Lynne Cossman, professor and chair of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at West Virginia University, has been named co-editor for the journal Population Research and Policy. Her appointment begins January 2016.

Cossman currently serves as associate editor to the journal, which publishes six times a year. The journal is the flagship publication of the Southern Demographic Association, a collective of demographers with interests in demography and population studies. The journal is published by Springer scientific publications.

“It’s a real honor because the Southern Demographic Association is what I refer to as my academic home,” Cossman said. “It’s a conference I’ve been attending since I started graduate school. So to be one of the people at the helm is a big honor for me.”

Each issue of the journal publishes papers surrounding a specific topic. It receives 200-300 submissions a year, ultimately choosing as many as 50 to publish. The journal features research relating to the three main aspects of demography – mortality, fertility and migration.

Each submission must contribute to a larger, societal dialogue, Cossman said.

“I don’t just want to do research for other academics to read, but research that’s ultimately going to have an effect on society,” Cossman said. “That’s why this journal is so important, it also has the public policy component.”

Cossman came to WVU in 2014 from Mississippi State University, where she was Professor and Department Head of Sociology and a Research Fellow at the Social Science Research Center, examining issues related to health assessment, prevention and social epidemiology. Her recent research focuses on spatial concentrations of mortality and morbidity, the physician workforce, and fear of crime for vulnerable (sick, elderly) populations.

Her research projects have been funded by The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and Mississippi’s Division of Medicaid. Her work has been published in several sociology and interdisciplinary journals including the American Journal of Public Health, Social Problems, Health and Place, Population Research and Policy Review, Sociological Inquiry, and Sociological Spectrum.

-WVU-

dr/11/16/2015

CONTACT: Devon Copeland, Director of Marketing and Communication, Eberly College of Arts and Sciences, West Virginia University, 304-293-6867, Devon.Copeland@mail.wvu.edu

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