Wesley Shrum Named LSU Distinguished Research Master
3/15/2022
Dr. Wesley Shrum, 2021 Distinguished Research Master in the Arts, Humanities, Social
or Behavioral SciencesLSU
BATON ROUGE—Wes Shrum, professor in the LSU Department of Sociology in the College of Humanities & Social Sciences, has been named 2021 Distinguished Research Master by the LSU Office of Research & Economic Development (ORED). Two recipients are chosen by ORED’s Council on Research for the University-wide
award of Distinguished Research Master each year.
Shrum received the Distinguished Research Master Award in the Arts, Humanities, Social
or Behavioral Sciences category in recognition of his outstanding career accomplishments
in research and scholarship. The Council on Research has presented the award of Distinguished
Research Master since 1972.
“Dr. Shrum is well known both nationally and internationally for his work in the sociology
of science and technology,” said Troy Blanchard, dean of the College of Humanities
& Social Sciences. “His impressive record of research and scholarship is most deserving
of the Distinguished Research Master Award.”
Shrum joined the Department of Sociology in 1982. His primary research area is the
sociology of technology with a particular focus on sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. He
has done fieldwork in Kenya, Ghana, and India every summer since 1994, while authoring
and editing eight books, thirty movies, and over one hundred scholarly articles on
topics ranging from scientific productivity to communications. Most recently, he received
grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to study the COVID-19 pandemic.
“This is a great honor from the Council on Research,” said Dr. Shrum. “Modern research
is a giant collaboration, and I credit the 150 African and Indian interviewers who
collected all the data that made it possible.”
Shrum founded the LSU Video Ethnography Lab in 2005, one of only three such laboratories
in the U.S. Through the research taking place in his lab, he has actively promoted
the use of digital video as an ethnographic research method for the study of society.
He also established the Ethnografilm festival in Paris, which provides a forum for academic filmmakers to meet and develop
their research.
He received his PhD in Sociology from Princeton University.
About the LSU College of Humanities & Social Sciences
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to be visionary leaders in their respective fields, a tradition of excellence that
began with the college’s inception in 1908. For more news and information about the
LSU College of Humanities & Social Sciences, visit hss.lsu.edu.
Contact Sarah Gaar Keller
LSU College of Humanities & Social Sciences