Whitney Frierson
Lecturer in Sociology
Dr. Whitney Frierson is a Lecturer in the Department of Sociology. Her teaching and scholarly interests include race/ethnicity, education, and gender, with a particular focus on mental health and well-being. Her scholarship has appeared in Sociological Focus, Teachers College Record, and Society and Mental Health. Her current research examines how discrimination impacts the well-being of Black Ph.D. students and the strategies they use to cope with stressors.
Dr. Frierson received a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and African American Studies and a Master of Arts in Sociology from the University of Arkansas. She completed her Ph.D. in Sociology at Vanderbilt University.
Specializations
Race and Ethnicity; Education; Gender; Mental Health and Well-Being
Representative Publications
Frierson, Whitney and Christy L. Erving. 2025. “The Moderating Role of Educational Attainment in the Association Between Social Support and Depressive Symptoms Among African Americans.” Sociological Focus 58(1): 51-77.
McGee, Ebony O., Terrell R. Morton, Devin T. White, and Whitney R. Frierson. 2023. “Accelerating Racial Activism in STEM Higher Education by Institutionalizing Equity Ethics.” Teachers College Record 125(9):108-139.
Erving, Christy L., Tiffany R. Williams, Whitney Frierson, and Megan Derisse. 2022. “Gendered Racial Microaggressions, Psychosocial Resources, and Depressive Symptoms among Black Women Attending a Historically Black University.” Society and Mental Health 12(3):230-247.