der EPoS Podcast

Episode 4: What do you think about Austria’s role on the world stage? These two scientists want your answers.

31. Juli 2026

For a long time, little was known about how Austrians view foreign policy decisions. The Austrian Foreign Policy Panel Project is changing this through an annual long-term survey. Which countries should Austria maintain strong relations with? What do people think about compulsory military service, and what do they know about the work of intelligence and security services? The project provides previously unavailable insights into public attitudes towards questions such as these - and communicates its findings to the wider public.

The project is led by political scientists Franz Eder and Dominik Duell, both based at the Foreign Policy Lab at the University of Innsbruck. In this German-language interview, they explain what projects like this have to do with participatory democracy, how current international events are reflected in the results, and why their work has also taught them a great deal about Austrian swear words.

Facilitator: Rebecca Sandbichler

Episode 3: How do we decide? From behavioral classics to modern crowd science.

11. December 2025

Behavioral economics explores how people make important decisions — whether related to their financial well-being or everyday consumption. Hidden biases and behavioral traps can have far-reaching implications for individuals, companies, and policymakers alike.
The research center Innsbruck Decision Sciences stands at the forefront of this field with an avant-garde approach: pitching one broad question to scientists around the world, and evaluating data of their many research designs.
But how does this actually work? And what kinds of questions will be explored next?
No one is better suited to explain than Michael Kirchler, Head of the Innsbruck Decision Sciences Research Center, and Markus Walzl, Dean of the Faculty of Economics and Statistics and Deputy Head of the research area EPoS.

Listen as the two economists speak passionately about science as a credence good, the proper intent behind nudging, and the delight of occasionally making an unwise decision.

Facilitator: Rebecca Sandbichler

Episode 2: Eroding trust in science - what remedies do we have?

27. Februar 2025

These are interesting times for epistemologists: The Covid pandemic, political interventions and upcoming artificial intelligence applications have brought up important questions regarding the role of science in our society.
Are we already living in a post-factual world? Which forces erode trust in science and what can the scientific community contribute to maintain confidence in science?
The Center for Philosophy of Religion at the University of Innsbruck recently joined the research area EPoS to bring in important philosophical questions like these and share their perspectives.

Listen to the head of the research center, philosopher Katherine Dormandy, and branding expert and speaker of EPoS, Andrea Hemetsberger, talking about scientific virtue, rigid methodology, and how we can authentically speak to the public about our research to maintain trust in science.

Facilitator: Rebecca Sandbichler

Episode 1: Medienkommunikation, digitale Technologien und Gesellschaft

19. September 2024

Ob Fake-News, KI-Anwendungen oder Self-Tracking: Medien und digitale Technologien wirken tief in unser individuelles und gesellschaftliches Leben hinein.
Das neu gegründete Forschungszentrum Innsbruck Media Studies (IMS) untersucht diese Zusammenhänge über die Disziplinengrenzen hinweg als Mitglied im Forschungsschwerpunkt EPoS – Economy, Politics & Society.
Welcher Medienbegriff prägt die Arbeit der interfakultär vernetzten Forscher*innen? Welche neuen Perspektiven können die Innsbruck Media Studies in Bereichen wie Recht oder Informationstechnologie einbringen? Und in welche Richtung wollen die Leiterinnen das Forschungszentrum auf Basis seiner traditionsreichen Vorgeschichte weiterentwickeln?

Darüber sprechen Medienwissenschaftlerin Petra Missomelius, Medienlinguistin Ina Pick und Branding-Expertin und Sprecherin von EPoS,  Andrea Hemetsberger.

Moderation: Rebecca Sandbichler