The Sexual & Gender Diversity Laboratory
The Sexual & Gender Diversity Lab at UCSC is home to researchers who study the contemporary social and psychological experience of sexual and gender identity beyond the historically privileged categories of cisgender and heterosexual (e.g., ace spectrum, bisexual, gay, kinky, lesbian, nonbinary/genderqueer, pansexual, polyamorous, queer, trans). Projects in the lab take a documentary approach to social science research, in which a central aim is to capture and represent the lived experience of new or newly visible forms of sexuality and gender in the twenty-first century. We use and value multiple methods but most often center qualitative approaches (e.g., narrative, ethnography). Our work is anchored in the concept of scientific activism, in which we seek to produce knowledge that addresses historic social injustices (including invisibility, pathologization, and stigmatization) for individuals diverse in their sexuality and/or gender. Infused within most of our projects is a concern with generational and intersectional patterns in the experience and expression of sexual and gender diversity.
PROSPECTIVE GRADUATE STUDENTS: Professor Hammack will be considering new PhD students in the 2026-2027 admissions cycle. Students whose work fits with the Lab's mission are encouraged to apply.
PROSPECTIVE UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCHERS: There are currently no positions for research assistants available in the Lab. Students interested in pursuing research under Dr. Hammack's supervision are encouraged to propose a senior thesis project. Interested students must have taken a course with Professor Hammack and should meet with him directly to propose a project.