Femke Stock wins Mallinckrodt prize 2015

Every ten years since 1935, the Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies awards the Mallinckrodt prize to the most original theological thesis written and defended by a PhD student of a university in the Netherlands. The Mallinckrodtprize 2015 is awarded to dr Femke Stock for her thesis Speaking of home. Home and Identity in the multivoiced narratives of descendants of Moroccan and Turkish migrants in the Netherlands .

Narratives of Moroccan and Turkish Dutch citizens

Femke Stock received her PhD cum laude in September 2014 for her research into the narratives of Moroccan and Turkish Dutch citizens . For her research, Stock interviewed a group of Dutch citizens of Moroccan and Turkish descent. According to her, we tend to talk about these people rather than to them. ‘They are constantly being measured to see whether they feel ‘at home’ enough, as if feeling at home is a criterion for being properly integrated. But in the accounts that I heard, this kind of scepticism makes people feel less at home. They care about how people in the Netherlands think about them – many of them hoped that my book would explain “what we’re really like”.’ As ‘feeling at home’ is also an interesting anthropological and psychological phenomenon, Stock targeted the descendants of migrants for her research: people from urban and rural areas, highly and poorly qualified, employed and unemployed, men and women. The way the interviewees talked about the complex term ‘home’ provided her with insight into their identity. Her thesis explores topics such as social relationships and individual character, countries and houses, discrimination, family and Islam, and shows how these topics come together in people’s personal narratives.

In this video, Femke tells more about her research.

Femke Stock

Femke Stock (Berlin, 1981) studied Religious Studies at the University of Groningen. She completed a research Master’s in Religious Symbols and Traditions, and conducted her research at the Graduate School of Theology and Religious Studies, in the Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies. She got her PhD in September 2014 at the University of Groningen for her research into narratives of Moroccan and Turksih Dutch citizens. Stock now works as a pastoral carer at the VU medical centre.

Mallinckrodt Prize

The Mallinckrodt Prize was introduced in 1925 by the family of Professor W. Mallinckrodt, who was appointed by the Church to teach at the University of Groningen.

The prize is awarded once every ten years for the most original theological thesis written and defended by a PhD student of a university in the Netherlands. The Professors of the Faculty of Theology at Groningen select the thesis for the prize.

Previous winners

• 1935 Dr. K.H. Miskotte
• 1945 Dr. W.C. van Unnik
• 1955 Dr. D.J. Hoens
• 1965 Dr. G.H.M. Posthumus Meyes
• 1975 Dr. H.W. de Knijff
• 1985 Dr. L.J. van den Brom
• 1995 Prof. Dr. E. Talstra
• 2005 Dr. G. Jensma