»30 um die 30«: Eva Specker

The Leibniz Association is turning 30 — but instead of looking back, we’re looking ahead. To mark the anniversary, we’re speaking with researchers at the very beginning of their careers. What determines their attitude towards life? What are their experiences as early-career scientists — and how might their findings help shape a better world 30 years from now? In Episode 16, we hear from pychologist Eva Specker, who is heading her own lab in the area of aesthetics and learning as a full professor at the Leibniz-Institut für Wissensmedien.

LEIBNIZ How would you explain your research topic to someone at a party?

EVA SPECKER What happens when you visit a museum? What can you take away from art or aesthetic experiences? Is it just a fun experience or can you learn something from it, and what? For example can you pick up on the themes of an exhibition or can aesthetic experiences provide you with a new perspective on life? That’s what I’m doing in my research.

And what would you say to a colleague?

I try to understand the role aesthetic experiences play in our lives with a specific focus on the museum and art experiences. Currently I’m mainly focused on understanding what we can learn from aesthetic experiences and how we learn from them.

What has been the best (or most important) moment in your life as a researcher so far?

I guess finding my passion for research in the first place and then finding out I could combine psychology with my passion for art.

How could your research have made the world a little better in 30 years? (It's okay to dream big.)

I hope that there will be a stronger appreciation of the arts and museums and how they enrich our lives. I feel often aesthetics is seen as “cherries on top” rather than an essential aspect of who we are as humans. But people across the world and across time have always had preferences, liked certain things and disliked others, made decorations (of bodies, hair, stones, houses, tools, etc. etc. etc.), engaged in dancing, singing, etc. I hope that my research can contribute to showing this fundamental aspect of who we are as humans and how engaging with the arts and museums now can enrich our lives—and also provide us with important insights and skills.

In which era would you have liked to have been a scientist? Or is now the best time?

I like now, classically “standing on the shoulders of giants” allows me to delve deeper into the unknown than would’ve been possible in the past. Also I feel there is still so much left to discover, so it’s an exciting time to be researching.

‘A life for science’ — could that be the subtitle of your biography one day? If not, what subtitle would you find appropriate?

Yes and no. This sounds like you have to sacrifice your life for science, and I believe that we are better scientists if we also have a sense of the world at large. It can be easy to be wrapped up into the 'ivory tower' of how academia or research works, which I feel is both personally unhealthy as well as does not produce better research. For me the fundamental thing that we aim for as scientists: to understand the world a little bit better, so maybe I would choose that as a title.

When you meet people your age who do not work in science: What is the biggest difference between you?

I don’t really see a fundamental difference here, I guess the main difference is a difference in knowledge on how the academic system works but that’s not a very relevant or interesting difference from my perspective.

When you meet older researchers in your discipline, what is the biggest difference between you?

Depends on the person, but there is a generational difference between very simple things as for example scientific structure. I know one researcher who worked with a very (then newest of the new) computer-like system for his PhD. It is stunning what amount of time and effort was necessary back then to set up a very simple design I can now program in only a couple of minutes. Or people who remember when you received requests to peer-review in the post on paper. But I don’t see a fundamental difference in people here either.

What quality do you consider most important for a career in science?

Intrinsic interest—I think if you’re fundamentally interested in the work you do, this is the greatest benefit, also because you get the most joy out of your work. But I think this is true for basically all careers.

How are you perceived as a scientist in society?

This is something I don’t really think about and cannot say much too.

And how would you like to be perceived?

Again, this is something I do not really think about. 

Please complete the following sentences. You can express realistic wishes or let your imagination run wild. My work would be so much easier if ...

... bureaucracy would not exist.

I would like more of:

Patience.

If I could stop doing something right now, it would be ...

... cleaning.

Everyone should know that ...

... every day offers opportunities for small aesthetic experiences that can brighten your day (scientifically proven ;)).

To set the record straight once and for all:

Despite my last name I am not German (nor Austrian) but Dutch :).

What is your greatest uncertainty in relation to your career?

This was always the short-term contracts, where is the next funding/job going to come from? But now with my recent professorship this has left me (yay!). I guess a core aspect has stayed—that I don’t know where my career will take me, but I can approach this with a more positive spin now.

How do you manage to stay calm despite this?

What always helped me was to get to the core of why I’m doing this job—for me this is my dream job. And I feel like getting to do your dream job is always worth it, even if it comes with uncertainties and other difficult aspects.

Do you sometimes dream about work? If so, are they pleasant dreams?

Hahahah yes. Generally they are pleasant dreams though they’re not so coherent. I tend to have good ideas that prevent me from falling asleep but are useful for work. However, I never had a great research idea revealed to me in a dream, sadly.

Your favourite place to work?

The office.

A still life on your desk and a doodle during a meeting?

After waking up: How does your day start well?

Either by doing some sports or taking it slow by having breakfast and coffee with my husband (and reading the newspaper) before jumping into the day.

What do you look forward to on a normal working day?

The moments where I can dive deep into research by discussing ideas, working on a paper or data analysis or simply reading a paper and getting inspired.

What do you look forward to when your working day is over?

Seeing my husband or doing things outside of work like going to the museum, the cinema, reading a book or doing sports.

A helpful snack for in between meals?

I’m not sure it’s helpful but my favorite snacks are potato chips—though sadly, Germany doesn’t have many good ones in my honest opinion.

A little escape from everyday (working) life that helps you recharge your batteries quickly?

Going for a walk, looking out of the window or at the art in my office.

What helps you come up with ideas?

Time to have my mind wander, freedom of smaller tasks (e.g. replying to emails etc.) that require attention.

What helps you stay focused?

Interest. I tend to be a very focused person, so I get very absorbed in doing things that I’m interested in. On “off days” I think it helps to check some other tasks of the list that need less focus—procrastinating work with other work, let’s say.

When do you forget everything else around you while you're working?

Same as above, this is quite common for me, so luckily I get to work on many topics that really interest me. When I’m working on a paper or writing some code, I can get really lost in my task.