University of Texas at El Paso
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Sociology and Anthropology Department Research    

 


Society and culture in the U.S.-Mexico borderlands is the research focus of the department.  We put a strong emphasis on research with applications to public needs and policy issues in the borderlands, and to research and teaching collaboration with community organizations and agencies. 


 


Two major borderlands projects are a study of out-migration from El Paso (the so-called “brain drain”) and a survey of daily border crossers (who they are and why the cross); the latter study is funded by the National Science Foundation in collaboration with UTEP’s Civil Engineering department.  The department is known for scholarship in border theory, especially focusing on mobility, inequality, and power.


 


The department has several specific research emphases:



  • Criminology.  Recent research has included homicide, family violence, sentencing patterns by race and gender, juvenile criminal issues, and the impact of the border drug war on the criminal justice system.  Department faculty are participating in a multi-year research program, MRISP, funded by the National Institute of Mental Health.
  • Health.  Recent research has focused on health-seeking behavior of Latinas, and more broadly health demography in a binational setting, as well as cultural and community issues in health care.  Department faculty launched the Interdisciplinary Health Forum, a group of El Paso scholars holding regular discussion meetings.
  • Cultural Heritage in the Borderlands.  Recent research has examined the cultural heritage of the Socorro Mission and El Paso’s lower valley area, involving close collaboration with community organizations.  We participated in the historical marker project of the El Paso Community Foundation and collaborate with the El Paso Museum of Archaeology.  Faculty examine cultural identity and indigenous sacred sites.
  • Education.  Recent research addresses teacher education at UTEP within the social and cultural context of the U.S.-Mexico borderlands and a heavily Latino student population.  Department faculty are participating in the Carnegie Corporation’s Teachers for a New Era project.