Kristin Smith
Family Demographer
Kristin Smith is a family demographer at the Carsey Institute and Research Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of New Hampshire. Her research explores women’s labor force participation and the role of being the primary economic provider and mother’s labor force exits; economic restructuring and how rural families cope with economic turmoil; the interplay between work, family and child care for parents and children; low-income women workers, in particular direct care and child care workers, and how they fare economically; and the effect of work and family policies on retaining female workers.
She is currently co-editing a book, Economic Restructuring and Family Well-being in Rural America, and her work has been published in Demography, Monthly Labor Review, and elsewhere. Kristin worked with the U.S. Census Bureau for seven years as a family demographer researching work and family issues, including topics such as child care, maternity leave, child well-being, and fertility and has extensive experience analyzing several national data sets (Census 2000, American Community Survey, Survey of Income and Program Participation, and the Current Population Survey). Smith’s prior experience includes working on international population policy in Francophone Africa. She has a Ph.D. from the University of Maryland, a MPH from Tulane University, and received her B.A. from the University of Vermont.