Chris Wakefield

Chris Wakefield is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at Whitman College. Professor Wakefield teaches courses topic courses in crime and sexuality, as well as introductory sociology and social statistics.

Professor Wakefield’s research addresses efforts to use both formal and informal mechanisms of social control to constrain sexual behaviors, sexual desires, and sexual relationships. Using both qualitative and quantitative research methods, Wakefield’s work examines how law, definitions of what is “normal”, and sexuality collide in American society.

Professor Wakefield’s co-authored book, “Paying for Sex in the Digital Age: US and UK Perspectives” compares the beliefs, practices, and self-reported experiences of men who purchase sex from sex workers (often referred to as “clients” or “johns”). Representing one of the first times empirical data has been used to differentiate legal contexts both within and beyond the United States, the book reveals how clients of sex workers understand their relationships with sex workers, violence, and how they respond to legal boundaries around their purchasing behaviors.

Professor Wakefield’s work also extends into the management of released sex offenders. Their dissertation work addresses the long-term experiences of individuals under sex offender registries, including their relationships with family members, the community, intimate partners, treatment providers, supervising officers, and the changing legal system.

Wakefield is originally from upstate New York, but also calls Las Vegas, NV a second home city. Professor Wakefield loves stuffed animals and invites any student to come select one when visiting their office.