Alex Fenton studied Social Anthropology at the University of Edinburgh, and later took a Masters in Social Research Methods at the University of Surrey. After completing his Masters, he worked as a social researcher in several UK universities, conducting projects in the field of poverty, housing and spatial analysis. From 2006 to 2011 he was Research Associate at the Centre for Housing and Planning Research at the University of Cambridge, and from 2011 to 2012 Research Fellow at the Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion at the London School of Economics. In 2013 he moved to Berlin to undertake doctoral studies. In 2018 he completed his doctorate in Sociology on "Official Statistics and the Welfare State: The Production of Poverty Statistics in Britain and Germany since 1970" at Leibniz University Hannover. He has been at DZHW in Berlin since 2017 where his research concentrates on the uses of science in regulation, policy and standardisation. He is also a post-doc in the research group "Reflexive Metrics" at the Humboldt University, Berlin.

Alex Fenton
Research Area Research System and Science Dynamics
Researcher
- +49 30 2064177-23
- +49 30 2064177-99
List of projects
List of publications
6 Übereinstimmungen gefunden /
Documentation of RISIS Datasets: Doctoral Degree and Career Dataset (DDC).Ivertsen, E., Tesch, J., Fenton, A., Skålholt, A., Franssen, T., ... & Wagner-Schuster, D. (2023).Documentation of RISIS Datasets: Doctoral Degree and Career Dataset (DDC). Paris: RISIS. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7733595 |
Standard-relevant publications: Evidence, processes and influencing factors.Blind, K., & Fenton, A. (2021).Standard-relevant publications: Evidence, processes and influencing factors. Scientometrics. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-021-04210-8 Abstract
This paper introduces the concept of standard-relevant publications, complementary to standard-essential patents and framed by the concept of knowledge utilization. By analyzing the reference lists of the around 20,000 standards released by ISO, authors of scientific papers cited in standards who are working at German institutions were identified. The institutions include universities, independent research societies, ministerial research institutes and companies. Almost thirty interviews were conducted with the most-cited of these authors. The interviews addressed the processes by which scientific publications come to be referenced in standards, and the motivations, the barriers and the effects of this. |
Understanding the Societal Impact of the Social Sciences and Humanities: Remarks on Roles, Challenges, and Expectations.Fecher, B., Freia, K., Sokolovska, N., Fenton, A., Hornbostel, S., & Wagner, G. G. (2021).Understanding the Societal Impact of the Social Sciences and Humanities: Remarks on Roles, Challenges, and Expectations. Frontiers in Research Metrics and Analytics (online first). https://doi.org/10.3389/frma.2021.696804 Abstract
Science is increasingly expected to help in solving complex societal problems in collaboration with societal stakeholders. However, it is often unclear under what conditions this can happen, i.e., what kind of challenges occur when science interacts with society and what kind of quality expectations prevail. This is particularly pertinent for Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH), which are part of the object they study and whose knowledge is always subject to provisionality. Here we discuss how SSH researchers can contribute to societal problems, what challenges might occur when they interact with societal stakeholders, and what quality expectations arise in these arrangements. |
Impact der Gesellschaftswissenschaften – (Wie) Kann man ihn messen?Fecher, B., Sokolovska, N., Kuper, F., & Fenton, A. (02. Juni 2021).Impact der Gesellschaftswissenschaften – (Wie) Kann man ihn messen [Blogbeitrag]. Abgerufen von https://www.wissenschaftskommunikation.de/impact-der-gesellschaftswissenschaften-wie-kann-man-ihn-messen-48693/ |
Umkämpfte Zahlen: Armutsstatistik und Armutsberichterstattung in Großbritannien und der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, 1979-1988.Fenton, A., & Haßdenteufel, S. (2018).Umkämpfte Zahlen: Armutsstatistik und Armutsberichterstattung in Großbritannien und der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, 1979-1988. In K. Fertikh, H. Wieters & B. Zimmermann (Hrsg.), Ein soziales Europa als Herausforderung: Von der Harmonisierung zur Koordination sozialpolitischer Kategorien / L’Europe sociale en question: De l’harmonisation à la coordination des catégories d’action publique. Frankfurt am Main: Campus Verlag. |
List of presentations & conferences
4 Übereinstimmungen gefunden /
Since 2018
Post-doc in research group "Reflexive Metrics" at the Humboldt University Berlin
Since 2017
Researcher at DZHW
2013 - 2018
DPhil Sociology Leibniz University Hannover. Scholarship from the Hans-Böckler-Stiftung
2011 - 2012
Research Fellow at the Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion, London School of Economics.
2006 - 2011
Research Associate at the Centre for Housing and Planning Research, Department of Land Economy, University of Cambridge.
2005 - 2006
Independent Social Researcher, London.
2004 - 2005
Research Officer, Institute of Education, London.
2002 - 2004
MSc Social Research Methods at the University of Surrey.
1999 - 2002
Web and Software Developer, London.
1998 - 1999
Information Officer, Coin Street Community Builders, London.
1994 - 1998
MA(Hons) Social Anthropology, University of Edinburgh.