Looking back with PhD Candidate Christina Hecht

LolMyThesis. The working title of my thesis is “Of Figures and Fictions. The Strategic Action Field around Airbnb in Cape Town and Berlin”. In a nutshell, one of my key findings is that people in power are certain about how future spatial orders will look like, while challengers perceive them as worst-case scenarios rooted in injustices of the past.

It’s all about that space. The CRC concept of spatial figures does the most heavy lifting in terms of theory in my thesis, of course. I treat them as abstract spatial logics that actors connect with meaning when they position themselves in fields. This enables me to systematically analyze and compare the thematically diverse conflicts around Airbnb across contexts. 

Looking back, a message to my past self would be that you will arrive at the simplest description of your research only when it is all done in the end. Don’t stress out.

A day in the life includes going for a swim very early in the morning to stay sane, then I catch my most productive working hours while looking forward to lunch from 11am onwards. After, I try to stay focused and produce text until an afternoon coffee, when I gather with my wonderful colleagues for emotional support. I am then powered up for the last writing block!

It’s all about the spatial arrangement. My ideal setting is with the office door closed and noise cancelling headphones to minimize distraction. Whiteboard always close to sort it all out before opening a text document.

Back to the future. I would advise new doctoral researchers to not hesitate to employ all the CRC concepts in a way that suits their work.

Author Bio: Christina is a sociologist working in subproject C07 on spatial conflicts and the platform economy. She connects concepts from economic and organizational sociology with the spatial figures developed at the CRC, and adds a time dimension to comparatively analyze conflicts around Airbnb in Cape Town and Berlin.