Publications

Journal Articles

  • 2026 Christensen, MacKenzie A. and Katelyn Rose Malae. “From Courtship to Situationship: Understanding the Rise of Relationship Ambiguity in Young Adulthood.” Sociology Compass 20(10). https://doi.org/10.1111/soc4.70260

    • Both authors contributed to the manuscript equally

  • Turney, Kristin, Katelyn Rose Malae, MacKenzie A. Christensen, and Sarah Halpern-Meekin. 2023. “‘Even Though We’re Married, I’m Single’: The Meaning of Incarceration in Romantic Relationships.” Criminology 61(4):795-822. doi:10.1111/1745-9125.12349

    • Findings featured in The Society Pages

  • Malae, Katelyn Rose. 2022. “Policy Relay: How Affirmative Consent Went from Controversy to Convention.” Sociological Perspectives 65(6):1117–43. doi:10.1177/07311214221100836.

    • Received the 2023 Justice and Equity Award, University of California, Irvine

    • Received the 2022 Outstanding Graduate Paper Award, Division of Conflict, Social Action and Change Division, Society for the Study of Social Problems

    • Received the 2021 A. Kimball Romney Award, University of California, Irvine

    • Received an Honorable Mention for the 2021 Robin Williams Outstanding Graduate Student Paper Award, University of California, Irvine

Book Chapters

  • Christensen, Mackenzie A. and Katelyn Rose Malae. 2026. “Beauty, Dating, and Desirability” Handbook on Beauty and Inequality, in the Springer Handbooks of Social Sciences series. doi:10.1007/978-3-032-08035-6_26

Manuscripts in Progress

  • Malae, Katelyn Rose. “Digital Desirability: A Sexual Fields Approach to Examining Young Women’s Unequal Dating App Histories.” Revise & resubmit.

  • Malae, Katelyn Rose. “My Only Fear is Being a Girl’s Horror Story”: Respectful Masculinity as a Privilege Renegotiation Strategy on Dating Apps.” Under review.

  • Christensen, MacKenzie A., Kristin Turney, and Katelyn Rose Malae. “‘The Drugs Change All His Priorities’: The Symbiotic Relationship Between Incarceration and Substance Use for Coparenting.” Under review.

  • Malae, Katelyn Rose. “Implied Consent: How Dating Apps Shape Gendered Interactional Pressures Towards Sexual Consent and Unwanted Sex.” In preparation.

  • Malae, Katelyn Rose, Kristin Turney, and MacKenzie A. Christensen. “Relationship Ambiguity During and After Jail Incarceration.” In preparation.

  • Malae, Katelyn Rose, MacKenzie A. Christensen, Mary Halverson, and Ada Zhang. “Are We Fuck Buddies or are We Dating?”: Dating Apps and Relationship Ambiguity Among Young Adults.” In preparation. 

  • Malae, Katelyn Rose and Kelli Kimura. “Crafting Tradition: Constructions of Femininity in the Digital #TadWife Movement.” In preparation.