Dr. Deborah Giustini's Bio

Deborah Giustini holds a PhD in Sociology from the University of Manchester. Before joining HBKU, she was a lecturer and postdoctoral fellow at KU Leuven (where she remains a research fellow in Interpreting Studies), lecturer and teaching assistant at the School of Social Sciences and the Humanitarian and Conflict Response Institute of the University of Manchester, and a research fellow in Sociology at Higher School of Economics. She has held research visiting positions at the Warwick Business School, at Tokyo University of Foreign Studies and Sophia University (Japan).

Her research takes a sociologically-informed perspective on labour processes and digitalization in knowledge-intensive sectors, such as the language industry, and practices of intercultural communication in organizations. Deborah has recognized international expertise in practice theory, and is a member of the Practice Theory Consortium at Lancaster University.

Deborah’s expertise is also built on her experience as a language specialist accredited to the Chartered Institute of Linguists, and with international think tanks including the WBG’s Macroeconomic Policy Working Group and the Economic Change Unit. She is an active member of the European Sociological Association, the British Sociological Association, the British Universities Industrial Relations Association, and the European Group for Organizational Studies.

Research Interests

• Intercultural Communication and Interpreting within and beyond Organizations
• Digitalization of Work and Employment in Knowledge-Intensive Sectors (e.g., the language industry)
• Practice-based Approaches to the Study of Knowledge, Change, and Technology
• Sociology of Interpreting and Translation
• Power and Discrimination in Knowledge-intensive Workplaces, Including Gender and Tech-induced Tensions
• Qualitative Research and Ethnographic Approaches

Experiences

1. 2023 - Present; Honorary Research Fellow, KU Leuven
2. 2021 - 2023; Postdoctoral Fellow and Lecturer, KU Leuven
3. 2020 - 2021; Postdoctoral Research Fellow, National Research University Higher School of Economics
4. 2021; Visiting Assistant Professor, Hamad Bin Khalifa University
5. 2020 - 2021; Visiting Assistant Professor, KU Leuven
6. 2016 - 2020; Teaching Assistant and Lecturer, The University of Manchester

Education

1. 2019; PhD in Sociology, The University of Manchester
2. 2013; MA in Translation and Interpreting Studies, University of International Studies (UNINT)
3. 2011; BA in Modern Languages and Intercultural Mediation, La Sapienza University of Rome

A Selection of Dr. Deborah Giustini's Publications