Mara K. Berkland

I am a socio-linguist who studies culture and socialization and I am fascinated by the way language and communication influence how we perceive the world.  My studies of Spanish, French and Arabic cultivated my love for travel and I am lucky to be able to do so freqently for both work and pleasure.  My favorite places to visit are Fez, Morocco, and the Pyrénées.  The movements against domestic violence  and sexual assualt are also very important to me, and I believe strongly in equal options and opportunities for everyone, regardless of race, class, or gender.  I am a voracious reader of fiction and I adore all things food.  Though I love living in Chicago's loop because I have immediate access to amazing restaurants, museums, and live music, I frequently leave the city to go camping and hiking.

Selected Scholarship

Berkland, M. (in press, 2024). Keeping Score: Socialization and Surviving Sexual Violence. Journal of Autoethnography.

Berkland, M. & Grim Buxbaum, A. (Eds.). (2023). Intercultural communication for the global business professional. Taylor Francis/Routledge.  

Berkland, M. (2023). Cultural tourism and retail store aesthetics in Morocco and Norway. In. M. Berkland & A. Grim Buxbaum,(Eds.). Intercultural communication for the global business professional. Taylor Francis/Routledge.

Berkland, M. K., Ji, Y., & Jain, S. C. (2022). Labels and the Adjudication of Rape: Words Matter. Sexuality & Culture, 1-20. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12119-022-09959-

Berkland, M. (2021). The Masked Classroom. Journal for Research and Practice in College Teaching 6(2), 1-3.  

Mathison, M., & Berkland, M. (2019). Sojourners and Third Cultures: Raising Cultural Awareness in Interdisciplinary Programs.  In M. Mathison (Ed.), Sojourning in Disciplinary Cultures: A Case Study of Teaching Writing in Engineering, pp. 13-35. Logan, UT: Utah State University Press.  

Berkland, M. (2019). Moving Toward Successful Interdisciplinary Integration in Team-Taught Courses.  In M. Mathison (Ed.), Sojourning in Disciplinary Cultures: A Case Study of Teaching Writing in Engineering, pp. 87-104. Logan, UT: Utah State University Press.  

Berkland, M. & Jain, S. (2018).  Hollow Bahu: Indian daughter-in-law.  In J. Manning & J. Dunn (Eds.), Transgressing Feminist Theory and Discourse: Advancing Conversations Across Disciplines . New York, NY: Routledge.

Berkland, M. (2017).  Experience sampling method.  In M. Allen (Ed.), The SAGE Encyclopedia of Communication Research Methods. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Berkland, M. & Keys, J. (2016). Putting a robe on the naked roommate: Exposing problematic socializing messages in college survival guides.  Journal on Excellence in College Teaching, 27(1), p. 195-231.

Courses Taught

Intercultural Communication

Human Sexuality

Gender Studies

Communication Theory

Interpersonal Communication

Business and Professional Communication

Public Speaking