Simeon Yates

Simeon is Associate Pro-Vice-Chancellor Research Environment and Postgraduate Research. His research on the social, political and cultural impacts of digital media includes a long-standing focus on digital media and interpersonal interaction. More recently, he has worked on projects that address issues of digital inclusion and exclusion. He was recently seconded to the UK Government's Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) to act as research lead for the Digital Culture team. He remains the joint-chair of the DCMS Research Working Group on Digital Inclusion and Skills. His prior work covered topics such as the use of digital technologies in the workplace, digital media use during crises and ICT use by the security services. The majority of the his research has been funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), EU and industry. Simeon’s work has often been interdisciplinary and has predominantly involved creative and digital industry partners. He led on a major Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) funded interdisciplinary programme (Engineering for Life) while at Sheffield Hallam.

Simeon has been researching the impacts of the internet and digital media on language and culture since 1990. His PhD thesis (1993) is a large-scale linguistic comparison of speech, writing and online interaction. Subsequent published work has covered analyses of gender differences in computer-mediated communication (CMC), gender and computer gaming, email and letter writing and science in the mass media. Simeon has written text books on social research methods — in particular, linguistic and discourse analytic methods.

He was previously the Director of the Institute of Cultural Capital, a strategic collaboration between the University of Liverpool and Liverpool John Moores University. He established the Cultural, Communication and Computing Research Institute (C3RI) at Sheffield Hallam University, and has previously worked at the Open University and at the University of Leeds. As well as a background in social science, Simeon has an interest and training in science (geology).