About

I have an interdisciplinary background in inquiry methodology, sociology, and cultural studies. In my theoretical and methodological work, I draw from a wide spectrum of theories—from critical theories to contemporary pragmatism, feminism, and post-colonial studies—to formulate a praxis- and social justice-oriented qualitative research methodology. I develop scholarship on critical ethnography, feminist and narrative methodology, participatory action research, and mixed methods studies. I address key methodological issues in the tradition of critical qualitative methodologies such as validity, ethics, and translation. My writing responds to the ontological, epistemological, ethical, and methodological challenges of conducting qualitative research in a politically troubled and culturally diverse contemporary world.

In my empirical work, I use both Mandarin Chinese and English to perform research in the United States, China, and the cross-Pacific transnational context. I am particularly interested in children’s and youth’s identity formation—the gendered and racialized process of socialization, and the various dynamics within and beyond families and communities in perpetuating and/or disrupting the reproduction of social inequality.

Research Interests

Action Research, Data Collection and Analysis, Digital Tools in Qualitative Research, Gender Issues, Knowledge and Theory, Language, Narrative Inquiry, Philosophy of Education, Qualitative Research, Research Design, Social Justice in Education, Sociocultural Perspectives, Theoretical Perspectives

Education

• Ph.D. in Inquiry Methodology, 2017 Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana
• M.A. in Literary Theory, 2009 Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
• B.A. in Chinese Language and Literature, 2006 Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China

Professional Appointments

• Assistant Professor, Research and Evaluation Methodology Program, University of Florida, 2019 - present
• Instructor & Research Consultant, Inquiry Methodology Program, Indiana University Bloomington, 2017 - 2019
• Associate Instructor, Inquiry Methodology Program, Indiana University Bloomington, 2011 - 2017

Activities and Honors

• National Academy of Education/Spencer Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship, 2021
• Illinois Qualitative Distinguished Dissertation Award (Traditional Category), International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry, the U.S.A., 2019
• International Institute for Qualitative Methodology PhD Dissertation Award, International Institute for Qualitative Methodology $2,000 CAD, Canada, 2017
• Trentham Travel Award (twice), Indiana University ($300 each), 2013 and 2014

Selected Grants

Selected Publications

Articles

• Zhao, P., D. Palmer, S. Silberstein, A. Elfreich, S. Bose, S. Washington, P. Saxena, L. Carspecken, & B. K. Dennis (2022). You Are My Way to the Universe: Critical Collective Research and Feminist Community Building. Forum: Qualitative Social Research. 23(3). https://doi.org/10.17169/fqs-23.3.3892.
• Zhao, P. & Silberstein, S. * (online first). “Not waves but ripples: Re-worlding & counter-worlding of intergenerational feminism.” International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education.
• B. Dennis & Zhao, P.* (online first). “Storyworlding: An outline of the philosophic and methodological commitments of a new feminist methodology.” International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education.
• Zhao, P. (2021). “Minor Feelings in the Wake of the Atlanta Attack: How a Mom of Asian Descent Spent the First 100 Hours in the Aftermath.” Cultural Studies ↔ Critical Methodologies. 21(4):351-354. doi:10.1177/15327086211019954
• Zhao, P. (2020). “Working the Hyphens in an Authoritarian State: Adding the State Back to the Conversation.” International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education. 1-14. DOI: 10.1080/09518398.2020.1828642
• Zhao, P., L. Yang, Z. Sa, & X. Wang. (2020). “Propriety, Empowerment and Compromises: Challenges in Addressing Gender among Sex Educators in China.” Sex Education: Sexuality, Society and Learning, 20(5), 552-567. DOI: 10.1080/14681811.2019.1705779
• Ross, K., B. K. Dennis, P. Zhao, & P. Li. (2017). “Exploring Graduate Students’ Conceptions of Research: Links Between Identity, Validity, and Research Conceptions.” International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 29(1), 73-86.
• Zhao, P., P. Li, K. Ross, & B. K. Dennis. (2016). “Methodological Tool or Methodology? Beyond Instrumentality and Efficiency with Qualitative Data Analysis Software.” Forum: Qualitative Social Research. Access from: http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs1602160

Books / Book Chapters

• Zhao, P., K. Ross, P. Li, & B. K. Dennis.* (2021). Making Sense of Social Research Methodology: A Student- and Practitioner-Centered Approach. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
• Zhao, P. (in progress). Changing Fate: The Cultural Revolution’s Rural Youth in Transition to Post-Mao China.
• Dennis, B. K., P. Li, K. Ross & P. Zhao* (2020). “Pedagogy as a form of praxis and commitment: A student-centered approach to teaching research methodology”. In T. S. Jenkins (ed.) Reshaping Graduate Education Through Innovation and Experiential Learning. 1-22. IGI Global.
• Li, P., K. Ross, P. Zhao & B. K. Dennis (2017). “Critical Action Research: How do Graduate Students in an Introductory Research Class Conceptualize ‘Research’?” In SAGE Research Methods Cases. Access from: http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781473989115

Other Publications

• Research Report ) Zhao, P., Poekert, P., Cugini, S., Jones, A., Schroeder, C., & Cavanaugh, C. (2020). These Are Their Stories: Challenges, Successes, and Lessons Learned From Florida Education Stakeholders’ Experience of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Gainesville, Florida: University of Florida Lastinger Center for Learning.
• Book Review) Zhao, P. (2017). Review of K. Bischoping & A. Gazso, Analyzing Talk in the Social Sciences: Narrative, Conversation & Discourse Strategies. Canadian Journal of Sociology, 42 (3), 373-375.

Selected Links

• Pengfei's website
• Check out the podcast series hosted by Pengfei in New Books in Education: