Dudley L. Poston Jr.

Dr. Poston has authored/co-authored/edited twenty-one books and over 380 refereed journal articles, chapters and reports on various sociological and demographic topics. His most recent books include the 2nd edition of Population and Society: An Introduction to Demography (with Leon Bouvier), (Cambridge University Press, 2017), and the 2nd edition of the Handbook of Population (Springer Publishers, 2019). He is also the series editor of the International Handbooks of Population, published by Springer Press.

Poston's research interests include demography, human ecology, and the sociology of gender, with special attention to the populations of China, Taiwan, and Korea. He is the only one of two non-Chinese persons to ever be elected to be President of the North American Chinese Sociologists Association, serving for 2 years, from 1995 to 1997. Further, Poston has made significant contributions to the emerging field of the Social Demography of Sexual Orientation. He also loves to mentor students and has a lengthy and noteworthy list of previous students.In his 49+ years as a faculty member at three universities, Poston chaired the doctoral committees of 65 graduate students who received their PhD degrees under his direction.

While at Texas A&M Poston also serves as Guest Professor of Demography at the People's University in Beijing, China; Guest Professor of Cultural Studies and Sociology at Fuzhou University, Fuzhou, China; and adjunct professor of demography, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, China. In 1987 he was Visiting research professor of sociology, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China. Poston is presently Emeritus Professor of Sociology, Texas A&M University (2019–present).

In his first years as an assistant professor at the University of Texas in the early 1970s, Poston cites his senior colleague Dr. Harley Browning as a mentor and a tremendous help to his continued development as a researcher and working with Parker Frisbie as having broadened his demographic and ecological horizons immensely.

Poston served as faculty at the Population Research Center, The University of Texas at Austin' Associate Director (1970–74); acting director (1974–75); Research Associate (1975–77); associate director (1977–81); Director (1981–1986); and Research Associate (1987–1988). He served at Cornell University, Ithaca, New York (1988–1992) as Professor of Rural Sociology and Asian Studies; Research Associate, Population and Development Program, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York (1988–1992); and chair, Department of Rural Sociology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York (1989–1992). He next served as Professor, Department of Sociology, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas (1992–2019); Samuel Rhea Gammon Professor of Liberal Arts, Texas A&M University (1992–1998);George T. and Gladys H. Abell Professor of Liberal Arts, Texas A&M University (1998–present);Head, Department of Sociology, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas (1992–1997); and Director, Asian Studies Program, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas (2007–2012).

Poston served on active duty in the U.S. Army as a First Lieutenant and as a Captain from 1968 to 1970, including a tour of nearly one full year in 1969–70 in South Vietnam. Among his military honors and awards are the Bronze Star, and the Army Commendation Medal, with one Oak leaf cluster, both awarded in 1970, for his service in Vietnam.

He received his M.A. degree in sociology in 1967 from San Francisco State College and his PhD degree in sociology and demography in 1968 from the University of Oregon. While at San Francisco State College, Poston took two sociology courses from Dr. David Dodge who encouraged him to pursue his doctoral degree at the University of Oregon. As a doctoral student Poston took several demography courses from Dr. Walter Martin, and this was a major influence on Poston's decision to become a demographer.

He attended the University of San Francisco (USF) graduating in 1963 with a BA degree in sociology. At USF he processed through four majors before he found sociology. The sociology courses he completed under Father Eugene Schallert, SJ and Dr. Ralph Lane had a big influence on his decision to continue his study of sociology in graduate school. The intellectual rigor of being taught by Jesuits at St Ignatius High School and the University of San Francisco has had a profound effect on his education and love of learning.

Poston attended St. Gabriel's Grammar School in San Francisco. He attended St. Joseph's Seminary in Mountain View, CA, for his first few years of high school, and then transferred to St. Ignatius High School (in San Francisco) where he graduated in 1958.

Dudley L. Poston Jr. was born in San Francisco, California on 29 November 1940 to Dudley Louis Poston, Sr. and Kathryn (Kara) Poston. He and his sister, Kathleen Poston Wood, were born into a large Irish Catholic family who all lived within a few blocks of each other in San Francisco, CA. Poston married Patricia Mary Joyce Poston in San Francisco, California in 1963. The Postons have two children, Nancy Kathleen Poston Espey and Dudley L. Poston III, a son-in-law Richard Espey, a daughter-in-law Dana Wizeman, six grandchildren, David Espey, Kara Osburn, Daniel Espey, Christopher Wizeman, Joseph Wizeman, and William Wizeman, and one grandson-in-law Levi Osburn.