Humanist researchers create solutions at CBS

We need the humanities to find solutions to the financial crisis or how we create sustainable consumers and companies, says Ditte Vilstrup Holm, Project Coordinator of the research project "The Human Turn", which is affiliated with CBS and in charge of this conference.

- Research does not only result in new answers. It also results in new questions, and this is where the humanities play a prominent role, both in terms of contributing research methods, but also in terms of historical and philosophical perspectives that give reasons for the occurrence of a problem. The humanities can also help raise and clarify questions on ethical or psychological problems, says Ditte Vilstrup Holm.

More knowledge creates questions to the humanities

Is it biology or psychology - the brain scanner or the experience - that tells us what is going on in our brains? How can we understand the feelings and thoughts of a human being? Sverre Raffnsøe, Professor at CBS and head of The Human Turn raises these questions:

- Research is experiencing a human turn, because natural science, medical science and social science wants to learn more about the individual, cultural and psychological characteristics. If we are to solve the climate crisis, we have to know what people think about the environment. If we are to ensure health, we have to know what people think about their health. And if we are to understand the "welfare state", it is not enough just to know about its institutions. This is why humanist research play an ever larger role, as it is here that we will find the answers to those questions, says Sverre Raffnsøe.

CBS builds on interdisciplinarity and humanities

At the conference, the researchers will discuss a number of current societal issues, in which the humanities play a role in the interdisciplinary solutions that is also handled every day at CBS.

- CBS would not be who we are if we did not conduct any teaching or research within culture, language and philosophy - fields in which the humanities are part of interdisciplinary research. Humanist researchers are often met with a conception of the humanities not being able to make money or solve problems, and it is often heard that the humanities are unworldly and out of keeping with what is important in society. But the humanities left the ivory tower a long time ago. So maybe we should say instead that the humanities increase our knowledge and create value, says Ditte Vilstrup Holm.