BIOGRAPHY
Dr. Sergio Chávez is an associate professor of sociology at Rice University who specializes in domestic and international migration, economic sociology, and social networks. One of his favorite things about sociology is the arsenal of tools for studying economic change.
Through his distinctively intensive fieldwork, Dr. Chávez builds trust and interpersonal connections with hard-to-find populations, whether with migrant workers or entrepreneurs. His first book, a multi-year project titled Border Lives (2016), leverages this access to examine the dynamic migration and working strategies border migrants and commuters employ daily in the cross-border urban environment of Tijuana to improve their lives. This unique access allows him to make important methodological contributions; another piece of scholarship showcased the novel application of network sampling among hard-to-find populations, yielding unique data about a transnational network containing over 5,000 unique individuals.
Dr. Chávez’s current research studies the roofing and storm restoration industry, which has seen significant growth in recent years due to the increase in climate-related natural disasters. This mixed methods project, a binational and multi-stage longitudinal study, fulfills a unique understudied intersection of migration, labor markets, and the business of disaster recovery. It provides vital information about the occupational hazards and workplace struggles faced by workers. In this line of research, he also studies the contractors and industry leaders who generate work for migrant workers and the meaning of disaster recovery for self-discovery. Findings from this and other research projects invite reflection on whether different individuals, when confronted with the same opportunities, would act differently, or whether social and economic structures shape common patterns of behavior.
Dr. Chávez’s research is shaped by his upbringing in California’s Salinas Valley—a place celebrated in the works of John Steinbeck—and his efforts to unravel the stories of those on the move closely echo the valley’s literary legacy. Prior to his arrival at Rice, he received his B.A. in sociology from the University of California Davis and his Ph.D. from Cornell University. He also completed a postdoctoral position at the Carolina Population Center at UNC Chapel Hill.
In his spare time, Dr. Chávez enjoys grilling, traveling with his family, riding his bike along Lake Shore, driving to Hill Country for great barbeque, reading Steven King, watching college football, and listening to old school heavy metal (especially Metallica). His favorite sociological film is Office Space, which pairs well with Max Weber’s scholarship.
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
Books
Sergio Chávez (2016). Border Lives: Fronterizos, Transnational Migrants, and Commuters in Tijuana. New York: Oxford University Press.
Sample Articles
Christina Diaz, Erick Samayoa, Sergio Chávez, and Victoria Bejarano (OnlineFirst). “Away from Home, Into the Fields: Assessing the Health of Undocumented and Indigenous Farmworkers.” Social Science and Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2024.117299
Sergio Chávez, Robert Bozick, and Jing Li (OnlineFirst) “How Housing, Job, and Legal Precarity affect the Sleep of Migrant Workers: A Mixed Methods Study.” Journal of Health and Social Behavior. [link]
Sergio Chávez, Robin Paige, and Heather Edelblute (2021). “Emotion Work and Gender Inequality in Transnational Family Life.” Journal of Family Issues 44(3): 703-724. [link]
Ashton Verdery, Ted Mouw, Heather Edelblute, and Sergio Chávez (2018). “Communication Flows in a Transnational Social Field.” Social Networks 53(May): 57-71. [link]
Ted Mouw, Sergio Chávez, Heather Edelblute, and Ashton Verdery (2014). “Binational Social Networks and Assimilation: A Test of the Importance of Transnationalism.” Social Problems, 61(3): 329-359. [link]