Dr. Julia Schnepf

Social & Political Psychologist – PostDoc – Feminist – Pacifist – Activist

Born into a time that seemed far less turbulent than today’s, I grew up in a village between Mannheim and Frankfurt. As a child, I loved encyclopedias, building things and experimenting together with my father – who answered me every WHY question that wandered in my little head. Today I think that this may be how I discovered my first passion for science.
Later, I found my way into political science and psychology. I think that psychological theories and models are needed to better understand political processes.

After having studied political science, psychology and economics at Heidelberg University, I completed my PhD in the field of political psychology at the University of Koblenz-Landau with Prof. Gerhard Reese (University of Koblenz-Landau) and Prof. Sarah Martiny (UiT Tromsø) as my supervisors. In my PhD studies, I mainly focused on how small linguistic changes within a piece of information can influence people’s attitudes and policy preferences. One of my core interests is on how femicides are framed in the media and how this affects recipients. Now, I am a PostDoc at the Department of Media Psychology at the Chair of Prof. Aileen Oeberst at the FernUniversität Hagen.

Saddened by the state of the world, I try to keep an utopian view of humankind, to hope and work for a world without war, violence and inequality. Every now and then I dabble in cabaret, so you can sometimes meet me at a science slam or open mic stage. To say it with the words of Gerda Taro: „Life is too serious to take seriously.“

Education
since 09/2022
PostDoc at the Department of Media Psychology (University of Hagen)

09/2018 – 04/2022
Ph.D. in Psychology (University of Koblenz-Landau)
Thesis: Framing is not framing is not framing: The influence of contextual and individual factors on linguistic framing effects
Supervisors: Gerhard Reese (University Koblenz-Landau), Sarah Martiny (Arctic University Tromsø)

04/2017 – 07/2018
M.A. in Political Science and Economics* (Heidelberg University)

10/2013 – 02/2017
B.A. in Political Science and Psychology* (Heidelberg University)
*minor subject