Faculty

- Pronouns he, him, his, his, himself
- Title
- Professor
- Division Social Sciences Division
- Department
- Psychology Department
- Stevenson College
- John R. Lewis College
- Affiliations John R. Lewis College, Stevenson College, Queer and Sexualities Studies
- Phone 831-459-1050
- Fax 831-459-3519
- Website
- Office Location
- Social Sciences 2, 351
- Office Hours (Spring 2023) (In Person) Mondays 1pm - 2pm Soc Sci2 Rm 351
- Mail Stop Psychology Faculty Services
- Faculty Areas of Expertise Sexuality, LGBT+, Psychology, Queer Studies, Social Justice, Social Psychology
- Courses PSYC 140H: Sexual Identity & Society, PSYC 159S: Queer Intimacies, PSYC 255: Qualitative Inquiry in Psychology
- Advisees, Grad Students, Researchers Sam Hughes, Daniel Copulsky, Logan Lettieri Barsigian
Summary of Expertise
Professor Hammack studies sexual and gender identity diversity in social, historical, and political context. His specific interests include how those who hold minoritized sexual or gender identities develop their identities, make meaning of social change, and navigate normativity; queer men’s health, identity development, and sexual cultures in the twenty-first century; sexual subcultures; queer forms of masculinity; intimate diversity, including same-gender relationships, polyamory, kink/fetish relationships, asexuality, and chosen families. His projects employ multiple methods, including narrative, ethnographic, and survey methods. Professor Hammack has also been a leader in the development of narrative theory and the promotion of narrative and other qualitative methods in psychology.
Research Interests
Sexual and gender identity diversity; social change and the life course of those who hold minoritized gender or sexual identities; queer men's health, identity development, and sexual cultures; sexual subcultures; masculinities; intimate diversity, including same-gender relationships, polyamory, kink/fetish/BDSM, asexuality, and chosen families; narrative theory and methods in psychology.
Biography, Education and Training
PhD, University of Chicago
MA, Loyola University, Chicago
AB, Georgetown University
Honors, Awards and Grants
Fellowship, Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University (2017-2018)
R01 Research Grant, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) (2014-2019)
William T. Grant Foundation Scholar Award (2013-2018)
Erik Erikson Early Career Award, International Society of Political Psychology (2013)
Ed Cairns Early Career Award, American Psychological Association, Division 48 (2012)
Spencer Postdoctoral Fellow Award (2011-2012)
Louise Kidder Early Career Award, American Psychological Association, Division 9 (SPSSI) (2011)
Visiting Fellowship, Joan B. Kroc Institute of International Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame (2010-2011)
National Science Foundation, Planning Visit Grant (2009-2010)
United States Institute of Peace, Peace Scholar Dissertation Fellowship (2006)
Spencer Foundation Dissertation Fellowship (2005)
Selected Publications
Hammack, P. L., Hughes, S. D., Atwood, J. M., Cohen, E. M., & Clark, R. C. (2022). Gender and sexual identity in adolescence: A mixed-methods study of labeling in diverse community settings. Journal of Adolescent Research, 37(2), 167-220. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F07435584211000315
Hammack, P. L., Grecco, B., Wilson, B. D. M., & Meyer, I. H. (2021). “White, tall, top, masculine, muscular”: Narratives of intracommunity stigma in young sexual minority men’s experience on mobile apps. Archives of Sexual Behavior. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-021-02144-z
Josselson, R., & Hammack, P. L. (2021). Essentials of narrative analysis. American Psychological Association Press. https://doi.org/10.1037/0000246-000
Copulsky, D., & Hammack, P. L. (2021). Asexuality graysexuality, and demisexuality: Distinctions in desire, behavior, and identity. Journal of Sex Research. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2021.2012113
Hughes, S. D., & Hammack, P. L. (2020). Narratives of the origins of kinky sexual desire held by users of a kink-oriented social networking website. Journal of Sex Research. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2020.1840495
Frost, D. M., Hammack, P.L. Wilson, B.D.M., Russell, S.T., Lightfoot, M., & Meyer, I.H. (2020). The qualitative interview in psychology and the study of social change: Sexual identity development, minority stress, and health in the Generations Study. Qualitative Psychology, 7(3), 245-266. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/qup0000148
Barsigian, L. L., Hammack, P. L., Morrow, Q. J., Wilson, B. D. M., & Russell, S. T. (2020). Narratives of gender, sexuality, and community in three generations of genderqueer sexual minorities. Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity, 7(3), 276-292.
Hughes, S. D., & Hammack, P. L. (2019). Affirmation, compartmentalization, and isolation: Narratives of identity sentiment among kinky people. Psychology & Sexuality, 10(2), 149-168. https://doi.org/10.1080/19419899.2019.1575896
Hammack, P. L., Frost, D.M., & Hughes, S.D. (2019). Queer intimacies: A new paradigm for the study of relationship diversity. Journal of Sex Research, 56, 556-592. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2018.1531281
Teaching Interests
Sexual Identity & Society
Sexual & Gender Diversity
Intimate Diversity
Narrative Identity
Qualitative Inquiry in Psychology