Professor Bockman is a specialist in economic sociology, sociology of globalization, and East European Studies. Her book Markets in the Name of Socialism: The Left-Wing Origins of Neoliberalism was published this year by Stanford University Press. In her research, Bockman uses comparative and historical methods, moving beyond studies of nation states to explorations of transnational trends, such as neoliberalism and the non-aligned movement. She is now working on Yugoslav connections with South America (Chile and Peru in particular) and the 1980s debt crisis, as part of broader project on non-capitalist globalizations and economic practices. Her blog Sociology in My Neighborhood: DC Ward 6 explores globalization, neoliberalism, and gentrification in southeast DC. She received her PhD in sociology from the University of California, San Diego, in 2000.

To fund research and writing, Bockman has received fellowships and grants from various institutions, including the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS), Harvard University’s Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies, the International Research and Exchanges Board (IREX), the Library of Congress’ John W. Kluge Center, Mason’s Center for Global Studies, and Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.

Bockman has had work experience outside academia and enjoys talking with students about internships, jobs, and study abroad opportunities. At the Congressional Research Service, before coming to George Mason University, she wrote reports for Congress on reconstruction assistance in Afghanistan, humanitarian issues in Iraq, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). She teaches courses in contemporary sociological theory, economic sociology, political sociology, globalization studies, and sociology of international development.