This interdisciplinary research initiative is based in the Department of Culture and Language at the University of Southern Denmark. It brings together researchers with interests in health, illness, care, ageing, disability, embodiment, and biomedical knowledge from a range of humanities and social science perspectives. The initiative provides a space for dialogue, collaboration, and the development of new research agendas at the intersection of culture, health, illness, care, and lived experience.
With a strong foundation in the humanities, our research spans topics such as health narratives, media representations, public and institutional discourse, literature and art, as well as patient and lived experiences of everyday life. We share an interest in the cultural dimensions of health and illness, and in how experiences of health, illness, care, ageing, and disability are shaped, communicated, represented, and understood within cultural and social contexts, including through cultural norms, social inequalities, and practices of inclusion and exclusion.
Drawing on perspectives from Cultural Studies, Health Humanities, Medical Humanities, Narrative Medicine, Gender Studies, Critical Disability Studies, Science and Technology Studies (STS), literary studies, media and multimodal communication studies, and other critical approaches to health, this initiative supports exchange across diverse theoretical and methodological traditions. It also explores ways to transform insights from research into practice, including education and training as an important space for this translation. The initiative aims to foster collaboration across disciplines and faculties, encouraging dialogue between the humanities, social sciences, health sciences, and technology research. We welcome partnerships with researchers, healthcare institutions, public organisations, cultural actors, and civil society.
Core group
Anita Wohlmann wohlmann@sdu.dk
Cindie A. Aaen Maagaard cindiem@sdu.dk
Karen Hvidtfeldt hvidtfeldt@sdu.dk
Maria Bee Christensen-Strynø strynoe@sdu.dk
We welcome expressions of interest from colleagues working on culture, health, illness, care, disability, ageing, embodiment, and related fields.