Laura Grindstaff

Laura Grindstaff is an Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of California, Davis. She holds a Ph.D. from the University of California, Santa Barbara. Her research focuses on cultural sociology, gender studies, and media analysis, particularly examining popular culture's role in shaping gender, race, and class relations. She is affiliated with the Cinema & Digital Media program at UC Davis.

Dr. Grindstaff's work includes her first book, The Money Shot, analyzing daytime TV talk shows, and her ongoing research on cheerleading as a cultural script for gender and sexuality. She explores reality television's sociological implications, emphasizing ordinary celebrity and self-service media. Her recent scholarship addresses institutional bias in academia, STEM inclusion, and Latinx academic trajectories.

Her research methods involve ethnography, participant observation, and in-depth interviews. She has published extensively on topics ranging from media representation to gender performance. Her current projects include a second book on cheerleading culture and studies on Latinas in STEM fields.