Henning Årman
About me
Postdoctoral researcher
Section for Child and Youth Studies
Research
In my research I combine persepctives found withnin Child and Youth Studies with the thinkingtools of linguistics and discourse analysis. While the object of study may vary, I use ethnographic methods to study situated meaning making.
Some of my research interests are youth, language ideologies and space in contemporary Sweden. I have published papers on the contemporary urban vernacular "förortsslang" and youths discussion who the authentic speaker of the register is.
I am also interested in ideology, semiotics and aestetics of far right political groups and are currently engaged in the project Antisemitic manifestations – a study of the semiotics of antisemitism in Sweden and the experiences among Jewish youth funded by Vetenskapsrådet.
As postdoctor in the project Dad with kids I use ethnographic methods to gain new knowledge on the the interaction between child health care professionals and fathers.
Publications
Årman, H. (2021) Political corrections - language activism and regimentation among high school youth. (Dissertation). Stockholm: Department of Child- and Youth Studies, Stockholm University.
Årman, H. (2021). Order and turbulence in a Swedish bathroom: Youths’ negotiations of the meaning of ‘queer’. Gender and Language, 15(4), 476–502.
Årman, H. (2020). Affects of verbal hygiene: The impact of language activism at a Swedish high school. Language Policy. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10993-020-09543-3
Jonsson, R., Årman, H., & Milani, T. (2019). Youth language. In K. Tusting (Ed.), The Routledge Handbook of Linguistic Ethnography (1 edition). Routledge.
Westberg, G., & Årman, H. (2019). Common sense as extremism: The multi-semiotics of contemporary national socialism. Critical Discourse Studies, 16(5), 549–568. https://doi.org/10.1080/17405904.2019.1624183
Årman, H. (2018). Speaking ‘the Other’?: Youths’ regimentation and policing of contemporary urban vernacular. Language & Communication, 58, 47–61. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.langcom.2017.08.005
Årman, H. (2011). Ett attitydexperiment med språkpolitiska implikationer. Språk Och Stil: Tidskrift För Svensk Språkforskning., 2011.
External research projects
Antisemitic manifestations - the semiotics of antisemitism in Sweden and experiences among Jewish youth
Antisemitism is a recurring phenomenon in contemporary Sweden that manifests itself in a wide range of social contexts (e.g., Bachner, 2017; BRÅ, 2019). Reports show the persistence of antisemitism in the everyday lives of Jewish youth (e.g., Katzin, 2021, Wagrell, 2022). The aim of the current research project is to investigate the semiotics of antisemitism and youth’s experiences of antisemitism in contemporary Sweden.
Theoretical and methodological insights from a Discourse-Historical Approach, Social Semiotics and New Sociology of Childhood are used to explore how antisemitism is semiotically practiced and experienced in various societal arenas. The project consists of three work packages (WP). WP A (2023–2024) will focus on the increased presence of radical nationalist propaganda in the public political space in Sweden. WP B (2024–2025) will explore radical nationalist propaganda in school contexts. WP C (2025–2027) will recruit Jewish youths as co-researchers to capture their perspectives on the antisemitic manifestations they encounter in their everyday lives. Combining discourse analytical methods and ethnography, the project will engage with the complexity and nuances of contextualized antisemitic semiotics. By maintaining dialog and collaboration with stakeholders, the project will provide much-needed knowledge about how antisemitism is semiotically manifested and how such manifestations are experienced by minority youth.
