She has an MA in Folk Studies from Western Kentucky University and a Ph.D. in Folklore from Memorial University. Dr. Kitta is the author of Vaccinations and Public Concern in History: Legend, Rumor, and Risk Perception (Routledge). She is currently working on The Kiss of Death: Contagion, Contamination, and Folklore for Utah State University Press and Diagnosing Folklore: Perspectives in Health, Trauma, and Disability an edited collection with Trevor J. Blank for the University Press of Mississippi.