Shannon Jette

Dr. Shannon Jette is an Affiliate Associate Professor in the Department of Kinesiology at the University of Maryland’s School of Public Health. Her work bridges social sciences with health disciplines, focusing on how exercise and fitness practices shape societal understandings of bodily health. She critically examines intersections of race, gender, and policy in sports and medicine, particularly through frameworks like Actor-Network Theory and Foucauldian analysis.

Her research interests include:

• Cultural and historical dimensions of health knowledge
• Governance structures in sport and public health
• Body image negotiation in athletic contexts
• Racial disparities in medical research
• Prenatal exercise guidelines and counseling

Jette’s recent articles reveal persistent engagement with themes like:

• Policy-making in elite sports
• Racialized health data practices
• Technological interventions for aging populations
• Critical analysis of IOC evidence protocols
• Gender equity in fitness testing

As part of the THINC Laboratory, she explores how technologies mediate health contexts. Her work challenges modernist assumptions in health promotion and advocates for inclusive, culturally responsive policies.