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Timothy O'Brien

  • Associate Professor, Sociology
  • Director of Undergraduate Studies, Sociology

Education

  • PhD, Sociology, Indiana University
  • MA, Sociology, Indiana University
  • BS, Sociology/Psychology, University of Wyoming

Office Hours

  • Bolton Hall, Office #740
  • By appointment only

Courses Taught

  • SOCIOL 101: Introduction to Sociology
  • SOCIOL 261: Introduction to Statistical Thinking in Sociology
  • SOCIOL 342: Sociology of Law
  • SOCIOL 750: Research Methods in Sociology

Research Interests

  • Institutions
  • Culture
  • Social cognition

Selected Publications

Noy, S. & O'Brien, T.L. (2024) "Science and the Pulplit: Clerical Perspectives on Science and Religion in the United States." Jounral for the Scientific Study of Religion. http://doi.org/10.1111/jssr.12917
Massey, G. and O'Brien,T.L. (editors) (2023) Readings for Sociology, 10th Edition. 2023. New York, NY: WW Norton.
O'Brien, T. L. (2023) Ethnicity, Imprisonment, and Confidence in Police and Courts: Evidence from an International Survey. Social Problems 1-19.
O'Brien, T. L., Hawkins, S. L., & Loesch, A. (2022) Scientific Disciplines and the Admissibility of Expert Evidence in Courts. Socius: Sociological Research for a Dynamic World. 8: 1–14. 
Noy, S, & O'Brien, T. L. (2021) Learning Right from Wrong: A Cross-national Analysis of Education, National Scientific Investment, and the Morality of Science. Science, Technology, & Human Values. 1-29.
O'Brien, T. L., & Noy, S. (2020) Political Identity and Confidence in Science and Religion in the United States. Sociology of Religion, 81(4), 439-461.
O'Brien, T. L.(2020) Racing justice: Mass Incarceration and Perceptions of Courts. Social Science Research. 90. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssresearch.2020.102443.
Gauchat, G. W., O'Brien, T. L., & Mirosa, O. (2017) The Legitimacy of Environmental Scientists in the Public Sphere. Climatic Change, 143(3-4), 297-306.
O'Brien, T. L., & Noy, S. (2015) Traditional, Modern, and Post-Secular Perspectives on Science and Religion in the United States. American Sociological Review, 80(1), 92-115.