Kirsten Leng
Associate Professor in the Department of Women, Gender, Sexuality Studies, College of Humanities & Fine Arts
Kirsten Leng is Associate Professor in Women, Gender, Sexuality Studies in the College of Humanities and Fine Arts at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Leng's research focuses on two questions: (1) How have gender politics influenced scientific knowledge on sex and sexuality, specifically among feminists in the early twentieth century? (2) What role has humor played in U.S. feminism? Leng's recently published book, Sexual Politics and Feminist Science: Women Sexologists in Germany, 1900-1933 (Cornell University Press, 2018), illuminates the neglected history of early 20th century women sexologists in Berlin and Vienna who used sexual science to challenge the gendered and heterosexist assumptions of their male colleagues. Leng's work has appeared in journals such as the Journal of the History of Sexuality, Feminist Formations, Signs: A Journal of Women in Culture and Society, Gender and History, German History, History of Psychology, and the Journal of Women's History.