News
New publication: Dilger, H. (2026). Bringing artifacts (back) to life: Ethnographic collections as affective force. American Ethnologist, 1–15
How can we rethink the relationship between museum objects and the communities and contexts they come from? In his new article Bringing Artifacts (Back) to Life: Ethnographic Collections as Affective Force , Hansjörg Dilger develops a concept that fundamentally reframes ethnographic collections: affective force — a relational intensity that emerges between human and more-than-human actors, unfolds over time, and co-shapes sociomaterial environments. The article appears in the renowned journal American Ethnologist, published by the American Ethnological Society, a section of the American Anthropological Association.
Jun 29, 2026
Between Affect and Argument: Margreth Lünenborg in Philosophie Magazin
In Philosophie Magazin , Margreth Lünenborg argues that affect is a necessary part of democratic discourse. What happens at a public viewing when you look at it as a media scholar? Spontaneous embraces with strangers after a goal, a round of consolation beers from a guy at a next table — but also overturned tables and shouting. Is this simply the barbaric counterpart to rational discourse in coffee houses and salons — or something more?
Jun 15, 2026
New Publication: Lünenborg, M., & Makhashvili, A. (2025). Feeling feminist futures in digital environments. In Papacharissi, Z. (Ed.) The Routledge Companion to Digital Media and Democracy (1st ed.). Routledge
Can social media help create more feminist futures—or does it simply turn feminism into another marketable trend? In a new book chapter , Margreth Lünenborg and Ana Makhashvili tackle this question by exploring the affective dynamics of digital feminism. From hashtag activism and online solidarity to networked misogyny and the commercialization of feminist causes, they examine the promises and pitfalls of feminist and anti-feminist engagement in digital spaces.
Jun 15, 2026
Emotions Are Not a Private Matter: Markus Lange in an Interview with campus.leben
“Even for us, it is striking how the polycrises of the present have caught up with—and in some cases even surpassed—our initial assessments.”
Apr 22, 2026
New Publication: Elgen Sauerborn and Caroline Rocks on Shame and Social Mobility
What emotions shape experiences of social mobility – and why does shame often becomes so prominent?
Mar 23, 2026
From the courtroom to the For You feed – Gisèle Pelicot as a feminist role model: Margreth Lünenborg in the DLF's Corso podcast
“The pillory is definitely an extremely rigid social instrument, where one must be extremely careful that public shaming does not take the place of legal proceedings.”
Feb 23, 2026
Errors in the trial
Theater scholar Theresa Schütz attended Milo Rau's production of “The Trial Against Germany” in Hamburg – and published a critical review in the nachtkritik magazine .
Feb 23, 2026
The New Key Concepts in Affective Societies is out and available for order at Routledge!
Drawing on more than a decade of interdisciplinary research at the CRC “Affective Societies,” The New Key Concepts in Affective Societies offers a rich conceptual toolbox for understanding affective dynamics in governance, media, care, protest, and everyday life.
Dec 18, 2025
Call for Papers - Workshop “Bridging Emotions: Affect in Overcoming Social and Political Divides”
Keio University, Tokyo 16.05.2026 Submission deadline: 15.02.2026 Notification of acceptance: 20.02.2026 Organizers: Takemitsu Morikawa & Christian von Scheve
Dec 18, 2025
New Special Issue of Emotions & Society: Emotions, the Rich and the Poor
The new special issue of Emotions & Society , co-edited by Nina Margies and Elgen Sauerborn , places emotions at the centre of contemporary class analysis.
Nov 26, 2025
Shame – An Uncomfortable Feeling that Holds Society Together
Christian von Scheve on Zeitfragen.Feautre, the podcast by Deutschlandfunk Kultur , 10.11.2025
Nov 17, 2025
New publication: Shame must change sides: Affective media practices and the Mazan rape cases on TikTok
Oct 29, 2025
Online launch: Graphic novel “The Grumpy Philosophers Bar”
What happens when philosophers argue about emotions—in a bar? Theories fly. Fists fly. And sometimes the only thing that helps is a good cocktail: the Unfeeling, a Revenge Refresher, or even a double Lovely Resonance on ice.
Aug 04, 2025
New Publication: Meike Haken on Popular-Cultural Science Communication
In her recent article “Popular-Cultural Science Communication and Empirical Theory of Science” , published in Historical Social Research (2025), Meike Haken ( TP Ö: Projektbiographien – Affective Archive ) explores the evolving landscape of science communication. She proposes the term “popular-cultural science communication” to more accurately describe new formats such as podcasts, blogs, and comics—formats that blur the line between science and pop culture without necessarily compromising scientific integrity.
Jul 28, 2025
New Publication: “Unsure whether it feels like home anymore”: Unsettled feelings amongst former panel-block residents in Moscow and Berlin
What does it mean to feel at home in a place that may soon no longer exist? How do looming urban transformations imprint themselves on our emotional experience, our memories, and our sense of self? And can the feeling of home ever be separated from the material and affective histories of dwelling?
Jul 15, 2025
New publication: "Affective Dynamics in #MyBodyMyChoice Memetic Performances on TikTok: Between Feminist Killjoys and Happy Feminism"
A new article by Margreth Lünenborg and Annabella Backes has been published as part of the special issue “Public Emotions and the Affective Forces of Social Activism” of the journal Javnost – The Public . The authors explore the affective dynamics of feminist digital activism by drawing on affect theory and feminist media studies. Focusing on the #mybodymychoice TikTok challenge, they examine how current debates on bodily autonomy and women’s rights unfold on social media platforms.
Jul 09, 2025
Affect meets film: Arabesque in Turkish-German cinema
Kilerci-Stevanović, N (2025). Poetics of Arabesk in Turkish-German Cinema. A Transnational Intervention in the Discourse. De Gruyter
Jun 25, 2025
Revenge as a Blind Spot of Modernity. Interview with Fabian Bernhardt in the Swiss magazine "bref"
Why are we fascinated by avenging heroes like Zorro or Batman — yet disturbed by real-life acts of revenge? In a recent interview with the Swiss magazine "bref", our colleague Fabian Bernhardt, philosopher at the CRC “Affective Societies”, explores the cultural logic and moral ambiguities of revenge in modern societies.
Jun 13, 2025
Affective Archives: Insights into research practice through new formats
We tell project biographies
Apr 14, 2025
