Dr. Abigail Coplin is an Assistant Professor of Sociology and Science, Technology, and Society at Vassar College, where her work surrounds political and economic sociology, and science and technology studies. She researches the intersection of science, politics, and nationalism in contemporary China, and draws attention to the tools of non-democratic states used to influence legitimacy and governance claims. She has projects detailing the inclusion of science and technology for political motives while integrating them within the state that has new, though unintended dynamics for the party-state to consider.
Dr. Coplin has been quoted in journals NPR and Nature about China and Russia as vaccine leaders and about the military’s involvement in medical research in China, respectively.
Dr. Coplin earned her Ph.D. in Sociology from Columbia University, an M.A. in Regional Studies of East Asia from Harvard University, a B.S. in Chemistry and East Asian Studies from Yale University, in addition to fellowships from prestigious universities and organizations.