What is ELIT?

To arrive at a profound understanding of the underlying processes and societal effects of reading, a European Network – the Empirical study of Literature Training Network (ELIT) – has been established that integrates two research cultures that are commonly separated, namely the social sciences and the humanities. We aim to train a new generation of creative, innovative and interdisciplinary early-stage researchers (i.e., PhD candidates) in the empirical study of literature. They should be ready to face current and future challenges in this field, which is in constant flux due to the influence of rapidly changing empirical research techniques, and contextual demands, such as, for instance, the digitization of reading. To meet these needs, ELIT will be collaborating closely with non-academic partners to draw invaluable insights from society at large about how reading can fulfil certain societal needs, such as stimulating empathy and pro-social behaviour.

The ELIT Network consists of ten European Universities that are at the forefront of the empirical study of literary reading. In addition, the network includes twelve non-academic partners from domains such as literacy (i.e., literacy associations, reading foundations, educational policymakers), bibliotherapy (i.e., reading groups, libraries), production (i.e., publishing houses), and research (i.e., eye tracking companies, international research networks).

Applicants need to fully respect eligibility criteria and the enrollment rules specified in the call for applications.

Application deadline: 15.06.2020 02:00 pm (Central Europe Time)

Individual projects (ESR positions) in the ELIT ITN

·            ESR1: Neurocognitive Poetics: Towards new integrative models and methods (Freie Universität Berlin, Germany)

·            ESR2: Individual variation in literary reading (Radboud University, The Netherlands)

·            ESR3: Reading in the city – in everyday life (University of Vienna, Austria)

·            ESR4: Literary text perception and comprehension (University of Warsaw, Poland)

·            ESR5: Literary Empathy and Morality (University of Verona, Italy)

·            ESR6: The impact of narrative structure on engagement (University of Haifa, Israel)

·            ESR7: The effects of literariness on empathy building in the classroom (VU Amsterdam, The Netherlands)

·            ESR8: Engagement of young adult readers in social media platforms (University of Basel, Switzerland)

·            ESR9: Shared literary reading and mental well-being in the digital age (University of Stavanger, Norway)

·            ESR10: Reading with digital tools in early childhood classroom settings (Trnava University, Slovakia)