Staff Profiles

Dr Tanja Kovacic

BA., MA

Contact Details

Post-doctoral researcher
E: tanja.kovacic@nuigalway.ie

Biography

Dr Tanja Kovacic is a Post-doctoral Researcher at the UNESCO Child and Family Research Centre (School of Political Science & Sociology). Her PhD research examined the link between youth civic engagement, social support and youth resilience in the context of a radical social change in Slovenia. Her research has evolved around a wider area of sociology, including topics of socialist and post-socialist youth, youth civic engagement, social and political aspects of resilience, and educational inequality. Tanja is a qualitative researcher, particularly interested in narrative, epistolary and biographical research. She has also used other creative research method in her research, such as photovoice.

As a Researcher, she has been involved in several projects, including topics of deinstitutionalisation of children in care, the role of social robots in assisting people with dementia (MARIO project: funded by European Commission) and examination of processes and practices which help to address issues around educational inequality in Ireland (funded by Rethink Ireland).

Tanja has extensive experience in teaching and supporting students. She has worked for years with both graduates, post-graduates and adult learners. She has worked as a tutor and lecturer with the School of Political Science & Sociology, Centre for Adult Learning and Professional Development and UNESCO Child and Family Research Centre. Tanja holds a Bachelor of Political Science from the University of Ljubljana (Slovenia), MA in Sociology from Lancaster University (Warsaw, Poland), an Interdisciplinary Research and Studies in Eastern Europe (MIREES) from the University of Bologna (Italy) and a PhD from NUI Galway.

Research Interests

Sociology of childhood and youth, life-course research, social and political aspects of resilience, youth civic engagement, biographical and narrative research, epistolary inquiry, life under socialism and post-socialism

Peer Reviewed Journals

	Year	Publication
	(2020)	'Introducing the Social Robot MARIO to People Living with Dementia in Long Term Residential Care: Reflections' Mannion, A., Summerville, S., Barrett, E., Burke, M., Santorelli, A. Kruschke, C., Felzmann, H., Kovačič, T., Murphy, K. and Casey, D. (2020) 'Introducing the Social Robot MARIO to People Living with Dementia in Long Term Residential Care: Reflections'. International Journal of Social Robotics, 12 :535-547 [Details]
	(2020)	'The perceptions of people with dementia and key stakeholders regarding the use and impact of the social robot MARIO' Casey, D., Barrett, E., Kovačič, T., Sancarlo, D., Ricciardi, F., Murphy, K., Koumpis, A., Santorelli, A., Gallagher, N. and Whelan, S. (2020) 'The perceptions of people with dementia and key stakeholders regarding the use and impact of the social robot MARIO'. International Journal Of Environmental Research And Public Health, 17 :1-19 [Details]
	(2020)	'Conceptualising Coping and Resilience in the Context of Socio-Political and Economic Change: Generational Perspectives From Slovenia' Kovacic, Tanja and Dolan, Pat (2020) 'Conceptualising Coping and Resilience in the Context of Socio-Political and Economic Change: Generational Perspectives From Slovenia'. Child Care In Practice, 26 (4):445-461 [DOI] [Details]
	(2020)	'The effect of MARIO, a social robot, on the resilience of people with dementia: A multiple case study' Sally Whelan , Megan Burke , Eva Barrett , Arlene Mannion, Tanja Kovacic , Adam Santorelli , Barbara Luz Oliveira , Louise Gannon, Edel Shiel, Dympna Casey (2020) 'The effect of MARIO, a social robot, on the resilience of people with dementia: A multiple case study'. Gerontechnology, [DOI] [ARAN Link] [Details]

Book Chapters

	Year	Publication
	(2020)	'Walking a mile in Viktorija's shoes. Resilience, (Post-) Memory and Affordances' Kovačič, T. and Prieto-Blanco, P. (2020) 'Walking a mile in Viktorija's shoes. Resilience, (Post-) Memory and Affordances' In: Gegen/Dokumentation: Operationen – Foren - Intervention. Bielefeld: Transcript Verlag. [Details]
	(2017)	'The Relevance of Youth Civic Engagement for Child Welfare: Lessons Learnt from Socialist and Post-Socialist Slovenia' Kovacic, Tanja and Dolan, Pat (2017) 'The Relevance of Youth Civic Engagement for Child Welfare: Lessons Learnt from Socialist and Post-Socialist Slovenia' In: The Routledge Handbook of Global Child Welfare. London: Routledge. [Details]
	(2014)	'‘Those Letters Keep Me Going: tracing resilience processes in US soldier to sweet heart war correspondences, 1942-1945’' Anne Byrne and Tanja Kovacic (2014) '‘Those Letters Keep Me Going: tracing resilience processes in US soldier to sweet heart war correspondences, 1942-1945’' In: Constructing narratives of continuity and change: a transdisciplinary approach to researching learning lives. UK: Routledge. [ARAN Link] [Details]

Published Reports

	Year	Publication
	(2019)	Identifying Innovative Models for Supporting Vulnerable Learners achieve Educational Progression; Early findings from an Evaluation of Social Innovation Fund Ireland’s Education Fund. Kovačič, Tanja, Forkan, Cormac, Dolan, Pat, Canavan, John, Furey, Eamonn, Shaw, Aileen, & Dolan, Brendan (2019) Identifying Innovative Models for Supporting Vulnerable Learners achieve Educational Progression; Early findings from an Evaluation of Social Innovation Fund Ireland’s Education Fund. UNESCO Child and Family Research Centre, NUI Galway, Galway. [Details]
	(2012)	Foróige Citizenship Programme: Evaluation Report. Brady, B., Conway, R., Canavan, J. & Kovačič, T. (2012) Foróige Citizenship Programme: Evaluation Report. Foróige Best Practice Unit, Dublin. [Details]

Conference Contributions

	Year	Publication
	(2018)	Memory Books; Viktorija's Story, Kovačič, T., Prieto-Blanco, P. and Byrne, A. (2018) This contribution discussed the link between autograph book and affordances. [Oral Presentation], Memory Books; Viktorija's Story, University of Oxford, Wolfson College, Oxford , 15-MAY-18 - 15-MAY-18. [Details]
	(2015)	Narratives of Risk, Coping and Resilience in the Context of Social Change: Generational Experiences with Growing Up in Socialist and Post-socialist Slovenia, Kovačič, T. (2015) presenting paper on PhD research. [Oral Presentation], Narratives of Risk, Coping and Resilience in the Context of Social Change: Generational Experiences with Growing Up in Socialist and Post-socialist Slovenia, University of Maynooth, Ireland , 03-JUN-15 - 03-JUN-15. [Details]
	(2014)	Narrating resilience: What can we learn from people’s experiences across cultures and contexts, Kovacic, T. (2014) narrative inquiry. [Conference Organising Committee Chairperson], Narrating resilience: What can we learn from people’s experiences across cultures and contexts, The American University of Paris, Paris, France , 05-JUN-14 - 05-JUN-14. [Details]
	(2013)	International Conference on Narrative, Anne Byrne, Emma Brannlund, Aura Lounasmaa, Tanja Kovacic (2013) A Trialogue in/of Translation: The use of Narrative Inquiry in Cross-Cultural Research. [Chaired Session], International Conference on Narrative, Manchester Metropolitan University , 27-JUN-13 - 29-JUN-13. [Details]
	(2012)	Those Letters Keep Me Going“: The Role of Epistolary Narratives in Resilience Research, Kovačič, T. (2012) epistolary narrative research. [Oral Presentation], Those Letters Keep Me Going“: The Role of Epistolary Narratives in Resilience Research, Canterbury Christ Church University, Canterbury, UK , 15-MAY-12 - 15-MAY-12. [Details]
	(2011)	Life in the War Theatre: The Role of Human Agency in Dealing with Risk and Resilience, Kovačič, T. (2011) letters, Second World War, resilience. [Oral Presentation], Life in the War Theatre: The Role of Human Agency in Dealing with Risk and Resilience, University College Cork, Cork , 03-MAY-11 - 03-MAY-11. [Details]

Book Review

	Year	Publication
	(2015)	Book Review: Inside Concentration Camps: Social Life at Extremes. Kovačič, T. (2015) Book Review: Inside Concentration Camps: Social Life at Extremes. Book Review [Details]
	(2011)	Book Review: Inclusion and Exclusion of Young Adult Migrants in Europe. Kovačič, T. (2011) Book Review: Inclusion and Exclusion of Young Adult Migrants in Europe. Book Review [Details]

Other Journals

	Year	Publication
	(2013)	'Narratives In/Of Translations: A Trialogue on Translating Narratives Cross-Culturally' Brännlund, E, Kovačič, T, Lounasmaa, A. (2013) 'Narratives In/Of Translations: A Trialogue on Translating Narratives Cross-Culturally' Narrative Works: Issues, Investigations & Interventions, 3 (2) :72-91. [Details]
	(2010)	'Balkanism and the Erased: Nation-state and identity building in Slovenia' Kovačič, T. (2010) 'Balkanism and the Erased: Nation-state and identity building in Slovenia' The South Slav Journal, 29 (111-112) . [Details]
	(2006)	'The Erased: The Consolidation of the Slovenian National Identity through the Discourse of Balkanism. A Case Study of The Television Shows Tarča and Trenja' Kovačič, T. (2006) 'The Erased: The Consolidation of the Slovenian National Identity through the Discourse of Balkanism. A Case Study of The Television Shows Tarča and Trenja' Časopis za kritiko znanosti (ČKZ), 224 . [Details]

Professional Associations

	Association	Function	From / To
	Sociological Association of Ireland	Member	/

Employment

	Employer	Position	From / To
	Centre for Adult Learning and Professional Development, NUI Galway	Community Education Officer	13-APR-15 / 17-MAY-16
	UNESCO Child and Family Research Centre	Research Fellow	/

Education

	Year	Institution	Qualification	Subject
	2015	NUI Galway, School of Political Science and Sociology	PhD	Sociology

Languages

	Language
	Slovenian
	Italian
	Croatian
	English

Modules Taught

Term/Year	Module Title	Module Code	Subject / Desc
2020/2021	Connecting Research, Policy and Practice 2	SP4119
2020/2021	The Sociology of Identity and Belonging	SP1115
2020/2021	Communities in Focus	SP242
2019/2020	Qualitative Research Methods	SP237
2019/2020	Children, Families & Vulnerable Adults	SP606
2019/2020	Project Planning & Evaluation	SPL310
2019/2020	Social Inclusion, Civic Engagement and the Modern State	SP3114
2019/2020	Communities in Focus	SP242
2018/2019	The Sociology of Identity and Belonging	SP1115
2018/2019	Social Inclusion, Civic Engagement and the Modern State	SP3114
2017/2018	Social Inclusion, Civic Engagement and the Modern State	SP3114
2016	Family and Societal Interactions	1516-SP190
2016	Community and Family Studies: Independent Research Project	SP192
2016	Social Inclusion, Civic Engagement and the Modern State	SP3114
2014-2016	Work Based Project	ECS305
2014-2016	Social Research Methodologies	ECS304
2013-2014	The Power of Story and Narrative: Researching Our Lives	SP694	Teaching Assistant
2013-2014	Introduction to Politics and Sociology	SP158	Tutor