Verna M. Keith

Professor of Sociology

Ph.D., University of Kentucky
Florida State University
614 Bellamy Building
Phone (850) 644-7103
Fax (850) 644-8818
Email: vkeith@fsu.edu
curriculum vitae

Studies how position in the social structure influences social, physical, and emotional well-being, including how race/ethnicity, gender, and class, along with stress, increase the risk of depression. Currently she is investigating the effects of colorism (i.e., the valuing of light over dark skin complexion) and discriminatory experiences on substance use and depressive symptoms. She is also evaluating the social, economic, and psychological impact of Hurricane Katrina on survivors.

MORE INFORMATION

Research

- Mental Health
- Medical
- Race / Ethnicity

Teaching

Undergraduate:
- Mental Health
- African Americans
- Medical Sociology
- Minority Health

Graduate:
- Mental Health and Illness
- African Americans
- Ethnicity and Health
Introductory Sociology

Education and Recent Professional Experience

Professor, Department of Sociology Florida State University, Tallahassee. (2006)

Research Associate, Center for the Study of Demography and Population Health (2006)

Chair, Department of Sociology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ (2000-2004).

Associate Chair, Department of Sociology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ (1998-2000).

Assistant to Associate Professor, Department of Sociology, Arizona State University, Tempe, 1990-2006.

Paul B. Cornely, Sr. Research Fellow, School of Public Health, University of Michigan. (1988-1990).

Ph.D., Sociology, University of Kentucky, 1982.

M.A., Sociology, University of Kentucky, 1979.

B.S., Sociology, State College of Arkansas, 1974.

Selected Papers and Publications

Verna M. Keith, Jennie Kronenfeld, Patrick Rivers Su-Ying Liang (2005). Assessing the Effects of Race and Ethnicity on Use of Alternative Therapies. Ethnicity and Disease 10:1:19-32.

Tanya Nieri, Stephen Kulis, Verna M. Keith, and Donna Hurdle (2005). Body Image, Acculturation, and Substance Use among Boys and Girls in the Southwest. The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse 31:4:617-639.

Cedric Herring, Verna M. Keith, and Hayward Horton (Eds.). 2004. Skin Deep: How Race and Complexion Matter in the Color Blind Era. University of Illinois Press.

Diane R. Brown and Verna M. Keith (Eds.). 2003. In and Out of Our Right Minds: African American Women’s Mental Health, New York: Columbia University Press.

Anna Riley and Verna M. Keith. 2003. Work and Housework Conditions among Married Women: The Importance of Occupational Status. Women and Health 38:4:1-17.

Manuscripts in Progress

Lynn Holley, Stephen Kulis, Flavio Marsiglia, and Verna M. Keith. Ethnicity vs. Ethnic Identity: What Predicts Substance Use Norms and Behaviors? Journal of Social Work Practice in the Addictions (forthcoming Fall 2006).

Verna M. Keith, “Gender, Complexion, and Emotional Well-Being.

Verna M. Keith, “A Colorstruck World: Colorism, Racism, and Sexism in the Lives of African American Women.”

Angela Chen and Verna Keith, “Surviving Katrina: Stress, Coping, and Mental Health among Vietnamese in New Orleans.