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Johanna Annerbäck

Assistant Professor

My work is situated at the intersection of multiple research fields and is guided by a theoretical and methodological interest in children's voice, mobilities, and participation in public space

Children and public space

I conduct qualitative research within critical child/hood studies and children's geographies, focusing on (young) children's everyday lives in relation to voice, mobilities, ritghts, and participation in public space

My work is situated within posthumanist and new materialist approaches, attuning to how children’s participation unfolds through ongoing processes that involve both human and non-human agents. This includes particular attention to weather as a shifting agent, shaping children’s everyday experiences of public space and outdoor encounters.

Methodologically, I draw primarily on ethnographic approaches, including participant observation and qualitative interviews.

Listening

I am also interested in children’s voice and in listening as a theoretical and methodological practice. Within this, I have focused on children in out-of-home care and the youngest children in preschool, i.e. within institutional settings, and explored how listening is understood, enacted, and can be broadened as a practice

Publications

2026

Annika Manni, Johanna Annerbäck, Håkan Löfgren, F. Mårtensson (2026) Encounters with ice and snow in preschool outdoor practices - and the becoming of (un)sustainability values Journal of Adventure Education and Outdoor Learning (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14729679.2024.2422412

2025

Johanna Annerbäck, Håkan Löfgren (2025) The Dangerous Child: Swedish Teachers' Stories About School Violence in a Rebellion Group on Facebook European Journal of Educational Research, Vol. 14, p. 1231-1243 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.12973/eu-jer.14.4.1231
Judith Lind, Cecilia Lindgren, Johanna Annerbäck (2025) Adoption av placerade barn, återföreningsprincipen och frivilliga placeringar [Adoption from care, the reunification principle and consensual placements]: Ett politiskt initiativ för en kontroversiell barnavårdsåtgärd i Sverige [the political promotion of a controversial child protection measure in Sweden] European Journal of Social Work, Vol. 28, p. 470-482 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13691457.2024.2407865

2024

Alex Orrmalm, Johanna Sjöberg, Anna Sparrman, Rebecka Tiefenbacher, Joel Löw, Johanna Annerbäck, Johanna Sköld, Emilia Strid, Sanna Hedrén, Lina Lago, Olga Anatoli Smith, Yelyzaveta Hrechaniuk, Alan Prout, Marek Tesar (2024) Centring children in research: A collaborative exploration into child-centredness as method and theory Child Studies, Vol. 6, p. 11-32 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.21814/childstudies.5745
Johanna Annerbäck, Annika Manni, Håkan Löfgren, Fredrika Mårtensson (2024) Toddlers' engagements with preschool playgrounds: ethnographic insights from Sweden Children's Geographies, Vol. 22, p. 810-825 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14733285.2024.2386242

CV

CV in short

  • 2014
    Linköping university, Linköping. PhD-student Child Studies.
  • 2012-2014
    Linköping University, Linköping. Degree of Master of Social and Welfare studies, 120 credits

Teaching

I mainly teach in courses at the International Master Program in Child Studies and at the Teacher Training Program, both as a teacher and course director. I am also the assistant course director of the single subject course School and sexuality – from child to youth. 

Assignments


News

family in sunset

Return trips of adopted children fill a need for the adoptive parents as well

It used to be common that adopted children made return trips to their birth countries. Today such trips are made where the entire family travels. A doctoral thesis has studied return trips and found that in many ways the focus is also on the parents.

Organisation

Silhouettes of several children in the sunset

Child Studies (TEMAB)

Education and research at Child Studies is about childhood and family with a focus on interaction and language, children's culture and consumption, and childhood over time and space, all to better see the perspectives of children and young people.
Drone image of the Tema building at Campus Valla

Department of Thematic Studies (TEMA)

In an increasingly complicated world, there is a need for researchers that can handle both breadth and depth, and can collaborate across disciplinary borders. Major societal questions are studied from an interdisciplinary perspective at TEMA.
Studenthuset on Campus Valla in Linköping

About LiU

Linköping University, LiU, offers innovative education and boundary-crossing research. The students are among the most desirable in the labour market and international rankings consistently place LiU as a leading global university.