After diploma studies of social work and pedagogics along with diploma studies of social sciences she has completed her PhD studies with focus on social psychology of gender relations and habilitated at the University of Hannover with topic relationship between gender, biography and delinquency in context of closed institutions in the field of sociology. Before taking up professorship of social differantiation and socio-culture at the University of Kassel, she was employed inter alia at Low-Saxon Research Institute for Criminology (KFN). Her work focuses in research and teaching embrace sociology and sociopsychology of gender relations, social inequality, social problems and qualitative methodologies.