PhD Project:

Understanding Youth and Online Social Networking

• Project period: January 1, 2007 to Debember 31, 2009.

• Supervisor: Associate Professor Pirkko Raudaskoski, Aalborg University

• Co-supervisor: Professor Birgitte Holm Sørensen, The Danish University of Education

In my PhD project I am studying how Danish youngsters use social network sites as part of their everyday life. I am especially interested in how online and offline practices go together, which is something that characterises the way SNSs are used by youth. As several studies on online social networking have shown users do not distinguish between online and offline. The digital space should not be seen as a replacement, but rather a continuation of the physical space, which primarily supports pre-existing social relations or offline friends. Therefore, a sharp division between ‘online’ and ‘offline’ should not be made when studying online social networking and youth.

Based on this position, I am studying the online experiences of Danish young people between the age of 12 and 18 in order to understand what online social networking means to them and how social network sites are integrated as part of everyday life and how everyday life is represented and mediated in the digital space. Also, I am interested in analysing how young people – through their use of social network sites– are constructing themselves as young people.

PhD Courses

• August-October 2009:  Nvivo 8 – introduktion til computerassisteret kvalitativ analyse, Aalborg University (3 ECTS)

• June 2009: Social Media: Analysing Identity, Sociality and Creativity in Online Networked Environments, The National Doctoral School for Media, Communication and Journalism (FMKJ) (2 ECTS) (Co-organiser)

• October 2008: The analytical leap: Knowledge production in communication research, with Adele E. Clarke, The National Doctoral School for Media, Communication and Journalism (FMKJ) (4 ECTS)

• January 2008: Global Media and Local Perception: Calibrating Mediated Discourses and (Direct) Action, The National Doctoral School for Media, Communication and Journalism (FMKJ) and Centre for Discourse Studies, Aalborg University (3 ECTS)

• October-November 2007: Acting with technology – research methods on context and change, with Bonnie Nardi, Human Centered Informatics Postgraduate Research School, Aalborg University (5 ECTS)

• May 2007: Workshop on Interdisciplinary Discourse, Center for Discourse Studies, Aalborg University (1 ECTS)

• May 2007: First steps: Data Collection and Transcribing Multimodal and Mediated Interactions, second workshop in PlaceMe Nordic Network (3 ECTS)

• November 2006: Perspectives on Identity in Learning and Education Research (5 ECTS)

• October 2006: Social Software and Web 2.0 – Critical perspectives and challenges for research and business, Aalborg University (1 ECTS)

• August 2006: DeXus 4.0- Discourse Nexus Summer School, Aalborg University (5 ECTS)

Conferences

• December 2008: Annual conference in SMID (Danish Association of Media Researchers)

• November 2008: Det globale og lokale: Steder og teksturer i nye medier og visuel kultur, University of Southern Denmark, Odense

• October 2008: Internet Research 9.0: Rethinking Community, Rethinking Place, Association of Internet Researchers, Copenhagen, Denmark

• October 2007: Internet Research 8.0: Let’s Play, Association of Internet Researchers, Vancouver, Canada

• October 2007: 4S Annual Meeting, Society for Social Studies of Society, Montreal, Canada

• April 2007: Digitale medier og didaktisk design, The Danish University of Education

• April 2007: Børnebeskyttelse ved en skillevej – børn og medier i netværkssamfundet, Medierådet for Børn og Unge

• January 2007: The Alpine CSCL Rendez-Vous 2007, Switzerland

• November 2006: Rhetoric in Society 2006, Aalborg University

• April 2006: Networked Learning Conference 2006, Lancaster University

Professional affiliations and participation in research networks

Current

• 2008-: Member of ethical advisory group for Cyberhus.dk

• 2008-: The National Doctoral School for Media, Communication and Journalism (member of the study committee)

• 2008-: Netaktivet (member of the editorial board)

• 2008-: Member of the Academy Council, Faculty of Humanities, Aalborg University

• 2007-: Member of Sammenslutningen af Medieforskere i Danmark (SMID)

• 2007-: Member of Association of Internet Researchers (AOIR)

• 2007-: Member of Forskerskolen i Medier, Kommunikation og Journalistik (FMKJ)

• 2007-: Experience Ethnography and Experimental Qualitative Methods (Research Group)

• 2006-: The Media Council for Children and Young People (Awareness Node working group under the EU Safer Internet Plus Programme)

• 2006-: PlaceMe

• 2006-: e-Learning Lab – Center for User Driven Innovation, Learning and Design

• 2006-: InDiMedia

• 2006-: The Network on ICT and Learning

• 2006-: HCCI

• 2005-: Centre for Discourse Studies

Former

• 2006-2008: Kaleidoscope

• 2006-2007: CITA

• 2006: REVE

• 2006: Learn@Work