The TWG Intercultural Communication & Diversity organized a method workshop on Membership Categorization Analysis (MCA) which took place at Erasmus University Rotterdam on Friday 17 May 2019. Around 15 participants from Leiden University, Utrecht University, Groningen University, Erasmus University, University Institute of Lisbon (Portugal), and the University of Potsdam (Germany) joined the event.

The guest speaker, Professor Daniel Rellstab from the University of Education Schwäbisch Gmünd (Germany), first held a 45-minute lecture about MCA and its relevance for intercultural communication research. This presentation enabled participants to understand the theoretical ramifications of MCA as well as its epistemological underpinnings. Prof. Daniel Rellstab also discussed how he had applied this method in his own research, presenting examples of the media coverage of refugees in Switzerland and interactions between native and non-native Swiss German speakers on TV.

After his opening talk, Prof. Daniel Rellstab led a data session for participants to actively engage with the method using a script from the TV show “Head to Head”. Our guest speaker directed the participants on how to approach the data using tools of MCA. This hands-on part of the workshop also allowed for open discussions about the strengths and limitations of MCA.

The last part of the workshop included presentations from four doctoral students about their ongoing work on urban identity among youth, racism in football commenting in Spain and Poland, and assumptions behind (super) inclusive categories.