Archive for August 2017

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[ecrea] Research assistant in Digital Society and Culture

Wed Aug 02 13:17:09 GMT 2017



Part-time, 9 months post: Research Assistant in Digital Society and Culture. Most suitable for a final year PhD student or a recent graduate. Please spread the word http://www.jobs.ac.uk/job/BDF961/research-assistant-digital-society-and-culture

Research Assistant (Digital Society and Culture)
Manchester Metropolitan University - Department of Languages, Information & Communications
Location: 	Manchester
Salary: 	£21,843 to £24,565 (pro-rata) (Grade 5)
Hours: 	Part Time
Contract Type: 	Fixed-Term/Contract
Placed on: 	1st August 2017
Closes: 	15th August 2017
Job Ref: 	T2-80329095-02

Average weekly working hours: 14:00

End date or duration: 9 Months

Advert Link: www2.mmu.ac.uk/jobs/vacancies

Department

This part-time, fixed-term post is based in the Department of Languages, Information & Communications. The successful candidate will be working as part of a team, working on two related studies that are part of a larger project on digital disengagement - an exploration of the rising phenomenon of voluntary refusal of digital platforms or devices by those already digitally savvy.

Digital communication technologies are now increasingly embraced by governments, public services, industries and individuals. And yet, as the digitisation grows, so do the concerns about its overwhelming nature: parents, educators, health experts, and political and environmental activists are calling to reduce the use of such technologies, or refuse them altogether. Such calls however have barely been researched. The few exceptions focused mostly on individual social media refusal, mainly of specific social media platforms (such as Facebook) or devices (such as tablets or phones), and were conducted exclusively in the English-speaking, UK/US context.

The two studies for which research assistance is sought, aim to fill in two crucial gaps, by

(1) addressing digital disengagement in the context of collective concerns, taking environmental sustainability as its key focus.

(2) examining the emergence of digital disengagement in non-speaking countries, taking Russia-UK comparison as its first step.

Role

The successful candidate will participate in the two studies and the delivery of cutting-edge research on digital refusal. The successful candidate will form part of a team of researchers who seek to make a significant contribution to our intellectual understanding of the role digital technologies play in social, economic and environmental formations and struggles. The candidate will contribute to filling a major gap in the field of sustainability studies where the sustainability of the digital economy itself is concerned, and will help propose recommendations, both for shifting the focus of sustainability scholarship, and for policy makers, to reassess the sustainability of the digital itself. The candidate will also contribute to the growing body of cross-cultural investigations of digital sociality, helping to develop a bridge between digital research currently taking place in Russia and in the English-language academia. The successful candidate will work two days a week (days are flexible) analysing academic publications, collecting on-line materials and conducting interviews, and will apply a range of cultural and social theories to the analysis of collected data. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to further their research portfolio through the co-authoring of research publications; establishing contacts with researchers in the UK and Russia; and developing impact activities with non-academic collaborators.

Ideal Candidate

The successful candidate will have excellent communication skills, and must be comfortable undertaking library, on-line and ethnographic research in an independent manner. They should be able to deploy initiative in the research field and approach the data with a critical and creative mind. The successful candidate should have some knowledge of digital media, especially the Internet and social media, and have experience using qualitative data analysis packages, such as NVIVO. Importantly, the candidate should also have knowledge and experience either in the field of critical environmental studies, OR Russian digital cultures, or both. Finally, the successful candidate will be someone who seeks to participate in the research-culture of the department and who can support the research team to deliver on the project’s key objectives.

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