University of North Texas 
Kevin McCaffree
Associate Professor
Office: Sycamore 288B
Office Hours: MW 12:30-2:00, W 4:00-6:00 and by appointment
E-mail Address: kevin.mccaffree@unt.edu
Highlights: Sociological Theory, Criminology, Social Psychology, Sociology of Religion, Sociology
of Morality, Quantitative Methods
Education: Ph.D., 2014, University of California, Riverside
Research Interests: Dr. Kevin McCaffree's current research projects include surveys of political polarization,
statistical analyses of the relationship between loneliness and institutional trust,
and an ambitious attempt to statistically define the concept of a "scientific worldview."
He is the author or co-author of five books, as well as the co-editor of Theoretical Sociology: The Future of a Disciplinary Foundation and series co-editor (with Jonathan H. Turner) of Evolutionary Analysis in the Social Sciences. He has also authored or co-authored over two dozen peer-reviewed journal articles
and handbook chapters on a variety of topics ranging from cultural evolution to criminology
to the sociology of empathy.
Selected Publications:
McCaffree, Kevin. 2022. The Dance of Innovation: Infrastructure, Social Oscillation, and the Evolution of
Societies. New York: Routledge.
McCaffree, Kevin and F. LeRon Shults. 2022. "Distributive Effervescence: Emotional Energy and Social Cohesion in Secularizing
Societies." Theory and Society 51(2):233-268.
Saide, Anondah, Kevin McCaffree, and Rebekah Richert. 2021. "Does 'Faith' in Science Correlate with Indicators of Well-Being?: Evidence for Differential
Effects by Gender." Journal of Cognition and Culture 21(1-2):178-199.
McCaffree, Kevin. 2020. "Towards an Integrative Sociological Theory of Empathy." European Journal of Social Theory 23(4):550-570.
McCaffree, Kevin. 2019. "Atheism, Social Networks and Health: A Review and Theoretical Model." Secularism and Nonreligion 8:1-18.