Benjamin Cornwell

Benjamin Cornwell received his Ph.D. in sociology at the University of Chicago in 2007. He is currently an associate professor of sociology at Cornell University. His research focuses on the implications of socially networked and sequenced social processes for individuals and organizations – and, in particular, how such processes shape social stratification. He has documented the role of social network structure in a wide variety of processes, including the sale of drugs, risky sexual practices, sexual health, health, access to valuable resources like credit and expertise, and the decline of unions. His most recent work on social sequence analysis demonstrates how the ordering of social phenomena affects a variety of phenomena including the stress process and the creation of social networks themselves.

His most recent research focuses on (1) refining the measurement of change in egocentric social networks and (2) the application of social network methods to the analysis of ordered or sequenced social phenomena. With respect to the former, he recently devised a novel survey technique to collect the first nationally representative data on egocentric network change (through The National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project). His analysis of the resulting data has already provided insight into how social networks actually change in later life and how such changes relate to well-being, and how this process differs by race and socio-economic status. His research on the dynamic nature of social networks in later life has been covered in dozens of media outlets, including CNN, The Huffington Post, MSNBC, The New York Times, Chicago Tribune, and LA Times. He has also discussed this work on several radio talk shows, and during a live appearance on “Chicago Tonight.”