Research

Displays celebrating Durham African American History

Advancing Social Equity Research

Within the Center’s rich interdisciplinary community, our research scholars pursue projects across various fields of inquiry as well as with researchers at Duke and scholars throughout the world.

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Research Themes

The Cook Center organizes its research, programmatic, and scholarship activities into the following domains:

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01

Class, Wealth, & Social Mobility

Documenting the magnitude of racial and ethnic disparities in wealth in the United States.
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02

Health Equity

Investigating the sociocultural, economic, and structural indicators of health to eliminate health-related racial/ethnic and gender disparities.
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03

Education Equity & Policy

Exploring the complex educational challenges facing various subgroups ranging from Pre-Kindergarteners to postsecondary students.
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04

Policing Enforcement & Justice

Advancing research on the mechanisms that produce and maintain inequities within the criminal legal system and its broader consequences on society.
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05

Environmental Justice

Focusing on the behavioral, social, cultural, and technological aspects of the global climate crisis for meaningful incorporation into environmental policy and decision making.
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06

Visual Narratives of Inequality

Amplifying marginalized voices, highlighting inequitable systemic practices, and advancing social justice in North Carolina and beyond. 
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07

Artificial Intelligence & Inequality

Understanding the ethical and sociopolitical stakes of technological developments, automated systems, and artificial intelligence.

Journal Articles

front of bank

Adding stress in banking: Stress tests and risk-taking sentiments

Authors: Raffi E. García, Jyothsna G. Harithsa, and Abena Owusu Journal: Journal of Corporate Finance…
community disease spread

Homophily and social mixing in a small community: Implications for infectious disease transmission

Authors: Dana K. Pasquale, Whitney Welsh, Keisha L. Bentley-Edwards, Andrew Olson, Madelynn C. Wellons &…
Black woman holding two stacks of differing coins

Setting the Record Straight on Racial Wealth Inequality

Authors: Fenaba R. Addo, William A. Darity Jr., and Samuel L. Myers Jr. Journal: AEA…

Testing Intergroup Contact Theory Through a Natural Experiment of Randomized College Roommate Assignments in the United States

Authors: Analía F. Albuja, Sarah E. Gaither, Diana T. Sanchez, and Jaelyn Nixon Journal: Journal…
Overhead view on black letters carved on small wooden blocks spelling wealth or health on wood table surface

Foreword – Special Issue on Health Equity

Authors: Mónica García-Pérez Journal: American Journal of Health Economics Abstract: This special issue of the American…
traffic stop police

DOJ Intervention and the Checkpoint Shift: Profiling Hispanic Motorists under the 287(g) Program

Authors: Joaquín Alfredo-Angel Rubalcaba, Alberto Ortega, and Prentiss A. Dantzler Journal: AEA Papers and Proceedings…
Blue measuring scale with a red tape measure.

Black Feminism and Womanism: A Narrative Review of the Weight Loss Literature

Authors: Loneke T. Blackman Carr and Jameta Nicole Barlow Journal: Ethnicity & Disease Abstract: Black…
heart-shaped bowl of fruits and vegetables, diabetes instrument

Food as Medicine: FOODRx for Patients with Diabetes and Cardiovascular Disease in Central Minnesota—A PILOT STUDY

Authors: Mónica García-Pérez, Alexandra De Kesel Lofthus, David Tilstra, Kevin Switzer, and Kristen Williamson Journal:…

Books and Book Chapters

With Faith in God and Heart and Mind: A History of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity

Authors: Maurice J. Hobson, Eddie R. Cole, Jim C. Harper, and Derrick P. Alridge Book…
W. E. B. Du Bois

Book chapter – Redress or Socialism? W. E. B. Du Bois’s Silence on Black American Reparations

Chapter Authors: James B. Stewart and William A. Darity, Jr. Book: The Oxford Handbook of…

Book Chapter – Considering Multiracial Youth: Identity Challenges and Health Outcomes

Authors: Brenda Straka and Sarah Gaither Abstract: Health professionals who care for children will find…
The Black Reparations Project

The Black Reparations Project: A Handbook for Racial Justice

Overview This groundbreaking resource moves us from theory to action with a practical plan for…
vital and valuable

Vital and Valuable: The Relevance of HBCUs to American Life and Education

Overview Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are a crucial element of higher education in…

Book Chapter – Stratification Economics: A Primer and an Explanation on Opposition to Affirmative Action

Chapter Authors: Lucas Hubbard and William A. Darity Jr. Book: Handbook on Economics of Discrimination…
Pandemic Divide book cover

The Pandemic Divide: How COVID Increased Inequality in America

Overview As COVID-19 made inroads in the United States in spring 2020, a common refrain…
A dream defaulted book cover

A Dream Defaulted: The Student Loan Crisis Among Black Borrowers

About the book A Dream Defaulted explores how the student loan crisis disproportionately affects Black borrowers…

Reports, Briefs, and Essays

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Black Reparations and Child Well-Being: A Framework and Policy Considerations

Authors: Lisa A. Gennetian, Christina Gibson-Davis, & William A. Darity Jr. Journal: National Bureau of…

Gender Differences in Remote Learning amid COVID-19

Authors: Sungmee Kim and Tim Sass Publisher: Andrew Young School of Policy at Georgia State…

Teacher Recruitment and Retention Trends Across North Carolina and the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Authors: Lauren Fox, Sara Howell, Ashley Kazouh, Elizabeth Paul, and Jessica Peacock Research Advisors: Keisha…

What the Durham Police Department Can Do to Enhance Safety and Earn Trust

Authors: Ajenai Clemmons Summary: This report contains the findings of an academic study Ajenai Clemmons…

Income Supplements versus Building Assets and the Racial Wealth Gap: Tax Policies

Authors: William A. Darity Jr, William Gale, Mónica García-Pérez, and Nora Cahill Executive Summary: The…

Understanding the Effects of Windfalls: What People Do with Financial Payouts, and What It Means for Policy

Authors: Katherine Rodgers, Sydney A. Grissom, Lucas Hubbard, and William A. Darity Jr. Abstract: What…
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Prison Hospital Data Is Omitted From Federal Data Sets

Authors: Michael Forrest Behne, Joshua A. Barocas, Josiah D. Rich, and Lauren Brinkley-Rubinstein Abstract: Given…
two headshots of W. H. Hutt and James Buchanan

Setting the Record Straight on the Libertarian South African Economist W. H. Hutt and James M. Buchanan

Authors: William Darity Jr., M’Balou Camara, and Nancy MacLean Abstract: In their stormy response to…

Research News

Loneke Blackman Carr

New paper from Loneke Blackman Carr published in Eating Behaviors

Faculty Affiliate Loneke Blackman Carr, Assistant Professor of Nutritional Sciences at the University of…

Professional headshot of Sungmee Kim

Sungmee Kim Authors Working Paper Highlighting Link Between Remote Learning and Increased Risk of Child Maltreatment

A new working paper by Sungmee Kim, Ph.D., Cook Center Postdoctoral Associate, sheds light…

New Book from Core Faculty Adam Hollowell and Keisha Bentley-Edwards Explores Disability Justice Through the Lens of Stratification Economics

The Samuel DuBois Cook Center on Social Equity is proud to celebrate the release…

Sarah Gaither headshot

Sarah Gaither co-authors new paper on racial ambiguity in Journal of Experimental Social Psychology

Faculty Affiliate Sarah E. Gaither co-authored a paper in the Journal of Experimental Social…

from here to equality book 2

From Here to Equality one of Oklahoma’s bestselling books for week of May 25

The second edition of From Here to Equality: Reparations for Black Americans in the…

Professional headshot of Sungmee Kim

Sungmee Kim presents at the 2025 Triangle Economics of Education Workshop

On May 14, 2025, the Duke Center for Child & Family Policy hosted the…

Keisha Bentley-Edwards leads research to address kidney health disparities

Core Faculty Affiliate Keisha Bentley-Edwards led a research team in examining the way CKD…

Sarah Gaither headshot

Sarah Gaither co-authors chapter in Handbook of Experimental Social Psychology

Faculty Affiliate Sarah E. Gaither co-authored a chapter in the Handbook of Experimental Social…