Transnational Popular Culture as a catalyst for social change is a research cluster that aims to forge interdisciplinary links between those working in disparate disciplines such as Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences, Law, Health and Wellbeing. Arts and Humanities put the human at the centre of analysis and provide a methodological framework for cultural, social and economic critique.
We consider popular culture as a key mediator in the transnational understanding of power and a significant interlocutor in social change. Popular culture has enormous discursive power which creates meaning through storytelling and performance, and can thus be used as a political tool for social change.
If we think of popular culture as one of the most influential agents of value construction, then cultural artefacts can be considered a powerful tool to guide viewers through the moral climate of their time, attesting to a collective process of working through social issues. Social and economic benefits of this research are instrumental as well as intrinsic. Raising awareness, creating knowledge and changing attitudes towards transnational cultures improves social and intellectual capital of individuals, social groups and organisations. Brexit and its aftermath make this knowledge creation a strategic imperative for the country.
The research group consists of the following cross-disciplinary colleagues based within research centres in The Creativity and Culture Research Institute at Sheffield Hallam University:
Esther Johnson · Professor of Film and Media Arts: Art, Design and Media Research Centre Anja Louis · Reader in Cultural and Intercultural Studies: Centre for Culture, Media and Society Ana-Maria Sanchez · Reader in English: Humanities Research Centre Amy Wigelsworth · Senior Lecturer: Department of Management
Sheffield Hallam University is renowned for its world-leading research and thus provides the ideal context for this research cluster.