Jessie V. Ford, PhD, is a public health sociologist, sometimes called a “sex sociologist.” She is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Sociomedical Sciences at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health and an affiliate of the Center for Sexual and Gender Minority Health Research at Columbia Nursing and Columbia Population Research Center.

Dr. Ford’s research asks how gender, sexuality, and social inequality shape people’s intimate lives and health across diverse settings, from college campuses and urban communities in the U.S. to global contexts such as Mexico, South Africa, and China. She studies sexual assault, stigma, and pleasure as interconnected public health issues, emphasizing the need for strength-based and rights-affirming approaches rather than fear- or deficit-based ones.

Her current NIH-funded project (K01) on sexual assault among bisexual women, investigates how individual, interpersonal, and structural factors intersect to influence risk and resilience over the life course. Other ongoing studies explore forced marriage, sexual violence and reproductive coercion in the U.S., men’s sexual and mental health and vulnerability, and community protective factors for sexual well-being and resilience among gender-diverse populations in Mexico, Thailand, Myanmar, and French Polynesia.

Across all of her work, Dr. Ford aims to expand what counts as sexual health. She was a co-author of the World Association for Sexual Health’s Declaration on Sexual Pleasure and continues to provide global guidance on integrating pleasure and justice into sexual health policy and education.

At Columbia, Dr. Ford teaches courses on sexuality, health, and qualitative research methods and mentors students working at the intersections of public health, gender studies, and sociology. Known for her collaborative and creative mentorship style, she encourages students to approach sexual health research with curiosity, empathy, and imagination.

Her scholarship has been published in leading journals, including the American Journal of Epidemiology, Social Forces, Qualitative Sociology, International Journal of Sexual Health, and PLOS Global Public Health. She also writes and speaks widely for broader audiences, appearing in podcasts, policy forums, and media outlets that translate academic research into tools for cultural change.

Ultimately, Dr. Ford’s work seeks to reframe sexual health as a space for empowerment: one where pleasure, consent, and justice are central to well-being and where research can help communities envision more joyful, equitable futures.