Ira Zöller

Ira Zöller is a Research Associate in the Technology & Diversity research group at the Institute of Sociology, RWTH Aachen University, since 2022. Previously, she worked at Goethe-Universität Frankfurt in Biotechnology, Nature and Society research group (2018-2022). With a Master of Arts in Sociology (Goethe-Universität Frankfurt, 2021) and interdisciplinary training in German Studies and Journalism, she specializes in Science and Technology Studies (STS) with feminist and posthumanist approaches.

• Current focus on digital health technologies (DiGAs) and their medical legitimization
• Expertise in critical data studies and affect theory
• Teaching courses on technoscientific culture, digital health, and biopolitics

Her research examines how digital lifestyle apps transition to medicalized "Digitale Gesundheitsanwendungen" (DiGAs) through certification processes and expert negotiations, revealing tensions between self-help tools and institutionalized healthcare. Publications analyze mood-tracking standardization and creative resistance in digital self-monitoring.

She actively contributes to qualitative research methods and maintains affiliations with both RWTH Aachen and Goethe-Universität Frankfurt institutions.