HELLO, I'M
Ellen Meiser
Sociologist and Writer.
Ellen T. Meiser, PhD
About
MY BACKGROUND
Alaska-grown writer and sociologist interested in qualitative research, with expertise in social psychology, emotions, and the culinary industry. Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of Hawai'i at Hilo.
And co-creator and co-host of The Social Breakdown, the sociology podcast nobody wants,
but everybody needs.
Education
2015-2021
University of Hawai'i at Manoa – Honolulu, HI
Doctor of Philosophy Degree, Sociology
Dissertation title: "Making It: Success, Mediocrity,
and Failure in the Commercial Kitchen"
2012-2014
University of Hawai'i at Manoa -- Honolulu, HI
Masters of Arts Degree, Asian Studies (China)
Thesis title: "Human Smuggling from China's Fujian Province
to New York City"
2007-2011
University of Alaska Anchorage -- Anchorage, AK
Bachelor of Arts Degree, Hospitality Business Management
2008-2009
Culinary Institute of America -- St. Helena, CA
Certificate, Baking and Pastry
Publications
Making It: Success in the Commercial Kitchen. (October 2024) Rutgers University Press.
You can get 30% by using code "RUSA30" at Rutgers University Press!
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"Restaurants." With Eli Wilson. (2025) Oxford Bibliographies - Food Studies.
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"Artificial Intelligence and the Human Apocalypse: A Case Study Assignment." (2024) ASA TRAILS.
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"Hotpot as a Reflection of Societal Changes." (2024) Contexts.
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"$50K Per Year for a Degree in a Low-wage Industry − Is Culinary School Worth It?" (March 19, 2024) The Conversation.
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"Sociology of Disaster Syllabus." (2024) ASA TRAILS.
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"Rethinking Service-learning to be More Public and Creative." (2023) The Society Page's First Publics
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"Dangerous Workplaces and the Counterintuitive Value of Scars." (2023) ASA's Work In Progress.
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"'It was, ugh, it was so gnarly. And I kept going': The Cultural Significance of Scars in the Workplace." (2023) Qualitative Sociology.
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"The Social Construction of Money: A Theatrical Classroom Exercise.” (2023) ASA TRAILS.
"The Value of the Taiwanese Caishichang: A Photo Essay." (2023) Gastronomica: The Journal for Food Studies.
DOI:10.1525/gfc.2023.23.2.95
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"How Did Abuse Get Baked Into the Restaurant Industry?" with Eli R. Wilson. (May 11, 2023) The Conversation. This article was also translated into Japanese for The Big Issue and can be found here!
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"Avoiding, Resisting and Eduring: A New Typology of Worker Responses to Workplace Violence." With Eli Wilson. (2023) Work, Employment and Society. DOI:10.1177/09500170231159845
​“Theoretical Script Writing: A Creative Project for Social Theory Courses.” (2022) ASA TRAILS.
"The Normalization of Violence in Commercial Kitchens Through Food Media.” With Penn Pantumsinchai. (2021) Journal of Interpersonal Violence. DOI:10.1177/08862605211005138
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“Podcasting and Pedagogy.” (2021) City University of New York, the Center for the Humanities.
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"Resource Guide for Improving Diversity and Inclusion Programs for the Public Transportation Industry." With Dave Keen and Janine Kyritsis. (2021) The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. DOI:10.17226/25230
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“Understanding Discrimination Through Multimedia.” (2020) ASA TRAILS.
Screenwriting
When I'm not teaching and researching, I work on creative writing projects like screenplays. I'm repped by Thuan Dang and Golda Calonge at Sweater LA. You can find my work on The Black List here. ​
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Click on the script to the right to read a synopsis of "Frankentits," a memoir-ish screenplay that was sold to Tubi via The Black List "To Be Commissioned" Initiative! Prior it had received a score of 8 on The Black List twice, was selected for Stowe Story Labs' June 2024 Narrative Lab, and was a Final Draft Big Break 2024 quarter-finalist.
And you can click on the image to the left to read a synopsis of
"The Last Suburb," a limited comedy series set in post-apocalyptic Alaska.
The Social Breakdown
Listen to Penn, Omar, and I breakdown our complex world one topic at a time using our sociological imagination!
Reviews and Media Coverage
"Our Favorite Interviews of 2024." New Books Network, January 9, 2025.
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"Tubi and The Black List Announce Finalists." Tubi, November 26, 2024
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"Tubi & The Black List Announce Finalists For 'To Be Commissioned' Initiative." Deadline, November 26, 2024
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"UH Alumni: Ellen Meiser authors book on the culinary industry" University of Hawai'i Systems News, November 8, 2024
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"Sociologist Ellen Meiser publishes book on Making It: Success in the Commercial Kitchen" UH Hilo Stories, October 16, 2024
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"Meet the Alumni Author of Making It: Success in the Commercial Kitchen" UH Alumni, October 14, 2024
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"Scars of success: Trap House Chicken chef embraces kitchen mishaps" Jacksonville Today, May 14, 2024
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"Lower satisfaction with Hawaiʻi Island police contradicts experiences" University of Hawai'i News, June 1, 2023​
"UH Hilo students conduct study on East Hawai‘i policing, share findings at community forum attended by police chief and mayor" UH Hilo Stories, May 24, 2023​
"Police chief talks trust during EHCC panel discussion" Hawaii Tribune-Herald, May 22, 2023
"Hilo’s EHCC Marks History As Former Police Station With May 20 Talk" Big Island Video News, May 10, 2023
"UH Hilo sociology class holds Food Studies Teach-In" UH Hilo Stories, May 5, 2023
"Podcast Review: The Social Breakdown" Teaching Sociology,
Dec. 4, 2021
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"Study Reveals How Shows Like Hell's Kitchen Are Making the Restaurant Industry Worse" Mashed.com, Aug. 26, 2021
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"How Food Media Warps Our View of Real-World Kitchen Abuse" New York Magazine, Aug. 25, 2021
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Other Podcast and Radio Appearances
Uncommon Sense - "Scars, with Ellen T. Meiser"
New Books Network: Sociology - "Making It"
The Sociologist's Dojo - "Episode 39: Freddie Got Fingered with Dr. Ellen Meiser"
The Academic Minute - "Ellen Meiser, University of Hawaii at Hilo – Enduring the Heat of the Kitchen"
Gastronomica - "Ellen Meiser on Taipei's Daytime Street Markets"
The Sociologist's Dojo - "Episode 21: The Lord of the Rings with Dr. Ellen Meiser"
The Sociologist's Dojo - "Episode 10: The Godfather Saga with Dr. Ellen Meiser"
The Sociologist's Dojo - "Episode 4: The Big Lebowski Featuring Ellen Meiser"
Queens Podcast Lab - "Meet the Social Breakdown Podcast"
Queens Podcast Lab - "New Digital Inequalities (Matt Rafalow)"
Queens Podcast Lab - "Inequality in the Restaurant Industry (Eli Wilson)"
Professional Activities
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"Content Creation as Public Sociology Service-learning" workshop presented at the American Sociological Association 2023 conference
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Editorial Board Member of ASA Teaching Resources and Innovations Library for Sociology (TRAILS), 2023-2026
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President of the Hawai'i Sociological Association,
2022-2023
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“Movement, Scars, and Taste: Embodying Cultural Capital in Commercial Kitchens” presented at a paper session at the American Sociological Association 2022 conference
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“Podcasts in the Classroom” webinar sponsored by Teaching Sociology journal on August 18, 2021
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“Enduring, Avoiding and Resisting: Responses to Workplace Violence in Commercial Kitchens” presented with coauthor Dr. Eli R. Wilson virtually at a roundtable session at the American Sociological Association 2021 conference
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“Working Outside of Academia” workshop presented virtually at the Hawaii Sociological Association 2021 conference
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“How to Podcast in the Academy: Legitimizing and Creating Alternative Media” workshop presented virtually at the American Sociological Association 2020 conference​
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“The Normalization of Abuse in Commercial Kitchens Through Food Media” presented virtually at a roundtable session at the American Sociological Association 2020 conference
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“Resisting Abuse in the Commercial Kitchen” presented at the Canadian Sociological Association 2020 (conference cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic)​​
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“Podcasting and Public Sociology: Alternative Forms of Knowledge” workshop presented at the Association for Applied and Clinical Sociology 2019 conference
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“Hawaii’s Opportunity Probation with Enforcement: Research Opportunities” presented at the Society for the Study of Social Problems 2016 conference
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“Race-Specific and General Theories of Crime and the Reporting of Crime” presented at the Hawai'i Sociological Association 2017 conference
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“Crime Reporting and Theories of Crime” presented at the Society for the Study of Social Problems 2017 conference​