identify the economic and health correlates of social class.

Research Focus

I am focused on measuring how individuals experience economic hardship and economic success over their life course, and how they perceive these experiences. This perception gets into the realm of social ideology, and how individuals interpolate their experience in ideological terms.

Outreach and Extension Focus

I direct the Teen Assessment Program which serves youth and youth service providers by scientifically identifying youth social behavior and finding ways to modify behavior in order to achieve postive youth development. A survey of 2,300 youth was conducted in Herkimer County and this survey involved school officials in 12 public school districts, 33 volunteer survey administrators, and the Herkimer-Oneida Joint County Planning Office. The survey results are now being dissminated and varioius public fora are planned to discuss and utilize the results.

Outreach and Extension Focus

I direct the Teen Assessment Program which serves youth and youth service providers by scientifically identifying youth social behavior and finding ways to modify behavior in order to achieve postive youth development. A survey of 2,300 youth was conducted in Herkimer County and this survey involved school officials in 12 public school districts, 33 volunteer survey administrators, and the Herkimer-Oneida Joint County Planning Office. The survey results are now being dissminated and varioius public fora are planned to discuss and utilize the results.

Instruction Focus

My focus is on delivering the best possible introductory course in sociology, and I teach our 1101 course every fall.

Instruction Focus

One of the great paradoxes of the modern world is technological progress alongside social catastrophe. How is it that human societies simultaneously embody technological progress and social degeneration? Under what conditions might technological progress translate into social progress? These questions, and related questions, speak to the heart of the discipline of sociology, and are directly addressed in my instruction. I focus upon basic concepts sociologists use to explain and understand society, and provide interpretation and data on key social questions that face the nation and the world.

Additional Links

• Link to CALS Research portal
• Link to CALS Impact statements

Professional Activities

• "Mortality and Social Class: Identifying the Life Course Linkages. " Presentation to the Community Nutrition Seminar, Cornell University, September 12, 2004 - 2004

Selected Publications

• Miller, Dale and Thomas A. Hirschl. 2007. Oneida County Teen Assessment Project Summary: Tapping Into Teen Concerns, Perceptions and Behaviors in Oneida County, New York. Utica, NY: Herkimer-Oneida Counties Comprehensive Planning Program. 40pp. 2007
• "Steuben County Looks at Poverty." Television news story, Channel 36 WENY, May 25, 2007 2007
• "Poverty`s price in Tompkins County: The costs are financial, social and moral." Reported by Jennie Daley and Topher Sanders, Ithaca Journal, March 15, 2007. 2007
• Hirschl, Thomas A. 2007. "Poverty in New York State: Patterns and Prospects. " Community and Rural Development Institute Research and Policy Brief 12 (December), 2 pages. 2007
• Hirschl, Thomas A. 2007 "Poverty in New York State: Patterns and Prospects. " Community and Rural Development Institute Research and Policy Brief 12 (December), 2 pages. 2007
• "Each of us faces 50 percent chance of poverty: Journal explores effect in Tompkins County in 2007" Reported by Jennie Daley, Ithaca Journal, March 14, 2007. 2007
• "On the Empirical Finding of a Higher Risk of Poverty in Rural Areas: Is Rural Residence Endogenous to Poverty? Comment. " Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics 30:200-201. 2005
• Rank, Mark R. and Thomas A. Hirschl. "The Likelihood of Using Food Stamps During the Adulthood Years. " Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior 37: 137-146. 2005
• Rank, Mark R., Hong-Sik Yoon, and Thomas A. Hirschl. "American Poverty as a Structural Failing: Evidence and Arguments. " Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare 30: 3-29. 2003
• Hirschl, Thomas A., Joyce Altobelli and Mark R. Rank. "Does Marriage Increase the Odds of Affluence: Exploring the Life Course Probabilities." Journal of Marriage and Family 65:927-938. 2003
• Rank, Mark R. and Thomas A. Hirschl. "Welfare Use as a Life Course Event: Towards a New Understanding of America's Safety Net. " Social Work 47: 237-248. 2002
• Rank, Mark R. and Thomas A. Hirschl. "Rags or Riches: Estimating the Probabilities of Poverty and Affluence Across the Adult American Life Span. " Social Science Quarterly 82: 651-669. 2001
• Rank, Mark R. and Thomas A. Hirschl. "The Measurement of Long Term Risks Across the Life Course. " Social Science Quarterly 82: 680-686. 2001
• Rank, Mark R. and Thomas A. Hirschl. "The Occurrence of Poverty Across the Life Cycle: Evidence from the PSID. " Journal of Policy Analysis and Management 20: 737-756. 2001

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