SPIN is excited to share a new publication by SPIN members Clare Stevens (University of Portsmouth), Elspeth Van Veeren (University of Bristol), Brian Rappert (University of Exeter) and Owen Thomas (University of Exeter). In ‘Being Curious with Secrecy’ (2023), out in the latest edition of Secrecy and Society (Open Access), we explore the connections between curiosity and secrecy, and draw parallels between the insights from curiosity studies and secrecy studies. Through the development of a public engagement activity developed to inspire curiosity ‘with’ secrecy, we note the varied ways in which the secrecy-curiosity relationship functions.
To read the article, which is open access, visit the Secrecy and Society webpages.
Or read the entry on ‘Curiosity’ in The A-Z of Secrecy and Ignorance
‘Being Curious with Secrecy’
Abstract
This article contributes to ongoing attempts to broaden theorizations of secrecy from an intentional and willful act of concealment to a cultural and structural process. We do so by fostering a conversation between secrecy and curiosity. This conversation is enabled through a review of central themes in secrecy studies and curiosity studies, but also through an examination of a collaboration between the science center “We the Curious” and a network of academic researchers. In doing so, this article makes a case for the benefits of paying more attention to curiosity as a means of facilitating a multifaceted understanding of secrecy, and for the benefits of creative and participatory research to foster the (re)theorization of secrecy.
https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/secrecyandsociety/vol3/iss1/6/