Becky Pettit

Assistant Professor of Sociology, brings the perspectives of demography and economic sociology to the study of social, gender and racial inequalities. Her current projects include a study of the consequences of the rise in the American prison population for the labor market experiences of low-skill men and a study of the role of state policies in institutionalizing gender inequalities in the labor market.

Major Research Projects:

• Institutionalizing Inequality: Gender, Work and Family in Comparative Perspective

Sample Publications:

Western, B.; Pettit, B., (Forthcoming), Mass Imprisonment, Punishment and Inequality in America, Western, B., Russell Sage Foundation, New York.


Bushway, S.; Pettit, B.; Stoll, M. A.; Weiman, D. F.; Lyons, C., (2007), Status and the Stigma of Incarceration: The Labor Market Effects of Incarceration by Race, Class, and Criminal Involvement, In Barriers to reentry? : the labor market for released prisoners in post-industrial America, Russell Sage Foundation, New York.


Pettit, Becky and Jennifer Hook. (2005),. The Structure of Women’s Employment in Comparative Perspective, Social Forces, 84:779-801. 2005.


Western, Bruce and Becky Pettit. (2005), Black-White Wage Inequality, Employment Rates, and Incarceration, American Journal of Sociology, 111:553-578. Winner 2006 James F. Short Jr. Paper Award.

Pettit, Becky. (2004), Moving and Children’s Social Connections: Neighborhood Context and the Consequences of Moving Low-income Families, Sociological Forum, 19:285-311. 2004.

For a complete list of publications by Becky Pettit along with abstracts (where available), visit her page in the poverty research section of the website.

Relevant Courses:

• SOC 352: The Family
• SOC 506: Methodology: Quantitative Techniques in Sociology

Contact Information:

Becky Pettit
Email: bpettit@u.washington.edu
Homepage: http://www.soc.washington.edu/people/faculty_detail.asp?UID=bpettit
Becky Pettit’s CV [ PDF ]