Elisabeth Stephanie Clemens is an American sociologist, who is currently the William Rainey Harper Distinguished Service Professor of Sociology and the college at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...

. Clemens's research is focused on

social movements A social movement is a loosely organized effort by a large group of people to achieve a particular goal, typically a Social issue, social or political one. This may be to carry out a social change, or to resist or undo one. It is a type of Group ...

, organizations, and

American political development American political development (often abbreviated as APD) is a subfield of political science that studies the historical development of politics in the United States. In American political science departments, it is considered a subfield within Am ...

. As of 2016, Clemens has served as editor-in-chief of the ''

American Journal of Sociology The ''American Journal of Sociology'' is a peer-reviewed bi-monthly academic journal that publishes original research and book reviews in the field of sociology and related social sciences. It was founded in 1895 as the first journal in its disci ...

''.

Education and career

Clemens holds a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

in social studies from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

, and in 1990 she graduated from the

with a PhD in sociology. At the University of Chicago, Clemens completed her dissertation supervised by

Theda Skocpol Theda Skocpol (born May 4, 1947) is an American sociologist and political scientist, who is currently the Victor S. Thomas Professor of Government and Sociology at Harvard University. She is a highly influential figure in both sociology and poli ...

, Wendy Griswold, and

Edward O. Laumann Edward Otto Laumann (born August 31, 1938) is an American sociologist. He is the George Herbert Mead Distinguished Service Professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Chicago. Laumann earned his Ph.D. in the Harvard Department ...

. From 1990 to 2002, Clemens was a professor at the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first university in the Arizona Territory. T ...

, before returning to her alma mater the University of Chicago as professor sociology in 2002. Clemens served as department chair from 2012 to 2015, and from 2012 to 2013 she served as president of the

Social Science History Association The Social Science History Association, formed in 1976, brings together scholars from numerous disciplines interested in social history. : Its statement of purpose is: "To bring together members of various disciplines (including economics, sociol ...

. In 2016, Clemens assumed the role of editor-in-chief of the ''American Journal of Sociology'', the discipline's first journal in the United States, from

Andrew Abbott Andrew Delano Abbott (born November 1948) is an American sociologist and social theorist working at the University of Chicago. His research topics range from occupations and professions to the philosophy of methods, the history of academic disc ...

who had held the position since 2000.

''The People's Lobby''

Clemens's first book ''The People's Lobby: Organizational Innovation and the Rise of Interest Group Politics in the United States, 1890–1925'', which derived from her dissertation research, argues that beginning in the late nineteenth century American politics was transformed from a system oriented around political party organizations and elections to one oriented around interest groups. This shift was instigated by what Clemens refers to as 'the people's lobby', groups of citizens and voters that influenced party politics through novel forms of civic engagement, which bypassed traditional political processes. Clemens investigates the emergence of the people's lobby across the American states California,

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

, and

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

, arguing that

federalism Federalism is a combined or compound mode of government that combines a general government (the central or "federal" government) with regional governments (Province, provincial, State (sub-national), state, Canton (administrative division), can ...

allowed for distinct regional variations. The book was awarded the

American Sociological Association The American Sociological Association (ASA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing the discipline and profession of sociology. Founded in December 1905 as the American Sociological Society at Johns Hopkins University by a group of fif ...

's Section on Organizations, Occupations, and Work's

Max Weber Maximilian Karl Emil Weber (; ; 21 April 186414 June 1920) was a German sociologist, historian, jurist and political economist, who is regarded as among the most important theorists of the development of modern Western society. His ideas profo ...

Book award in 1998 as well as the Political Sociology Section's Outstanding Contribution to Political Sociology award in 1999. Clemens's research developed in ''The People's Lobby'' is regarded as engaging with theories of sociological institutions with a focus on organizational innovation. Her scholarship on institutions has been discussed in reviews of sociological literature on social movements and

institutionalism Institutionalism may refer to: * Institutional theory, an approach to the study of politics that focuses on formal institutions of government * New institutionalism, a social theory that focuses on developing a sociological view of institutions, the ...

Bibliography

Sole-authored books

* * *

Co-edited books

* * *

References

External links

Elisabeth S. Clemens, University Chicago Faculty Homepage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clemens, Elisabeth S. Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Harvard College alumni University of Chicago alumni University of Arizona faculty University of Chicago faculty Political sociologists American women sociologists American sociologists American women political scientists American political scientists 20th-century American women writers 20th-century American social scientists 21st-century American social scientists 21st-century American women writers American Journal of Sociology editors