Prof. Dr. Karen Wagels

• Psychology in social work
  • Reflection of psychological concepts and knowledge production
  • Subject orientation in science and practice of social work
  • Social work as work with psychological crises
• Qualitative methods of empirical social research

• Discourse, Subjectivity and Body
• gender and queer studies
• critical whiteness and working class approaches

• German Society for Social Work DGSA
• Section Gender and Queer Studies in Social Work, German Society for Social Work DGSA
• Section Women's and Gender Studies, German Sociological Association DGS
• Commission for Women's and Gender Studies in the German Society for Folklore DGV
• Fachgesellschaft Geschlechterstudien / Gender Studies Association e.V.
• Working Class / Poverty Class Academics WCPCA, Mailing List Germany

• since 2022: Co-course director Bachelor Social Work
• 2021 - 2023: Representative for research and doctoral studies, Department of Social Work
• 2019 - 2021: Dean of the Department of Social and Health Work
• 2018 - 2019: Vice Dean for Studies and Education
• Lecturer of the Hans-Böckler-Foundation
• Trade Union for Education and Science GEW

Monograph

Wagels, Karen (2013): Gender as artifact - modes of regulation in gainful employment contexts. Bielefeld: transcript.

Book back issues

Herrera Vivar, María Teresa / Rostock, Petra / Schirmer, Uta / Wagels, Karen (eds.) (2016): On heteronormativity. Arguments about social relations and conceptual approaches. Forum Frauen- und Geschlechterforschung, Vol. 45. Münster: Westfälisches Dampfboot.

Scheich, Elvira / Wagels, Karen (eds.) (2011): Body space transformation - gender dimensions of nature and matter. Forum women's and gender studies, vol. 32. Westfälisches Dampfboot.

Journal articles

Wagels, Karen (2016): Bringing bodies into text. On conceptualizing queer perspectives in gainful employment contexts. In: Amelang, Katrin / Bergmann, Sven / Binder, Beate / Vogel, Anna-Carolina / Wagener-Böck, Nadine (eds.): Body Technologies. Berliner Blätter - Ethnographic and ethnological contributions, special volume, 58-67.

Wagels, Karen (2014): "thinking about oneself" - failure and success of different references in social work. In: Tuider, Elisabeth / Busche, Mart (eds.): Queerfeldein durch die Soziale Arbeit. sozialmagazin. Die Zeitschrift für Soziale Arbeit, issue 3-4, 68-73.

Book chapters

Wagels, Karen / Weiler, Barbara (2018): 'Optimize yourselves!' - 'Let yourself be challenged!' Inquiries into current (self-)relations and modes of processing in the field of study and education under conditions of quality management. In: Götzelmann, Arnd (ed.): Zweieinhalb Jubiläen. The Department of Social and Health Services at the University of Applied Sciences Ludwigshafen am Rhein and its Prehistory since 1948. Norderstedt: BoD.

Wagels, Karen (2014): 'Wieviel Weiblichkeit gesteh' ich mir selbst zu?' - TransFormations mit und am Femme-Körper. In: Sabine Fuchs (ed.), Femme! radical - queer - feminin. Berlin: Querverlag, 159-172 (2nd ed.).

Wagels, Karen (2013): Beyond a thinking of bisexuality - structure and dynamics of gender from the perspective of grounded theory. In: Bereswill, Mechthild / Liebsch, Katharina (Eds.): (re)constructing gender. On the methodological and methodological productivity of women's and gender studies. Forum Frauen- und Geschlechterforschung, vol. 38. Münster: Westfälisches Dampfboot, 80-97.

Wagels, Karen (2010): Storytelling - Interests, arenas and interfaces in the production of ErKenntnis. In: Dege, Martin / Grallert, Till / Dege, Carmen / Chimirri, Niklas (eds.), Can Marginalized (wi(e)der)speak? On the political potential of the social sciences. Giessen: Psychosozial Verlag, 79-94.

Wagels, Karen (2009): Visible and self-evident? On the mediality of the body in gainful employment contexts. In: Simon, Michael / Hengartner, Thomas / Heimerdinger, Timo / Lux, Anne-Christin (eds.), Bilder - Bücher - Bytes. On the mediality of everyday life. Münster: Waxmann, 491-498.

Wagels, Karen (2008), "He had a position and I had none." Modes of Regulation of Gender in Gainful Employment Contexts, in: Marburger Gender-Kolleg (ed.), Geschlecht Macht Arbeit. Interdisciplinary Perspectives and Political Intervention. Work - Democracy - Gender, vol. 7. Münster: Westfälisches Dampfboot, 136-151.

Wagels, Karen (2008): Gender as political terrain - on scientific intervention in a conceptual regime. In: Haug, Christoph / Maier, Rudi / Schröder, Berit (eds.), Kampf um Teilhabe. Actors, places, strategies. Hamburg: VSA, 58-69.

Wagels, Karen (2008): Sub/Versions of Gender - On the Political Use of a Photo Exhibition, in Ernst, Thomas / Gozalbez Cantó, Patricia / Richter, Sebastian / Sennewald, Nadja / Tieke, Julia (eds.), SUBversions - On the Relationship between Politics and Aesthetics in the Present. Bielefeld: transcript, 198-214.

Sülzle, Almut / Wagels, Karen (2008): Re- and Deconstructions of Gender, in: Marburger Gender-Kolleg (ed.), Geschlecht Macht Arbeit. Interdisciplinary perspectives and political intervention. Work - Democracy - Gender, vol. 7. Münster: Westfälisches Dampfboot, 102-106.

Reviews

Wagels, Karen (2013): Depression and its gendered subtext - an interdisciplinary study. Review of Nadine Teuber: The gender of depression. "Femininity" and "masculinity" in the conceptualization of depressive disorders. In: querelles-net vol. 14, no. 1 (2013). URL: www.querelles-net.de/index.php/qn/article/view/1048/1098 (28.01.2017)

Wagels, Karen (2010): Review of Rainer Bartel / Ilona Horwarth / Waltraud Kannonier-Finster / Maria Mesner / Erik Pfefferkorn / Meinrad Ziegler (eds.): Heteronormativity and homosexualities. In: Feminist Studies, Issue 1.

Wagels, Karen (2008): Crossings - the work of subjectivity. Review of Renate Lorenz / Brigitta Kuster (2007): working sexually. In: querelles-net, no. 24, March 2008. URL: www.querelles-net.de/index.php/qn/article/viewArticle/599/607 (28.01.2017)

since 2016

Professorship Psychology in Social Work, Department of Social and Health Services, Ludwigshafen University of Business and Society

2011-2016

Institute of Social Work, Department of Human Sciences, University of Kassel

2012

Doctoral Award of the Department of Social Sciences and Philosophy, University of Marburg

2011

Doctorate (Dr. phil.), University of Marburg

2009-2011

Department of Gender, Faculty of Sociology, University of Bielefeld

2007-2009

Teaching positions at the Universities of Marburg, Kassel and Bielefeld

2004-2007

Interdisciplinary Research Training Group Gender Relations at the Intersection of Work, Politics and Culture, University of Marburg, funded by the Hans Böckler Foundation

2002-2012

Lesbian Information and Counseling Service LIBS e.V., Frankfurt am Main

2002-2005

Advanced training in systemic consulting and therapy, ISTUP Frankfurt am Main

1997-2002

German Institute for International Educational Research DIPF, Frankfurt am Main

1996-2000

Postgraduate studies in education and international developments, University of Frankfurt am Main

1860-1994

Studies of Psychology, Universities of Bonn and Heidelberg