Fellowship for researcher studying future of work
Project by ARU’s Kathleen Hughes has been selected for funding by Leverhulme Trust
A modern office space
A researcher at Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) has been awarded an Early Career Fellowship by the Leverhulme Trust for a project examining how Afrofuturism may influence the future of work.
Dr Kathleen Hughes, who graduated from Anglia Ruskin University in the summer, has been awarded a three-year postdoctoral research fellowship – the first ARU has ever been awarded by the Trust.
The project will expand upon the PhD by Dr Hughes, who received a Vice Chancellor’s Studentship from ARU, and argues that literary genres, such as science fiction, can influence management concepts of the future of work.
Afrofuturism is a literary genre and is also a strategy of reinserting Black voices, histories and futures into science fiction. Examples of Afrofuturism in popular culture include the novels of Octavia E. Butler, music by Janelle Monae and the 2018 Marvel film Black Panther.Dr Hughes argues that Afrofuturism has been neglected in previous research about management and concepts of work, and that some concepts from the genre may enhance managerial perspectives on how we might work in the future.
Dr Hughes, a researcher in ARU’s Faculty of Business and Law, said:
“The modern workplace is deeply shaped through western cultural norms, such as rigid corporate structures, the way we dress for work, even office layouts and communication styles such as handshakes.
“In spite of the fanfare about emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, which often draws on science fiction themes and imagery, ideas about the future of work are usually seen through the lens of the Silicon Valley elite. Examples from Afrofuturism unpack the societal impact of AI from different perspectives.
“My project will look at science fiction concepts born outside of the status quo, and how they might influence how we think about work in the future.”
Dr Kathleen Hughes, researcher in the Faculty of Business and Law at Anglia Ruskin University (ARU)Early Career Fellowships, worth around £130,000, are awarded by the Leverhulme Trust to early-career researchers with a research record but who have not yet held a full-time permanent academic post.