Research Highlights 2014
I. You are what you track: practicing autonomy, solidarity and authenticity in an age of personalized healthcare
A new model of “personalised healthcare” is being envisioned as the solution to the crisis of our public healthcare system. Self-tracking devices, which enable people to monitor and manage their health, are expected to play a key role in this paradigm shift, but little is known about their effects on people’s everyday lives. This project explores how self-tracking is contributing to a transformation of three core values in the personalised healthcare debate: autonomy, solidarity and authenticity, by looking at how people practice self-tracking for health.
This project is funded by the NWO Talent Scheme Veni grant.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
II. Talking You Through: Traffic Information and Car Radio, 1950s-now
Prof. dr. K. Th. Bijsterveld, PhD candidate Marith Dieker (MSc)
This project examines the history and contemporary practices of traffic radio in the United States, Germany and The Netherlands (1950s-now). Which technologies and organisational forms have been developed to gather and transmit traffic information across radio? How has this information been presented to and appropriated by drivers? And how can a historical-comparative understanding of traffic radio inform us on high-quality traffic information today and contribute to sustainable mobility?
This project is funded by the NWO PhDs in the Humanities programme.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
III. Mental Health Expertise Online. The Enactment of Expertise on Bipolar Disorder on Different Online Platforms in English and French
Prof. dr. S. Wyatt & Dr. T. Sharon, PhD candidate Claudia Egher (MSc)
This comparative study will examine how the possibilities offered by the Internet shape the ways in which expertise on bipolar disorder is enacted online. By studying various interactive and non-interactive platforms, the research will provide important insights into the roles different technological affordances, modalities, and resources play in the enactment of expertise. Bipolar disorder is one of the top ten causes of disability worldwide, yet understanding of its symptoms and treatments vary significantly across countries. This project will highlight how local norms, values and practices concerning mental health are reproduced and transformed online.
This project is funded by the NWO PhDs in the Humanities programme.
