Zhenchao Qian has been appointed chair of the department of sociology for a four-year term beginning July 1, 2010. Qian earned a PhD in sociology and demography in 1994 from the University of Pennsylvania. He joined the faculty in the department of sociology at Ohio State in 2002.Qian is a faculty affiliate withOhio State’s East Asian Studies Center, John Glenn School of Public Affairs, and Initiative in Population Research.

Qian’s research focuses on family demography, race and ethnicity, and immigration.His work centers on changes in mate selection patterns for married and cohabiting unions by couples' age, racial, and educational combination.In other research, Qian examines changing racial identification among children born to interracial couples and compares socioeconomic patterns among immigrant groups in the United States.Additional research includes fertility behaviors in rural China and changes and prospects of the Chinese family planning program.