Emese Biró

Emese Biró is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Sociology at Károli Gáspár University of the Reformed Church in Hungary, where she has been employed since at least 2016. She serves as the Departmental Erasmus Coordinator for the Sociology Department and is affiliated with the Institute of Social and Communication Sciences within the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences. Prior to her current position, she worked as a research associate at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences Social Science Research Center Institute of Sociology, and as a lecturer at both Corvinus University of Budapest and Pázmány Péter Catholic University.

Dr. Biró's research interests span multiple interconnected fields including qualitative methods, film sociology, family sociology, gender roles, and particularly women in the ministry. Her work demonstrates a consistent focus on how gender dynamics operate within religious institutions, family structures, and cultural representations. She has made significant contributions to understanding the experiences of women clergy in Protestant churches in Hungary, examining their career trajectories, work-life balance challenges, and gendered division of labor within clergy couples.

Her publication record shows a clear trajectory from early work on film sociology and gender representation in cinema toward increasingly focused research on women in religious ministry. The most recent publications (2023-2025) almost exclusively address clergywomen's experiences, indicating this has become her primary research focus. She has also maintained a parallel research stream on prison sociology and prisoner reintegration, examining how family and peer relationships affect rehabilitation outcomes.

• Publication of the Year Award (KRE, 2024)

Dr. Biró is actively involved in multiple research projects, most notably the ongoing "Women in the Ministry" project (NKFI K-128313) led by Emőke Török. She has participated in several European research initiatives including the FP7 "Families and Societies" project. Her international engagement includes Erasmus+ teaching mobility at Sapientia Hungarian University of Transylvania in 2022 and regular participation in European Sociological Association conferences.

As a member of the Hungarian Sociological Association, the Hungarian Academy of Sciences Public Body, and the European Sociological Association (including Research Network 14 on Gender relations), Dr. Biró maintains strong connections within the sociological community. Her work bridges sociology of religion, gender studies, and family sociology, making significant contributions to understanding the intersection of these fields in the Hungarian context.