Rich in theory and empirically-informed, Hancock's research examines the relationships between race, culture, and identity in everyday life. His book, "American Allegory: Lindy Hop and the Racial Imagination" (University of Chicago Press, 2013), explores race/racism as a decidedly embodied cultural practice and process through a look at popular dance. He has also published in such journals as Ethnography, Qualitative Sociology,and the Journal of Contemporary Ethnography.