Karin Jarnkvist

Universitetslektor|Senior Lecturer

Professional title: Senior Lecturer
Academic title: Associate Professor
Other title: Docent
Telephone: +46 (0)10-1428869
Email: karin.jarnkvist@miun.se
Visitor address: Holmgatan 10, Sundsvall
Room number: M312c
Location: Sundsvall
- Employed at the subject:
- Sociology

- Department:
- Department of Humanities and Social Sciences (HSV)

Background

I earned my PhD in Religious studies at Umeå University in 2011 with the dissertation "When I Get Married, I'll Do It for Real – Stories of Children, Brides, and Weddings." In the dissertation, 16 brides and grooms share their thoughts on marriage and weddings. The aim is to understand the meaning young adults create in their weddings and in the stories they tell about them. Gender and class were central perspectives in the analysis of the interviewees’ experiences and expressions. The study highlights the complexity that characterizes contemporary gender relations, as well as the changes these relationships are undergoing.

Area of interest

The significance of social stratification in people’s lives is central to my research. I am an active member of the Forum for Gender Studies (FGF) at Mid Sweden University and frequently adopt a gender-theoretical and feminist perspective in my work.

I am particularly interested in exploring family and close relationships. My research examines the construction of gender within intimate relationships, the significance of children to parents, and how people negotiate with one another in close relationships. I also analyze narratives about the family as an institution, as well as the influence and consequences of social norms for individuals in different contexts.

Another focus of mine is the role and function of religion in contemporary society, with a particular emphasis on life-cycle rituals such as weddings, naming ceremonies, and funerals. I am especially interested in the creation of new forms of rituals.

Research

In 2025, I am studying the churching ritual from a practice-theoretical and power-critical perspective. I am also working on a text about norm-critical museum pedagogy.
In addition, I am conducting a study on human-animal relationships through an investigation of pet death.

From August 2022 to February 2023, I was a visiting researcher at the Department of Religion, Philosophy and History at the University of Agder, Kristiansand, Norway. During my stay, I was able to deepen my collaboration with researchers at UiA and also carry out new independent research. Among other things, I conducted critical discourse analyses of how the Swedish daily press reported on funerals during the COVID-19 pandemic. This research resulted in two peer-reviewed journal articles.

From 2018 to 2021, I was part of a project on refugee reception in rural areas. The focus was on how government agencies and volunteer organizations understand and work with the reception and integration of newly arrived refugees. The project was a collaboration with researchers at Umeå University.

In 2017, I was a visiting researcher at Uppsala University, where I conducted a literature review and a pilot study on civil weddings, funerals, and naming ceremonies. I studied rituals as actions and how people create meaning through various forms of ritualization. The study also explored the transformation of rituals from religious to secular contexts, and how identity is (or is not) constructed in relation to religion/worldview and gender.

From 2015 to 2017, I worked on a large project on climate change and housing. Among other things, we analyzed the significance of class, gender, and ethnicity in how people relate to climate risks in connection with housing.

From 2014 to 2016, I participated in several research projects on intimate partner violence, focusing on the process of leaving abusive relationships and victims’ experiences in interactions with authorities. Here, gender and class were central analytical perspectives.

Teaching and tutoring

Qualitative Methods (undergraduate to doctoral level)

Thesis Supervision (bachelor’s to doctoral level)

Class, Gender, and Ethnicity, 7.5 credits (undergraduate level)

Philosophy of Science, Ethics, and Methodology, 7.5 credits (advanced level)

Sociological Theory (advanced level)

Sociological Gender Theory, 7.5 credits (doctoral level)

The Sociological Craft, 7.5 credits (doctoral level)

Other information

Since 2019, I have been the coordinator of the Network for Critical Heritage and Museum Studies (NKKM) and a member of the steering group for the Forum for Gender Studies (FGF) at Mid Sweden University.

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Karin Jarnkvist

Background

Area of interest

Research

Teaching and tutoring

Other information

Publications

Articles in journals

Books

Chapters in books

Collections (editor)

Conference papers

Doctoral theses

Reports