Per Boström

Research

I am currently involved in several research projects:

• A VR-funded project called Writing as nutrition for democracies (VR 2018-03779). In the project, with Eva Lindgren as principal investigator, we investigate opinions on democracy and how the act of writing can be a way of participate in and make a difference in a democratic society. Partcipating in the project is also Carina Hermansson, Peter Ström, Erika Sturk and Anna Nilsson. 
• In a multinational project I, together with Marlene Johansson Falck, Lacey Okonski and Luciane Corrêa Ferreira, analyze and compare metaphors for climate in Swedish, American English and Brazilian Portuguese.

In september 2018 I successfully defended my PhD thesis in Swedish/Scandinavian languages titled ”Det här är ju dött tåg liksom…”: en studie av metaforer för ROMANTISK KÄRLEK i talad svenska. In the thesis I investigate metaphors used for romantic love. Results show that love is metaphorized mainly as an object, a container, a journey or a unity.  

Areas of interest: Cognitive Linguistics, metaphor, discourse analysis, embodied cognition, writing, democracy, children’s language development, sociolinguistics, political metaphor discourse, forensic linguistics, etc. 

Teaching

I teach sociolinguistics, children’s language development, metaphor (theory and method), academic writing, text analysis, forensic linguistics. I supervise BA- and MA- theses, also theses within teacher education, in Swedish/Scandinavian Languages, Swedish as a second language and English. I also evaluate teacher students in their practical training in schools.

Networks

CogLing Umeå

MetNet Scandinavia

SALC (The Scandinavian Association for Language & Cognition)

Media participation (a selection)

Så uttrycker vi kärlek! - Radio interview in Swedish national radio (Morgon P4 Uppland) (in Swedish).

Så pratar vi om kärlek: "Vad tråkiga de unga är!”. TV Interview in Swedish TV (TV4:s Nyhetsmorgon) (In Swedish).

Språkforskaren: Så pratar vi om romantisk kärlek – Interview for Umeå Tidning (local newspaper).

Har du lätt för att säga ”Jag älskar dig”? – Lättare för yngre att tala om känslor. Article for Svenska Yle (Finnish TV and Radio).