Eva-Maria Berens

Dr. Eva-Maria Berens serves as the Scientific Director of the Ethics Committee at Bielefeld University, a position she has held since 2020. She is affiliated with the Faculty of Psychology and Sport Science and the Department of Psychology at Bielefeld University, and also collaborates with the Bielefeld Center for Data Science (BiCDaS). Previously, she worked as a postdoc at the Interdisciplinary Center for Health Literacy Research (2019-2022) and at the Working Group on Health Services Research and Nursing Science at the Faculty of Health Sciences (2016-2022).

Dr. Berens earned her Doctorate (Dr. PH) in 2016 from the Faculty of Health Sciences at Bielefeld University, with a dissertation on 'Mammography screening in women with a Turkish migration background - A focus on participation taking into account the informed decision.' She completed her Master's in Public Health at Bielefeld University (2008-2010) and holds a Bachelor's degree in Health Communication from the same institution (2005-2008).

Her research focuses on health literacy, particularly among migrant populations in Germany. She has led several major research projects including the Health Literacy in Germany survey (HLS-GER 2), the Health Literacy of people with a migration background in Germany study (HLS-MIG), and research on informed decision-making in mammography screening programs. Her work often examines the intersection of migration, health literacy, and healthcare access, with special attention to vulnerable populations. Recent publications show a growing emphasis on research ethics and digital tools for ethics review, particularly the 'Ethiktool' software developed to support ethical assessment of research projects.

Dr. Berens serves as the spokesperson for the Network of Ethics Committees in the Social Sciences (neks) and has been actively involved in developing ethical standards for research involving human participants. She has contributed to the development of the 'Ethiktool' software to support ethical assessment of research projects. Her recent work shows a growing focus on digital tools for ethics review and data management in research.

She has served as a peer reviewer for numerous journals including BMC Women's Health, International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, BMJ Open, Preventive Medicine Report, Health Expectations, and BMC Public Health. She was an Associate Editor for BMC Women's Health until October 2019.

Dr. Berens has supervised several research projects focused on health literacy assessment and intervention development. Her work has contributed significantly to understanding health literacy disparities among migrant populations in Germany and has informed national policy recommendations through her involvement with the National Action Plan for Health Literacy.