Rachel E Stein
Biographic Data
| ID | 287121 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Rachel E Stein |
| GIVEN NAMES | Rachel E |
| FAMILY NAME | Stein |
| SIGNATURE | STEIN R E |
| AFFILIATIONS | West Virginia University |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-1221-5490 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 20 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 39 |
| WORKS AS AUTHOR | 20 |
| WORKS AS EDITOR | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2013 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
Sociology Graduate Students’ Career Preferences and Expectations
Perceptions of Group Boundaries between Amish and Non-Amish during the Covid-19 Pandemic
Social environments shape group identity. Environmental changes force adaptation in varying ways. Disruptions created by the COVID-19 pandemic provide an opportunity to empirically study how group identities form, transform, and establish and reinforce collective boundaries. All social groups discern between “us,” referencing in-group members from “them,” referring to outsiders. High-tension religious communities tend to reinforce pre-defined gro…
Easy targets
Most prior research on religion and crime focuses on predictors of criminal behavior and neglects victimization. Studies of religion and victimization generally examine religion-based hate crimes. We present a theory of religion-based victimization drawing on routine activities theory, emphasizing how particular religious beliefs and practices may increase one's vulnerability to predatory crime victimization due to opportunity, not hate. We draw …
A Clash of Powers
Sociologists define power as one party's capacity to influence another's action. Thus, power is a relational property of interpersonal interaction. However, its dynamics embed within institutions such as the church and the state. This paper explores power dynamics using a case study of the conflict between an Old Order Amish church and the civil law of Ohio. The church excommunicated a member for violating community rules. The member countered by…
Religious Ritual Compliance with Covid-19 Mandates in Plain Communities
Measures to limit COVID-19's spread were vital at the pandemic's onset. While some churches complied with public health mandates, others resisted them. Some religious ceremonies depend on third parties independent of the church. Funerals may require mortuary services overseen by funeral directors. Religious groups that may otherwise resist public health directives may comply when they depend on a third party. Extending street-level bureaucracy th…
Pathways to Immunity
Echo Chambers in a Closed Community
Recent scholarship finds linkages between religiosity and vaccination practices but neglects the role of religious, social structural influences. The relationship between religious beliefs and immunization in the context of closed religious communities remains understudied. We use a survey of Amish and Old Order Mennonite parents to explore relationships between religious belief, group closure, perceived vaccine effectiveness, and vaccine uptake.…
Rituals of Contagion in Closed Religious Communities
Closed but Not Protected
NCSA 2021 Presidential Address
Popular text-matching software generates a percentage of similarity – called a “similarity score” or “Similarity Index” – that quantifies the matching text between a particular manuscript and content in the software’s archives, on the Internet and in electronic databases. Many evaluators rely on these simple figures as a proxy for plagiarism and thus avoid the burdensome task of inspecting the longer Similarity Reports that show the matching in d…
Familial Ties, Location of Occupation, and Congregational Exit in Geographically-Based Congregations
Background While many studies have examined the relationship between social ties and joining social movements and religious groups, few studies have investigated the relationship between social ties and the likelihood of exiting such groups. Additionally, research has not considered how geography affects the membership dynamics of geographically-based congregations, specifically whether factors associated with residential mobility may also affect…
Global Contexts
Across the globe, governments restricted social life to slow the spread of COVID-19. Several conservative Protestant sects resisted these policies in the United States. We do not yet know if theology shaped the resistance or if it was more a product of a polarized national political context. We argue that the country context likely shapes how conservative Protestants' moral worldview affects their perceptions of the pandemic and government restri…
When the Waves Roll High
Religious beliefs, practices, and social support facilitate coping with psychologically distressful events and circumstances. However, COVID-19 and governmental mandates for social distancing and isolation make in-person communal forms of religious coping difficult. While some congregations began holding virtual rituals, this was not an option for Amish and conservative Mennonite groups that restrict communication and media technologies as a reli…
New Perspectives on Environmental Justice
Women make up the vast majority of activists and organizers of grassroots movements fighting against environmental ills that threaten poor and people of color communities. New Perspectives on Environmental Justice is the first collection of essays that pays tribute to the enormous contributions women have made in these endeavors. The writers offer varied examples of environmental justice issues such as children's environmental health campaigns, c…
Congregational Cohesion, Retention, and the Consequences of Size Reduction
Congregations depend on their members for their success and survival. Yet there is a lack of research examining congregational retention or exit. Social networks are key to understanding religious group dynamics including retention; however, research on religious communities using network analysis is limited. We use Amish directories to compile longitudinal census data on intracongregational familial ties in our case study. We theorize and find t…
Student Accountability in Team-based Learning Classes
Team-based learning (TBL) is a form of small-group learning that assumes stable teams promote accountability. Teamwork promotes communication among members; application exercises promote active learning. Students must prepare for each class; failure to do so harms their team’s performance. Therefore, TBL promotes accountability. As part of the course grade, students assess the performance of their teammates. The evaluation forces students to rank…
The differential impact of physical disorder and collective efficacy
Neighborhood Scale and Collective Efficacy
The theory of collective efficacy emphasizes the role of the neighborhood as a unit of social control that can deter crime. The neighborhood unit is most often defined as a census tract or a similar administratively defined measure. These neighborhood definitions are not always sociologically meaningful. That is, administratively defined geographical areas do not necessarily align with residents' perceptions of their neighborhood's boundaries, wh…
Neighborhood Residents’ Fear of Crime
Neighborhood characteristics impact residents' fear of crime. Empirical research supports these ideas, but the majority of these studies are based on residents of a single city. The relationship between social control, disorder, perceptions of crime, and residents' fear of crime has not been fully explored across multiple cities. The current study examines the relationship between residents' perceptions of neighborhood safety, disorder, and socia…
Opportunities for property victimization
Student Accountability in Team-based Learning Classes
Team-based learning (TBL) is a form of small-group learning that assumes stable teams promote accountability. Teamwork promotes communication among members; application exercises promote active learning. Students must prepare for each class; failure to do so harms their team’s performance. Therefore, TBL promotes accountability. As part of the course grade, students assess the performance of their teammates. The evaluation forces students to rank…
Familial Ties, Location of Occupation, and Congregational Exit in Geographically-Based Congregations
Background While many studies have examined the relationship between social ties and joining social movements and religious groups, few studies have investigated the relationship between social ties and the likelihood of exiting such groups. Additionally, research has not considered how geography affects the membership dynamics of geographically-based congregations, specifically whether factors associated with residential mobility may also affect…
Congregational Cohesion, Retention, and the Consequences of Size Reduction
Congregations depend on their members for their success and survival. Yet there is a lack of research examining congregational retention or exit. Social networks are key to understanding religious group dynamics including retention; however, research on religious communities using network analysis is limited. We use Amish directories to compile longitudinal census data on intracongregational familial ties in our case study. We theorize and find t…
Religious Ritual Compliance with Covid-19 Mandates in Plain Communities
Measures to limit COVID-19's spread were vital at the pandemic's onset. While some churches complied with public health mandates, others resisted them. Some religious ceremonies depend on third parties independent of the church. Funerals may require mortuary services overseen by funeral directors. Religious groups that may otherwise resist public health directives may comply when they depend on a third party. Extending street-level bureaucracy th…
The differential impact of physical disorder and collective efficacy
Neighborhood Residents’ Fear of Crime
Neighborhood characteristics impact residents' fear of crime. Empirical research supports these ideas, but the majority of these studies are based on residents of a single city. The relationship between social control, disorder, perceptions of crime, and residents' fear of crime has not been fully explored across multiple cities. The current study examines the relationship between residents' perceptions of neighborhood safety, disorder, and socia…
When the Waves Roll High
Religious beliefs, practices, and social support facilitate coping with psychologically distressful events and circumstances. However, COVID-19 and governmental mandates for social distancing and isolation make in-person communal forms of religious coping difficult. While some congregations began holding virtual rituals, this was not an option for Amish and conservative Mennonite groups that restrict communication and media technologies as a reli…
Echo Chambers in a Closed Community
Recent scholarship finds linkages between religiosity and vaccination practices but neglects the role of religious, social structural influences. The relationship between religious beliefs and immunization in the context of closed religious communities remains understudied. We use a survey of Amish and Old Order Mennonite parents to explore relationships between religious belief, group closure, perceived vaccine effectiveness, and vaccine uptake.…
NCSA 2021 Presidential Address
Popular text-matching software generates a percentage of similarity – called a “similarity score” or “Similarity Index” – that quantifies the matching text between a particular manuscript and content in the software’s archives, on the Internet and in electronic databases. Many evaluators rely on these simple figures as a proxy for plagiarism and thus avoid the burdensome task of inspecting the longer Similarity Reports that show the matching in d…
A Clash of Powers
Sociologists define power as one party's capacity to influence another's action. Thus, power is a relational property of interpersonal interaction. However, its dynamics embed within institutions such as the church and the state. This paper explores power dynamics using a case study of the conflict between an Old Order Amish church and the civil law of Ohio. The church excommunicated a member for violating community rules. The member countered by…
Global Contexts
Across the globe, governments restricted social life to slow the spread of COVID-19. Several conservative Protestant sects resisted these policies in the United States. We do not yet know if theology shaped the resistance or if it was more a product of a polarized national political context. We argue that the country context likely shapes how conservative Protestants' moral worldview affects their perceptions of the pandemic and government restri…
Opportunities for property victimization
Opportunities for property victimization
Neighborhood Scale and Collective Efficacy
The theory of collective efficacy emphasizes the role of the neighborhood as a unit of social control that can deter crime. The neighborhood unit is most often defined as a census tract or a similar administratively defined measure. These neighborhood definitions are not always sociologically meaningful. That is, administratively defined geographical areas do not necessarily align with residents' perceptions of their neighborhood's boundaries, wh…
Neighborhood Residents’ Fear of Crime
Neighborhood characteristics impact residents' fear of crime. Empirical research supports these ideas, but the majority of these studies are based on residents of a single city. The relationship between social control, disorder, perceptions of crime, and residents' fear of crime has not been fully explored across multiple cities. The current study examines the relationship between residents' perceptions of neighborhood safety, disorder, and socia…
The differential impact of physical disorder and collective efficacy
Student Accountability in Team-based Learning Classes
Team-based learning (TBL) is a form of small-group learning that assumes stable teams promote accountability. Teamwork promotes communication among members; application exercises promote active learning. Students must prepare for each class; failure to do so harms their team’s performance. Therefore, TBL promotes accountability. As part of the course grade, students assess the performance of their teammates. The evaluation forces students to rank…
New Perspectives on Environmental Justice
Women make up the vast majority of activists and organizers of grassroots movements fighting against environmental ills that threaten poor and people of color communities. New Perspectives on Environmental Justice is the first collection of essays that pays tribute to the enormous contributions women have made in these endeavors. The writers offer varied examples of environmental justice issues such as children's environmental health campaigns, c…
Congregational Cohesion, Retention, and the Consequences of Size Reduction
Congregations depend on their members for their success and survival. Yet there is a lack of research examining congregational retention or exit. Social networks are key to understanding religious group dynamics including retention; however, research on religious communities using network analysis is limited. We use Amish directories to compile longitudinal census data on intracongregational familial ties in our case study. We theorize and find t…
Closed but Not Protected
NCSA 2021 Presidential Address
Popular text-matching software generates a percentage of similarity – called a “similarity score” or “Similarity Index” – that quantifies the matching text between a particular manuscript and content in the software’s archives, on the Internet and in electronic databases. Many evaluators rely on these simple figures as a proxy for plagiarism and thus avoid the burdensome task of inspecting the longer Similarity Reports that show the matching in d…
Familial Ties, Location of Occupation, and Congregational Exit in Geographically-Based Congregations
Background While many studies have examined the relationship between social ties and joining social movements and religious groups, few studies have investigated the relationship between social ties and the likelihood of exiting such groups. Additionally, research has not considered how geography affects the membership dynamics of geographically-based congregations, specifically whether factors associated with residential mobility may also affect…
Global Contexts
Across the globe, governments restricted social life to slow the spread of COVID-19. Several conservative Protestant sects resisted these policies in the United States. We do not yet know if theology shaped the resistance or if it was more a product of a polarized national political context. We argue that the country context likely shapes how conservative Protestants' moral worldview affects their perceptions of the pandemic and government restri…
When the Waves Roll High
Religious beliefs, practices, and social support facilitate coping with psychologically distressful events and circumstances. However, COVID-19 and governmental mandates for social distancing and isolation make in-person communal forms of religious coping difficult. While some congregations began holding virtual rituals, this was not an option for Amish and conservative Mennonite groups that restrict communication and media technologies as a reli…
Rituals of Contagion in Closed Religious Communities
Pathways to Immunity
Echo Chambers in a Closed Community
Recent scholarship finds linkages between religiosity and vaccination practices but neglects the role of religious, social structural influences. The relationship between religious beliefs and immunization in the context of closed religious communities remains understudied. We use a survey of Amish and Old Order Mennonite parents to explore relationships between religious belief, group closure, perceived vaccine effectiveness, and vaccine uptake.…
A Clash of Powers
Sociologists define power as one party's capacity to influence another's action. Thus, power is a relational property of interpersonal interaction. However, its dynamics embed within institutions such as the church and the state. This paper explores power dynamics using a case study of the conflict between an Old Order Amish church and the civil law of Ohio. The church excommunicated a member for violating community rules. The member countered by…
Religious Ritual Compliance with Covid-19 Mandates in Plain Communities
Measures to limit COVID-19's spread were vital at the pandemic's onset. While some churches complied with public health mandates, others resisted them. Some religious ceremonies depend on third parties independent of the church. Funerals may require mortuary services overseen by funeral directors. Religious groups that may otherwise resist public health directives may comply when they depend on a third party. Extending street-level bureaucracy th…
Perceptions of Group Boundaries between Amish and Non-Amish during the Covid-19 Pandemic
Social environments shape group identity. Environmental changes force adaptation in varying ways. Disruptions created by the COVID-19 pandemic provide an opportunity to empirically study how group identities form, transform, and establish and reinforce collective boundaries. All social groups discern between “us,” referencing in-group members from “them,” referring to outsiders. High-tension religious communities tend to reinforce pre-defined gro…
Easy targets
Most prior research on religion and crime focuses on predictors of criminal behavior and neglects victimization. Studies of religion and victimization generally examine religion-based hate crimes. We present a theory of religion-based victimization drawing on routine activities theory, emphasizing how particular religious beliefs and practices may increase one's vulnerability to predatory crime victimization due to opportunity, not hate. We draw …
Sociology Graduate Students’ Career Preferences and Expectations
Sociology (14 works) · Political science (12 works) · Psychology (12 works) · Agriculture and Farm Safety (10 works) · Medicine (9 works) · Law (8 works) · Computer Science (7 works) · Pandemic (7 works) · Social Psychology (7 works) · Religion and Society Interactions (6 works)