John J. Leveille, Ph.D.

Dr. Leveille received his doctorate from the University of California, San Diego, and after teaching at various colleges throughout the country he landed at West Chester. His major academic interests include sociological theory, the historical study of knowledge systems and sets of practices that are put into the service of social control. He is interested in understanding how institutional, economic, and social arrangements influence the shape of knowledge systems and how these knowledge systems inform, influence, or determine the professional practices within fields of social control, such as the fields of mental illness, law, science, etc.

Toward that end, Dr. Leveille has spent the last several years research the history of the professional response to mental illness in America. He has published a number of articles in this field and has recently completed a book length manuscript on the topic, which he is hoping to have published in the near future. He is now embarking on a new direction in his research, though it is one that overlaps significantly with his research to date. His new research is focused upon the history of commodification in America. He is interested in understanding the sociological factors that influence how people at different times thought about and acted in relationship to property - both tangible and intangible, and he is particularly interested in understanding how and why beliefs and practices regarding property can and do change in history. This research has led Dr. Leveille to investigate the sociology of property law from an historical perspective.

Selected Publications (PDF)

Courses Taught

Sociological Theory
Perspectives on Mental Illness
Sociology of Mental Illness
Introduction to Sociology
Sociology of Science
Sociology of Religion

Areas of Interest

Sociological Theory (specializing in twentieth century European theory)
Historical Sociology of Mental Illness
Sociology of Culture, Knowledge, and Science
Sociology of Religion
Deviance and Social Control