Darren E. Sherkat (born December 31, 1965) is an American sociologist and professor in the department of sociology at

Southern Illinois University Carbondale Southern Illinois University (SIU) is a public research university in Carbondale, Illinois, United States. Chartered in 1869, SIU is the oldest and flagship campus of the Southern Illinois University system. SIU enrolls students from all 50 sta ...

(SIU Carbondale).

Education

Sherkat received his B.A. in sociology in 1987 from the University of Tulsa, and his M.A. and Ph.D. from Duke University in 1989 and 1991, respectively.

Career

In 1991, Sherkat joined the faculty of

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private university, private research university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provide ...

as an assistant professor of sociology. He became an associate professor there in 1996 and remained one until leaving Vanderbilt for SIU Carbondale in 2001, where he again became an associate professor of sociology. From 2002 to 2005, he was the director of graduate studies in SIU Carbondale's sociology department, and in 2004, he became a full professor there.

Research

In the field of sociology, Sherkat is known for studying religion-related topics, as well as those pertaining to family and politics. Specific topics pertaining to religion he has studies include the unaffiliated, the factors that lead to churches being either successful or unsuccessful, the popularity of

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical mu ...

among

Baby Boomer Baby boomers, often shortened to boomers, are the demographic cohort preceded by the Silent Generation and followed by Generation X. The generation is often defined as people born from 1946 to 1964 during the mid-20th century baby boom that ...

s, and the role of religion in influence students' choice of which college to attend.

Personal life

Sherkat is an avowed

atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sherkat, Darren E. Living people Sociologists of religion 1965 births Southern Illinois University Carbondale faculty University of Tulsa alumni Duke University alumni American sociologists Vanderbilt University faculty Place of birth missing (living people)