K. Brandon Barker

K. Brandon Barker is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Folklore and Ethnomusicology at Indiana University Bloomington, College of Arts & Sciences. He serves as Director of Undergraduate Studies and Editor of the Children’s Folklore Review.

Research Interests:

• Cognitive folkloristics and folk illusions
• Material culture and embodied cognition
• American country music and foodways
• Children’s folklore in the southern United States
• Interdisciplinary approaches to folklore and science

Scientific Awards:

• Iona and Peter Opie Prize (2020) for Folk Illusions: Children, Folklore, and Sciences of Perception
• Indiana University Trustees Teaching Award (2017, 2019)
• Outstanding Junior Faculty Award (2023)
• David and Cheryl Morley Early Career Award (2023)