Wendy Bottero

Professor Wendy Bottero is a Reader in Sociology at the University of Manchester, where she has served as Head of Sociology (2013-2016). Her research focuses on social hierarchies, inequalities in personal ties, and cultural practices such as family history and music sociology. Bottero holds a PhD from the University of Edinburgh and has held academic positions at the University of Abertay, University of Southampton, and Cambridge University's Family History Project.

• Education: BA in Social and Political Sciences (University of Cambridge); PhD (University of Edinburgh)

Her research interests span three interconnected areas: stratification measurement, class subjectivities, and cultural practices like music and family history. Her book A Sense of Inequality (2020) explores the subjective experience of social inequality. Bottero supervises PhD students in stratification, social mobility, and identity studies.

Her articles address themes such as social interaction neglect, class dynamics, and genealogical identity practices. Recent work includes analyzing 'grudging acts' in social relations and the role of convention in music worlds.

• Prizes: 2015 SAGE Cultural Sociology Prize (twice awarded)

Bottero has reviewed PhD theses on topics like Chilean societal respect and working-class pub cultures. She serves on the editorial board of Cultural Sociology and contributes to esteem indicators assessments.

Her research bridges theoretical sociology with empirical studies of everyday life, emphasizing how social connections both reveal and obscure systemic inequalities.