I trained as a sociologist. Much of my research grew from a dissertation on atheist identity and atypical social movements. I have also published on scientific authority, police body cameras, Indigenous nonbelief, and generative AI.
Research
Eacersall, D., Pretorius, L., Smirnov, I., Spray, E., Illingworth, S., Chugh, R., Strydom, S., Stratton-Maher, D., Simmons, J., et al. (2025). "Navigating ethical challenges in generative AI-enhanced research: The ETHICAL framework for responsible generative AI use." Journal of Applied Learning & Teaching, 8(2). DOI · PDF
Simmons, J. (2024). "Indigenous atheists in Canada: Challenging assumptions and navigating belonging." Secular Studies, 6(1), 62-83. DOI · PDF
Simmons, J. (2024). "The politics of nonreligion." In J. M. Smith and R. T. Cragun (Eds.), Secularity and nonreligion in North America: An introduction, 152-170. Bloomsbury Academic. Book
Sandhu, A., and Simmons, J. (2023). "Police officers as filmmakers: The cinematography of body worn cameras." Policing and Society, 33(5), 593-603. DOI · PDF
Simmons, J., and Sandhu, A. (2020). "Between Islam and Islamophobia: Stigma management among Canadian atheist activists." Secular Studies, 2(2), 117-137. DOI · PDF
Simmons, J. (2020). "Feminist women's attitudes towards feminist men in the Canadian atheist movement." Religion and Gender, 10(2), 182-201. DOI · PDF
Simmons, J. (2019). "Politics, individualism, and atheism: An examination of the political attitudes of atheist activists in a Canadian city." Secularism and Nonreligion, 8(2), 1-9. DOI · PDF
Simmons, J. (2018). "'Not that kind of atheist': Scepticism as a lifestyle movement." Social Movement Studies, 17(4), 437-450. DOI · PDF
Simmons, J. (2017). "Atheism plus what? Social justice and lifestyle politics among Edmonton atheists." Canadian Journal of Sociology, 42(4), 425-446. DOI · PDF
Simmons, J., and Kent, S. A. (2015). "An expansion of the rational choice approach: Social control in the Children of God during the 1970s and 1980s." International Journal for the Study of New Religions, 6(1), 27-49.
Simmons, J. (2013). "Positive psychology as a scientific movement." International Journal of Science in Society, 4(1), 43-52. DOI · PDF
Graduate research
Simmons, J. (2018). Atheist identity and lifestyle among activists in Edmonton. PhD dissertation, University of Alberta. PDF
Simmons, J. (2012). Positive psychology as a scientific movement: A case study in scientific legitimacy. MA thesis, University of New Brunswick. University repository · PDF
For a more exhaustive bibliographic record, see ORCID or Google Scholar.
Essays and fiction
- The Last People, Again, Free Inquiry, vol. 46, no. 4, June/July 2026.
- The Prophet and the Pathologist: Stephen Kent, Massimo Introvigne, and the Battle for an Honest Study of Religion, Free Inquiry, vol. 46, no. 3, April/May 2026. Italian translation: Il Profeta e il Patologo, translated by Lorita Tinelli.
- The Humanist Response to Authoritarianism, Free Inquiry, vol. 45, no. 5, August/September 2025.
- Beyond Smudge and Creator: Recognizing Indigenous Nonbelievers in Canada, NSRN Blog, 16 June 2025.
- Sacred or Secular? Rethinking Indigenous Spirituality, Free Inquiry, vol. 45, no. 3, April/May 2025.
- Epistemic Laundering: How Universities Sell Pseudoscience, Skeptical Inquirer.
- Les Guérisseurs, short story, On Spec, no. 133.