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Andrea Willson - Associate Professor
PhD, Sociology, Florida State University
Andrea Willson is a sociologist who studies social inequality over the life course, particularly the role of cumulative experience on inequalities in health. Her research has investigated the impact of childhood disadvantage on adult health trajectories, the role of social mobility on health, and the transmission of health inequality across generations. Dr. Willson’s current projects focus disability and social inequality, including institutional barriers to education and employment for autistic young adults.
Andrea Willson is a sociologist who studies social inequality over the life course, particularly the role of cumulative experience on inequalities in health. Her research has investigated the impact of childhood disadvantage on adult health trajectories, the role of social mobility on health, and the transmission of health inequality across generations. Dr. Willson’s current projects focus disability and social inequality, including institutional barriers to education and employment for autistic young adults.
Areas of Specialization
- Social inequalities in health
- Disability
- Sociology of mental health
- Aging and the life course
Selected Publications
- Willson, Andrea E., Kim M. Shuey, and Vesna Pajovic. 2024. “Disability and the Widening Gap in Mid-life Wealth Accumulation: A Longitudinal Examination.” Research in Social Stratification and Mobility, 90, April 2024, 100896.
- Møller, Sanne P., Andrea E. Willson, Lau C. Thygesen. 2024. “Childhood Poverty Trajectories and Trajectories of Healthcare Contacts in Adolescence and Young Adulthood.” Advances in Life Course Research, 62, 100640.
- Heidinger, Loanna S. and Andrea E. Willson. 2022. “The Lasting Imprint of Childhood Disadvantage: Cumulative Histories of Exposure to Childhood Adversity and Trajectories of Psychological Distress in Adulthood.” Longitudinal and Life Course Studies. 13(1):121-144.
- Shuey, Kim M., Andrea E. Willson, Travis Hackshaw. 2021. “Family Structure and Parents’ Health:Implications for the Reproduction of Health Inequality across Generations.” Journal of Family Issues, 42(7):1559-1581.
- Willson, Andrea E. and Kim M. Shuey. 2019. “A Longitudinal Analysis of the Intergenerational Transmission of Health Inequality.” The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 74(1):181-191.