Dr. Sandra Portocarrero

Biography

Professor Sandra Portocarrero’s research explores how organizations sustain and alleviate inequality, with a particular focus on employees and entrepreneurs who carry stigmatized social identities. Utilizing field methods such as in-depth interviews, surveys, and participant observation, her research has engaged with workers at the U.S. Department of State and various organizations in the United States and Latin America. Her work extends and engages with theories of relational expertise and status. Currently, she examines the economic and social lives of undocumented entrepreneurs in California and asylum seekers living in shelters in New York City as they start their own businesses. Sandra earned her Ph.D., M.Phil., and M.A. in Sociology from Columbia University, as well as a B.A. in Sociology with high honors from the University of California, Berkeley.

Research Interests