Discourses on the Mediatization of the Office (funded by the Austrian Science Fund, FWF, Jan. 2024 – Jan. 2026)
The interrelation between work and media change is theoretically described as the mediatization of work. Based on this concept, the project focuses on the mediatization of the office. It investigates how the transformation of the office, along with the establishment of digital media, is portrayed and negotiated in media discourses from the 1980s until present. Therefore, a discourse analysis is applied adapted from The Sociology of Knowledge Approach to Discourse (SKAD). The project contributes to the theory of mediatization twofold: First, concerning the historical transformation of the office along with the establishment of digital media. Second, concerning the occurrence of this topic in media discourses – which shows another aspect of mediatized work. Learn more about it
From Trash TV to Cult Phenomenon: Discourses on Reality-TV (October, 2024 – September 2025)
The term reality TV refers to the media presentation of real events with real people as the main protagonists. Since the early 1990s, this genre has been firmly established in German-speaking television and has now also conquered video and streaming platforms. Almost a quarter of a century after the entrance of contestants into the Big Brother house (RTL 2, 2000) caused a stir, the formats have become increasingly diversified. The spectrum of productions ranges from amorous adventures on Temptation Island, to disgusting boundary-pushing experiences in the jungle camp, to humiliating matchmaking attempts on Schwiegertochter gesucht (Looking for a Daughter-in-Law). In recent years, there has been frequent talk of a shift in the image of reality TV, moving away from trash TV towards a cult phenomenon, with programs that (apparently) pay attention to political correctness. Recently, Germany’s Next Topmodel (GNTM) has undergone such a “transformation.” As part of this teaching-research project, media discourses on the transformation of reality TV are being examined using the Sociology of Knowledge Approach to Discourse. It is based on the assumption that discourses not only represent reality but also co-construct it.
Conference “Kommunikationswissenschaftliche Tage 2023 – Ambivalenzen in Kommunikation und Medien” (4 – 6 July, 2023)
Media biographies (March 2019 – Oct. 2021, together with Christian Oggolder)
Traditional media use research mostly aims at quantitative aspects about media use. The level of subjective media use is hereby not taken into consideration. Scientific research in media biographies starts with the individual experience of everyday life and attempts more thoroughly to approach people’s (mediatized) lives. Media biographies of elderly people are examined with the help of media biographical interviews that are conducted during a training research project. The role of media is explored regarding their significance within the course of the elderly’s lives as well as within the context of their biographies. The focus is especially on the role of digital media in their everyday lives.
Published as Leben mit Medien. Medienbiografien von älteren Menschen (Roth-Ebner, Caroline/Oggolder, Christian) (2023) In: Medienimpulse 61 (1). doi: 10.21243/mi-01-23-06, read online.
Media consumption worlds for children (Oct. 2016 – December 2021)
Children grow up in a society in which media are omnipresent and which is highly consumption-oriented. One could say that in the course of the 21st century childhood has become mediatized on the one hand, and commercialized on the other. These two aspects are combined in media consumption worlds for children. What is intended with this concept? Firstly, the productions are crossmedia systems in which one script is made available through various media. Secondly, they are called “worlds”, because not only do they convey a story, they also make it accessible. This can be achieved through interactive media (web applications, computer games etc.), but also through toys and merchandising concerning the everyday life. As a result, these products enable children to actively and affectively experience the story and brand loyalty then stimulates further consumption. Some examples are Disney’s Frozen, Star Wars or TOPModel by Depeche. In the project, the media consumption worlds are accessed with the help of media analyses and qualitative interviews with children and their parents, partly realised in research seminars, as well as with an online survey.
Published as “You just have to join in” – A mixed-methods study on children’s media consumption worlds and parental mediation. In: Communications. https://doi.org/10.1515/commun-2021-0111, read online
Partly published as “Süßer die Kassen nie klingeln. Mediale Konsumerlebniswelten für Kinder und deren medienethische Implikationen”. In: Litschka Michael/Krainer Larissa (Eds.) (2019): Der Mensch im digitalen Zeitalter. Ethik in mediatisierten Welten. Wiesbaden: Springer VS, 153-182. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-26460-4_8, read online
“Flipped Classroom” – media education project at Carinthian schools (Sep. 2018 – Feb. 2019)
In the course of the “Digital Year 2018” the province of Carinthia has financed media education projects at different Carinthian schools. The project “Flipped Classroom” was launched in mid-September by a team of the Department of Media and Communications at the University of Klagenfurt (project coordinator and scientific assistant: MMag. Andreas Hudelist, project leader: Assoc. Prof. Mag. Dr. Caroline Roth-Ebner).
The aim of the project was to promote the students’ as well as their teachers’ media literacy. Six classes from four different schools took part in this project (from lower and upper grades as well as from elementary schools). Workshops were held in these classes, during which children and teenagers, with the support of a media education professional (Andreas Hudelist), first reflected on and then documented their own media use (from smartphone to video games). Taking the students‘ personal interests as a starting point, they worked on topics concerning the use of media (e.g. Social Media, copyright, fake news). The students prepared teaching modules, which in part focused on the didactic use of digital media. These lessons were then held by the students in twin classes from lower grades. That is how the project guaranteed peer-to-peer learning. Furthermore, it was expected to gain effective learning experience on the side of the teachers, as the core element of “Flipped Classroom” is the change of roles between teachers and students.
The workshops were gradually held from September to February 2019 at the following schools: Elementary School Volksschule 1 Feldkirchen, Highschool NMS 10 Klagenfurt, Bilingual BHAK Klagenfurt and BG/BRG Mössingerstraße Klagenfurt. The twin classes, in which the participating students were holding their individually created teaching modules, were also from the Elementary School VS 8 Dr. Karl Rennerschule Klagenfurt.
The evaluation of the project revealed that the peer-to-peer learning structure helped the students to experience the role of experts/educators on the one hand and to learn from their peers on a low-threshold level on the other.
Published as: “Können wir bitte auch mal Mathe so machen?” Ein Peer-to-Peer-Projekt im Schulkontext, together with Andreas Hudelist, in: MERZ, Jg. 64, H. 1, 2020, 68-73.
Media education project at Carinthian schools: “Schaut her! Ich zeig’s euch digital!” (“Look! I’ll show you digitally!”) (April – July 2018)
From April to July a team of the Department of Media and Communications at the University of Klagenfurt has been working on the project “Look! I’ll show you digitally!” (project coordinator and scientific assistant: Mag. Nicole Duller, project leader: Assoc. Prof. Mag. Dr. Caroline Roth-Ebner), which has been financed by the province of Carinthia.
The aim of the project was to promote the pupils’, the parents’ and the teachers’ media literacy. Six classes/groups of six different schools in Carinthia were participating (lower and upper cycle). Workshops were held in these classes from April to July 2018, in which children and teenagers, with the support of a media education professional (Nicole Duller), reflected on and documented their own media use. Moreover, they produced their own media contents according to their individual interests. At the same time, the students acquired important media literacy skills.
The outcome of the project, so to speak the students’ “media footprints” were presented on Wednesday, June 20, at 5:30 p.m. at the “Hörsaal B” at the University of Klagenfurt. There students were able to give not only their parents but also their teachers an understanding of the creative and productive potential of digital media, presenting them concrete forms of use and applications (by entering into a dialogue with each other). As the evaluation of the project revealed, the students very much appreciated having had a chance to exchange their experience in the use of media and to create their own media products without fear of being graded.
The schools involved were: the Praxisschule Verbundmodell Neue Mittelschule Klagenfurt, the Neue Mittelschule Annabichl, the Ingeborg-Bachmann-Gymnasium, the Europagymnasium, the Waldorfschule Klagenfurt and the Polytechnic School Villach.
Published as “Medienperformanz als didaktisches Prinzip medienpädagogischer Praxis“, together with Nicole Duller, in: Medienimpulse 4/2018, 1-23, read online.
One of the “media footprints“ was awarded the “media literacy award“ of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research 2019
Digital Media in the Workplace (2009-2014)
The research project was conducted in the course of Caroline Roth-Ebner’s habilitation thesis (“Der effiziente Mensch”). It focused on the use of information and communication technology (ICT) at work. The core research interest lay in the subjective mental states of people working within the dynamics of media, time and space. 20 interviews with people who intensively use ICTs at work (so called digicom workers) were conducted and complemented by their sketched visualisations. Based on the results of this qualitative study, an online questionnaire was spread in order to reach a broader population (N = 445). The results revealed that there is an ideal type of the ‘efficient human’ who seeks efficient work performance in order to master a maximum of tasks. Digital media thereby become tools that enable workers to plan, perform, archive and evaluate their work. Contemporarily however, inefficiencies and burdens emerge like e.g. stress resulting from being permanently available.
This project was funded by the private trust of the Kärntner Sparkasse.
Published as “Der effiziente Mensch. Zur Dynamik von Raum und Zeit in mediatisierten Arbeitswelten“, Bielefeld 2015.
English publication: “Spatial Phenomena of Mediatised Work”, in: Flecker, Jörg (Ed.): Space, Place and Global Digital Work, London, 2016, 227-245.
More publications see “publications” section.
E-Learning in Apprenticeship Training II (2005-2007)
Lead by Christina Schachtner and coordinated by Caroline Roth-Ebner, this research project expanded the preceding project “E-learning in Apprenticeship Training I” in terms of structure and content. Focusing on the concept of E-learning, the aim was to make a constructive contribution to the current apprenticeship training and to increase appreciation for skilled labour.
Several interviews were conducted with teachers and apprentices of the Berufsschule Villach (vocational school Villach) in order to find out more about the different interest in e-learning, the various experiences in the use of digital media as well as the willingness to participate in the development of a learning platform.
Based on the findings of the interviews a learning platform was developed, which not only served for the subject-specific knowledge transfer, but also for the training of the social and communicative competence, for an exchange of experiences and for collaborative learning.
The project was part of a funding programme by the BMDA (Austrian Federal Ministry of Economy and Labour), the Carinthian State Government (Amt der Kärntner Landesregierung) and the Carinthian Education Authority (Landesschulrat Kärnten).
Published as “Lernen für den Beruf. Neue digitale Lernwege in der Lehrlingsausbildung”, together with Christina Schachtner, in: Medienimpulse 66, 2009, 70-77.
Games for Girls (2010-2011)
Computer games play an important role in kids’ and teenagers’ media consumption and they are extensively used for entertainment. But how can we use the fascination for those games in order to also promote serious matters? This project, which was supported by the Faculty of Humanities of the University of Klagenfurt, focused on the career orientation of teenage girls. In cooperation with the girl’s centre (Mädchenzentrum) in Klagenfurt, it was being examined whether selected computer games are suitable for young girls’ career orientation.
Published as “Spielend zum Beruf? Serious Games zur Berufsorientierung von Mädchen”, together with Uwe Blümel, spielbar.de, Onlineportal der Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung, August 2011
Identities of the Star Factory (2003-2007)
The study was conducted in the course of Caroline Roth’s PhD thesis and looked at the connection between media and identity. The cross-media television production “Starmania” was chosen as an object of further investigation as it links different media within one format. It is analysed whether Starmania is a resource for the individual identity formation of young recipients and how the crossmedia TV-show design plays a role within this process.
The basis of the methodological approach was triangulation: It consisted of qualitative interviews with adolescent fans of Starmania, their media drawings, media analyses and a standardized survey (N=381). This entanglement of the various methods (all targeting different objectives) made it possible to examine a wide range of diverse relationships (audience – fans – production). According to the findings the crossmedia design of the TV-show functions as a “catalyst of identities” that reinforces identity forming processes such as identification, delineation, extension of competencies, self-representation and community formation.
Published as “Identitäten aus der Starfabrik”, Opladen/Farmington Hills, 2008.
More publications see “publications” section.
Future is Learning in the Kindergarden (2004)
The project “Future is Learning in the Kindergarden” was realised from March to June 2004 in cooperation with the Bundesbildungsanstalt für Kindergartenpädagogik (Highschool/College for nursery education). The children taking part in this project were attending the college’s own kindergarten. The aim of this project was to convey to pre-schoolers that media competence is a new cultural technique as well as to involve the various educational agents such as educators, teachers, students and parents.
Observational studies conducted in the course of a participant observation of the children using computers, educational tests of learning and gaming software with the help of a scientifically developed set of criteria, workshops with educators, teachers and students, a standardised survey for educators and parents in order to evaluate the project as well as the development of a concept for the media project “virtual children’s room” (which can be realised together with children) were part of the scientific accompaniment. Following the findings from the project we could develop a media didactic and educational concept that tries to form general media education ideas according to media learning with computers in the kindergarten.
Research team:
Univ.-Prof. DDr. Christina Schachtner (head of project), Mag. Gabriele Frankl, Mag. Caroline Roth (project assistants)
The project was funded by the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Arts (BMBWK – Bundesministerium für Bildung, Wissenschaft und Kunst).
Published as “Mediales Lernen im Kindergarten. Ein mediendidaktisch-pädagogisches Konzept zum Einsatz des Computers im Vorschulalter”, together with Christina Schachtner and Gabriele Frankl, in: Medienimpulse, 53, 2005, 39-52, download