Tricia C. Bruce, PhD

Sociologist. Author. Researcher. Speaker.

Tricia C. Bruce, PhD, is a Senior Research Fellow with the Institute for Advanced Catholic Studies, a 2025-2026 Affiliate of the Center for the Study of Religion & Society at the University of Notre Dame, President-Elect of the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion, and a five-time marathoner. She served previously as President of the Association for the Sociology of Religion, a papal-appointed consultor to the Synod on Synodality, and a tenured professor. She is the author of numerous award-winning books, articles, and reports in the sociology of religion and U.S. Catholicism.

Happenings

  • Reviews for Polarization in the US Catholic Church

    It’s great to see a positive reception to my new volume, coedited with Mary Ellen Konieczny (U. of Notre Dame) and Charlie Camosy (Fordham U.). Here’s a sampling of reviews: “Polarization is one of the gravest illnesses infecting the US Catholic… Continue reading

  • NEW BOOK OUT TODAY: Polarization in the US Catholic Church

    A great new edited volume, Polarization in the US Catholic Church is out TODAY with Liturgical Press. Edited by myself, Mary Ellen Konieczny, and Charlie Camosy, the volume features contributions by an impressive mix of sociologists, theologians, Catholic leaders, and… Continue reading

    NEW BOOK OUT TODAY: Polarization in the US Catholic Church

  • Organizational Innovation & Religion

    A brand new Handbook of Religion and Society (Springer 2016) edited by David Yamane is now out, featuring a chapter I coauthored with Josh Packard on organizational innovation! This volume offers an exceptional resource for understanding religion at the nexus of social… Continue reading

    Organizational Innovation & Religion

  • Everyday Religion

    How much does high religiosity (praying and attending services frequently) matter for everyday behaviors? A PEW report presents new findings on this question, and I offered commentary at the invitation of WBIR in Knoxville. View the video here.   Continue reading

  • Coming soon…

    The Amazon listing is now live for my forthcoming co-edited volume with Mary Ellen Koniecnzy and Charlie Camosy, Polarization in the US Catholic Church (Liturgical Press). With a release date set in the midst of the 2016 election season, the book brings… Continue reading

  • “The State of Faith in Tennessee, 2015” (NPR-Knoxville)

    I was pleased to participate in an engaging conversation today as an invited guest on WUOT (NPR-Knoxville)’s “Dialogue” show with Brandon Hollingsworth. Building upon findings from the PEW Religious Landscape Study, today’s hour-long conversation considered what trends in religious affiliation among Tennessee & U.S. adults mean for… Continue reading

    “The State of Faith in Tennessee, 2015” (NPR-Knoxville)

  • Seeing the Parish with the Sociological Imagination (TAPP Update)

    The American Parish Project (TAPP), led by Drs. Gary Adler, Brian Starks, and myself, recently generated a newsletter summarizing new research discussed at this summer’s Seminar on the American Parish. This newsletter went out to all U.S. dioceses with the aim of generating engaged… Continue reading

    Seeing the Parish with the Sociological Imagination (TAPP Update)

  • API Catholics: Presenting Study Findings to the U.S. Bishops Conference

    After an intensive, mixed-method, national study of Asian and Pacific Islander Catholics in the United States, I and co-PI Dr. Stephen Cherry presented our findings to the Fall 2015 gathering of the U.S. Bishops Conference in Baltimore, MD. It was wonderful… Continue reading

    API Catholics: Presenting Study Findings to the U.S. Bishops Conference

  • SheSource Expert Media Profile

    I am pleased to now be including among the experts in SheSource, “an online braintrust of female experts on diverse topics designed to serve journalists, producers and bookers who need female guests and sources.” View my full SheSource profile here. I… Continue reading

  • Moved

    The following is a rough script of a message I delivered for a Maryville College Chapel Service on Tuesday, September 22, 2015. There are two mass movements of people underway today. One is the mass movement of Syrians, fleeing a… Continue reading

engaging A Sociological Perspective

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