Emily McKendry-Smith
Research Interests
Emily is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Sociology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Her research focuses on the intersections of religion, family, and people’s changing social and environmental contexts. In Chitwan, Nepal, Emily is interested in alternative medicine practitioners (guraus and jhakris), their uses of medicinal plants and other natural materials, and their changing use and popularity as Western medicine becomes increasingly accessible. Emily is also interested in new religious movements in Chitwan, such as the Brahma Kumaris, and how women employ religion in navigating their relationships with modernity.
Related Publications/Presentations
McKendry-Smith, Emily. 2009. “Om Shanti and Women’s Family Relationships in Nepal.” Paper presented at the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion, Denver, CO.
McKendry-Smith, Emily. 2009. “Public Household, Private Ashram: The Brahma Kumaris and Public/Private Religion in Nepal.” Working Paper.
McKendry-Smith, Emily. 2009. “Religious Salience, Education, and Spousal Choice in Nepal.” Working Paper.
Pearce, Lisa D., Emily McKendry-Smith, and Shradha Shrestha. 2009. “Religiosity and Support for Using Local Flora in Religious and Healing Rituals.” Working Paper.
