We are pleased to announce that empirical ecocriticism has been recognized as an Emerging Research Coalition by the International Society for the Empirical Study of Literature (IGEL). IGEL Research Coalitions are groups of researchers concerned with specific topics in empirical studies of literature.
Coalition abstract: Empirical ecocriticism is an emerging subfield of ecocriticism that focuses on the empirically grounded study of environmental narrative and its influence on various audiences. Its main objective is to put to test empirically claims made within ecocriticism, and the environmental humanities more generally, about the impact of environmental narratives. To this end, it employs empirical methods used in disciplines such as environmental communication, environmental psychology, and the empirical study of literature. These include correlational and experimental studies, qualitative research, and others.