Joanna Kempner, PhD

Associate Member, Rutgers Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research

Associate Professor, Rutgers Department of Sociology

Joanna Kempner, associate professor in the Department of Sociology at Rutgers University, is an award-winning sociologist of science, medicine, and inequality, and the author of Psychedelic Outlaws: The Movement Revolutionizing Modern Medicine (Hachette Books 2024) and Not Tonight: Migraine and the Politics of Gender and Health (Chicago 2014). Kempner’s research gives voice to those without power and asks challenging questions about how medicine talks about, understands, and makes policies for those it serves.

Kempner has held visiting positions and fellowships at Princeton University, the University of Pennsylvania, and the University of Michigan, and has served on multiple editorial boards and in leadership positions across academia and within headache advocacy. Her research appears in top journals across multiple disciplines, including Science, PLoS Medicine, Neurology, and Social Science & Medicine and is often featured in the media. You can learn more about Joanna Kempner at www.joannakempner.com.