Kathleen Lynch (born 1951) is an Irish sociologist, activist and professor emeritus of equality studies at University College Dublin.

Lynch began her career as a social worker, working in North Dublin city.

Her seminal work is a co-authored study with Anne Lodge, Equality and Power in Schools: Redistribution, Recognition, and Representation.

[1] Lynch was involved in the establishment of the Equality Studies Centre in University College Dublin (UCD) in 1990.

[4] Lynch was presented with a special award by the Irish Research Council in 2019 for her contributions to equality and participation studies.