Sari van AndersRenowned sex researcher Sari van Anders is joining Queen鈥檚 University as the in Social Neuroendocrinology, Sexuality, and Gender/Sex, an appointment that grants her $2.45 million in research funding over the next seven years. She is one of only 26 C150 research chairs appointed nationwide by this competitive, one-time federal government initiative designed to recruit top-tier academic talent from around the world to conduct their work at Canadian post-secondary institutions.

鈥淏eing selected as a Canada 150 Research Chair is an incredible honour and a very personal one as a Canadian. I鈥檓 so excited to be able to come back to do my research, and to join Queen鈥檚 University to do so,鈥 says Dr. van Anders. 鈥淨ueen鈥檚 is such a vibrant university, and it鈥檚 a privilege to be able to join one of Canada鈥檚 leading research institutions.鈥

Dr. van Anders is a Torontonian who has been a professor in Psychology, Women鈥檚 Studies, and Neuroscience at the University of Michigan for the past decade.

鈥淚t's truly remarkable that Canada highlighted research as one of its priorities for celebrating and nation-building,鈥 she says. 鈥淭o be included in that national celebration with a research program focusing on feminist and queer science as well as gender and sexuality is an honor that seems uniquely Canadian. Canada is an international leader on gender equity and sexual diversity and I'm excited to be a part of this.鈥

Dr. van Anders鈥 own research involves an interdisciplinary study of human sexuality, gender, and sex. She has created sexual configurations theory  a new way to conceptualize, measure, and explore how people experience their genders, sexes, and sexualities. She also is a leader in social neuroendocrinology, which seeks to understand how social behaviours influence hormones in social context 鈥 such as how sexual behaviours, erotic thoughts, or gender socialization change testosterone levels in the body, for instance.

Dr. van Anders is also a sex researcher and explains: 鈥淚 see my research contributing to our understandings of sexual phenomena like orgasm, fantasy, desire, and pornography 鈥 as well as larger related constructs like gender and sexual diversity. Some of this research connects to hormones like testosterone, and some of it is to understand sexuality on its own as important phenomena in people鈥檚 lives and our culture.鈥

The Canada 150 Research Chair funding will bolster understanding of these and many more areas of Dr. van Anders' interdisciplinary work, including how social norms, gender roles, and power dynamics affect the body鈥檚 physiology, and how laypeople and scientists can conceptualize gender and sexuality.

鈥淒r. van Anders is a world-class scholar whose work, including her role as editor of the esteemed Annual Review of Sex Research, has continually expanded and shaped our understanding of human sexuality,鈥 says Barbara Crow, Dean, Faculty of Arts and Science. 鈥淛oining Queen鈥檚 as part of the prestigious C150 program, she will significantly bolster an already-impressive sex and gender research portfolio at the university.鈥

Dr. van Anders鈥 move to Queen鈥檚 will see her join other leading international sex researchers, including female sexuality expert Meredith Chivers and sexual function/dysfunction expert Caroline Pukall.

鈥淎s part of our academic evolution, Queen鈥檚 will see its faculty grow, diversify, and strengthen over the next five years,鈥 says Principal and Vice-Chancellor Daniel Woolf. 鈥淒r. van Anders鈥 expertise will lend significantly to our institution鈥檚 research capabilities, and many aspects of her work exemplify the diversity, equity, and inclusion we value. The Canada 150 Research Chair project is certainly bringing the world鈥檚 brightest to our country.鈥

Dr. van Anders鈥 appointment as a Canada 150 Research Chair was made official at a ceremony in Ottawa on March 29, 2018. She assumes her new role at Queen鈥檚 University in the with cross appointments to the and the in July 2018.

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