People

Prof. Gabriel Faimau

All People

  • Role in Center:

    Lead Partner & Action Speaker

  • Discipline:

    Sociology

  • University:

    University of Botswana

  • Country:

    Botswana

Biography: Dr. Gabriel Faimau is an Associate Professor of Sociology at the Department of Sociology at the University of Botswana. He is also a visiting Associate Professor at the Botswana International University of Science and Technology (BIUST) and an Extraordinary Researcher at the North-West University in South Africa.  He completed his PhD in Sociology in 2011 and MSc in Social Science Research Methods in 2007 at the School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies (SPAIS) at the University of Bristol. He was one of the recipients of the Overseas Research Scholarship (ORS), awarded by the University of Bristol for his doctoral research. His main research interests include digital society and culture, new media and religious practice, multiculturalism and the politics of intercultural dialogue, social implications of HIV/AIDS and graduate employability. His current research focuses on digitalisation and digital infrastructure in Botswana.

Selected Publications:

  • Maunganidze, L., & Faimau, G. (2023). Sponsored or Autogestive Materialisation of Space: Urban Informality in Harare, Zimbabwe. Modern Africa: Politics, History and Society, 11(1), 45–72. https://doi.org/10.26806/modafr.v11i1.420

     

  • Faimau, G. (forthcoming: 2020): Towards a Theoretical Understanding of the Selfie: A Descriptive Review. Sociology Compass, Vol. 14(12), 1-12.

  • Molepo, S.P./Faimau, G./Mashaka, K.T.O. (forthcoming: 2020): CCTV Placement in Gaborone City, Botswana: A Critical Review through the Lens of the Situational Crime Prevention Theory. Criminology and Social Integration, Vol. 28(2).

  • Faimau, G./Behrens, C. (2019): The Use of the Qualitative Approach and Digital Ethnography in the Study of Religion and New Media: Reflections from Research Fieldwork in Botswana. Botswana Notes and Records, Vol. 51, 61-74.

  • Faimau, G./Lesitaokana, W.O. (Eds.) (2018): New Media and the Mediatisation of  Religion: An African Perspective, New Castle upon Tyne. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. ISBN: 978-1-5275-0902-3.

  • Faimau, G. (2018): The Emergence of Prophetic Ministries in Botswana: Self-Positioning and Appropriation of New Media. Journal of Contemporary African Studies, Vol. 36(3), 369-385.

  • Faimau, G. (2017): The dynamics and digitization of religious testimonies: A case of prophetic ministries in Botswana. Anthropology Southern Africa, Vol. 40, 85-95.

  • Faimau, G. (2017): Religious testimonial narratives and social construction of identity: Insights from prophetic ministries in Botswana. Cogent Social Sciences, Vol. 3: 1356620.

  • Faimau, G./Behrens, C. (2016): Facebooking Religion and Technologization of the Religious Discourse: A Case Study of a Botswana-based Prophetic Church. Heidelberg Journal of Religions on the Internet, Vol. 11, 66-92.

  • Faimau, G. (2015): The Conflictual Model of Analysis in Studies on the Media Representation of Islam and Muslims: A Critical Review. Sociology Compass, Vol. 9(5), 321-335.

  • Faimau, G. (2013): British Christian Print Media and the Framing of Islam and Muslims through the Lens of Christian Persecution. Journal of Intercultural Studies, Vol. 34(4), 340-355.

Areas of Expertise:

  • Digital Society and Culture in the Context of Africa
  • New Media and Religious Practice
  • Multiculturalism and the Politics of Intercultural Dialogue
  • Social Implications of HIV/AIDS
  • Graduate Employability

Current Position(s):

  • Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Botswana
  • Visiting Associate Professor at the Botswana International University of Science and Technology (BIUST)
  • Extraordinary Researcher at the North-West University in South Africa

Past Position(s)

  • Lecturer and Head of Research at Kgolagano College in Botswanan
  • Extraordinary Senior Lecturer at the North-West University in South Africa
  • Teaching Assistant at the School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies (SPAIS) at the University of Bristol, United Kingdom

Prizes & Awards:

  • Lead Partner of GCSMUS – Botswana
  • DAAD Fellow at TU Berlin and the University of Konstanz (2019)
  • Principal Investigator of a study on New Media and Religion in Botswana (2016-2017) funded by Nagel Institute and the John Templeton Foundation, U.S.A.
  • Principal Investigator of a study on “The HIV-Risk Reduction Interventions and the Perceived Sexual Behavioral Control among College Students in Gaborone,” funded by the Human Resource Development Council (HRDC)
  • Overseas Research Scholarship, awarded by the University of Bristol, United Kingdom

Memberships & Networks:

  • Advisory Board Member of the Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation (JPIC) in Kalimantan, Indonesia
  • Advisory Board Member of the Institute of Resource Governance and Social Change (IRGSC) in Indonesia
  • Active Member of the International Sociological Association (ISA)
  • Active Member of International Association for Media and Communication Research (IAMCR)
  • Active Member of the Association of Internet Researchers (AoIR)
  • International Sociological Association (ISA)
  • International Association for Media and Communication Research (IAMCR)