The COMET (COMmunity Exploration and Transformation) Lab focuses on social problems broadly related to the concepts of community and belonging. Dr. Rubin’s lab is driven to help undergraduate students learn the process of research and prepare them for futures in graduate school, academia, and research-focused professions. Past projects a food insecurity survey of Lander University, research on how Covid-19 lockdowns affected service provision abilities in Child Advocacy Centers, and the experiences of military veterans who have lived in Intentional Communities.
Presentations from the COMET Lab
- Castro, Alexandria, Celine Robinson, Bailey Sage, and Zach Rubin. 2025. ““The Experiences of Military Veterans in Intentional Communities: Why They Are Drawn to Structure and Communalism.” Presented at the Southern Sociological Society, April 10, Charlotte, NC.
Publications from the COMET Lab
- Robinson, Celine, Alexandria Castro, Bailey Sage, Sophia Fox, Avi Kruley, Sky Blue, and Zach Rubin. 2025. “Marching to the Same Beat: The Experience of Group Structure and Identity-Uncertainty Among Military Veterans.” Social Currents Submitted.
- Addison, Kalysta, and Zach Rubin. 2022. “‘At One Point We Had No Funding for Paper’: How Grants and the Covid Crises Have Shaped Service Provision in Child Advocacy Centers.” Human Service Organizations: Management, Leadership & Governance. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/23303131.2022.2119626.