Kathy Peiss delves into modern American cultural history, with a specific focus on the history of American sexuality, women, and gender. Her research spans the history of working women, cross-class and interracial sexuality, leisure, style, and popular culture, as well as the beauty industry and the role of libraries in American cultural policy. She is particularly interested in how culture shapes the everyday lives and popular beliefs of Americans throughout history. Peiss's work critically examines the dynamic interplay between cultural forces and the formation of social norms and individual identities.
During and immediately after World War II, an unlikely band of librarians and scholars, soldiers and spies were dispatched to Europe to collect books and documents, to acquire and preserve the written word as well as provide critical information for intelligence purposes.