Jean Umiker-Sebeok
Associate Professor of Semiotics and Information Science
School of Library and Information Science
Indiana University
Main Library 005A
Bloomington, Indiana 47405
(812) 855-2793; Fax 812-855-6166
Email: umikerse@indiana.edu
EDUCATION
Ph.D. (1976), Indiana University-Bloomington (Social and Cultural Anthropology)
TEACHING
- Associate Professor of Semiotics and Information Science, School of Library and Information Science, Indiana University-Bloomington (1994-)
- Visiting Professor, Seminar on "Semiotic Approaches to Information Use in Museums," Museum Studies, Universidad Iberoamericana (Mexico City, 1994)
- Adjunct Faculty, A408 "Museum Audience Evaluation Practicum," Department of Anthropology, Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis (1993)
- Instructor, S400/S650 Topics in Semiotics: courses on marketing, consumer behavior, and advertising (1987-present); S101/S601 Introduction to Semiotics course (Fall 1989), Semiotic Studies Programs, Indiana University-Bloomington
- Faculty, Summer Institute of Semiotics, University of Urbino, Italy (1992): "Advances in Semiotic Marketing: The View From 1991"
- Faculty, Nordic Summer School of Semiotics (Imatra, Finland, 1992): "Border Skirmishes in Consumer Behavior and Advertising"
- Faculty, Nordic Summer School of Semiotics (Imatra, Finland, 1990): "Marketing and Semiotics"
- Visiting Associate Professor, International Summer Institute for Structural and Semiotic Studies, Indiana University-Bloomington (1985): "Semiotics in the Marketplace: Signs of Consumer Persuasion"
- Visiting Assistant Professor, International Summer Institute for Structural and Semiotic Studies, Indiana University-Bloomington (1983): "Semiotics of Deception"
- Instructor, School of Continuing Education, Indiana University-Bloomington (1978): "Animal Communication"
- Visiting Assistant Professor, Summer Institute of the Linguistic Society of America, University of South Florida, Tampa (June-July, 1975): "Language Acquisition"
- Graduate Teaching Assistant, Honors Division, Indiana University-Bloomington (1969): "Introduction to Semiotics"
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RESEARCH POSITIONS
- Associate Research Scholar (1989-1994); Assistant Research Scholar (1987-1988); Research Associate (1971-81; 1984-86); Research Assistant (1968-70), Research Center for Language and Semiotic Studies, Indiana University-Bloomington
- Research Collaborator, Department of Anthropology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. (1983-84)
- Research Associate, Peirce Edition Project, Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis (1981-83)
ADMINISTRATION
- Director, Marketing Signs Research Division, Indiana University-Bloomington (1993-present)
- Associate Director (1991-93); Associate Chairperson (1985-89; 1990-91); Acting Chairperson (Fall 1989), Research Center for Language and Semiotic Studies, Indiana University-Bloomington;
- Director, International Institute on Marketing Meanings: Towards a Better Understanding of Business Signs and Symbols (= 1989 International Summer Institute for Semiotic and Structural Studies, Indiana University (IUPUI) (1989)
- Project Coordinator, Current Trends in the Language Sciences monograph series (1972-74)
- Project Director, American Directory of Applied Semiotics project (1987-present)
- Principal Content Advisor and Project Coordinator, Semiotics Television project, Semiotic Studies and Learning Resources, Indiana University-Bloomington/IUPUI (1987-89)
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CONSULTING
- Consultant on use of Internet for developing community art resources, Young Audiences of San Jose, CA (1997)
- Consultant on Internet as a tool for parenting, Indianapolis - Marion County Public Library (1997)
- Consultant on the role of semiotics in computer science, National Institute for Standards and Technology (1997)
- Member, International Advisory Board, The New Bulgarian University (Sofia) (1993-present)
- Consultant for Advertising, Consumer Behavior, Corporate Imagery and New Product Development: Baptist Homes of Indiana; C.R.A. Associates; Jacques Chevron Marketing Services; Automotive Information Group; Catholic Social Services of South Central Indiana; Daimler Benz; Forum Group; Four Seasons Retirement Center; Kimberly-Clark; Napthali Communications; Overlock Howe Consulting Group; Manhattan Beach Dream Co.; Meadowood Retirement Community; Procter & Gamble; Quester, Inc.; Westminster Village (Life Care Services); WYSE Advertising
- Consultant for museum design: Peirce Museum Project (1977-79); Indianapolis Children's Museum (1993-); Indianapolis Museum of Art (1994)
- Consultant for legal case concerning trademark infringement: Woodward, Weikart, Emhardt & Naughton
- Reviewer, Canada Council and National Science Foundation (1980-)
- Consultant for Semiotics Monograph series: Indiana University Press (1983-); Mouton de Gruyter Publishers (1975-); Plenum Publishing Corp. (1980-);
- Reader, Current Anthropology; The Information Society; International Journal of Research in Marketing; Journal of the Association for Information Science; Journal of Consumer Research; Recherche Semiotique/Semiotic Inquiry; Science; Semiotica; Studies of Second Language Acquisition
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ORGANIZATION OF MEETINGS
- Co-organizer and Co-chair, Toronto Semiotic Roundtable 1998: Semiotics and Information Science, Universiy of Toronto (October 1998)
- Chair, Program Committee, Annual Meeting of the Semiotic Society of America (1997 meeting)
- Co-organizer, Session on Semiotic Approaches to Information Science, Congress of the International Association for Semiotic Studies, Mexico (July 1997)
- Co-organizer, Seminar on The Semiotics of the Seven Deadly Sins, Universita di Urbino, Italy (July 1995)
- Chairperson, special session on Museum Semiotics, Nordic Summer School of Semiotics (Imatra, Finland, 1994)
- Co-organizer, Seminar on Marketing and Semiotics, Universita di Urbino, Italy (July 1992)
- Co-chairperson, The John Labatt Seminar on Marketing Signs and Symbols, Universite du Quebec a Montreal (1987)
- Principal Organizer and co-chairperson, special panel session on Presenting Semiotics to the Professions, Annual Meeting of the Semiotic Society of America (1986)
- Principal Organizer and co-chairperson, Conference on Marketing and Semiotics, J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management, Northwestern University (1986)
- Director, Workshop on Semiotics and Marketing, Indiana University-Bloomington (1985)
- Organizer and co-chairperson, special session on Semiotic Approaches to Human Relations, annual meeting of Central States Anthropological Association (1977)
- Organizer and co-chairperson, special session on Semiotics of Culture: Towards a New Synthesis in World Anthropology, Annual Meeting of the American Anthropological Association (1977)
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EDITING
- Member, Editorial Board, International Journal of Applied Semiotics (American Educational Research Association) (1997-)
- Member, Editorial Board, The American Journal of Semiotics (Journal of the Semiotic Society of America) (1996-present)
- Associate Editor, Semiotica (Journal of the International Association for Semiotic Studies) (1989-present)
- Member, Editorial Board, Signifying Behavior. Journal of Research in Semiotics, Communication Theory, and Cognitive Science (1993-5)
- Editor, American Directory of Applied Semiotics (periodical, 1989-90)
- Co-editor, The Semiotic Web: An International Yearbook of Semiotics, Mouton de Gruyter Publishers (1986-94)
- Editor, Marketing Signs. A Newsletter at the Crossroads of Marketing, Semiotics, and Consumer Research (1986-1992)
- Member, Editorial Board, Special Issue on "Semiotics and Marketing," the International Journal of Research in Marketing(1986-88)
- Co-editor, Animal Communication monograph series, Indiana University Press (1980-present)
- Co-editor, Topics in Contemporary Semiotics monograph series, Plenum Publishing Corporation (1980-present)
- Book Review Editor, Ars Semeiotica (1977-79)
- Section Head, Composite and Derivative Languages Section, MLA International Bibliography (1977-79)
- Editorial Assistant, Semiotica (Journal of the International Association for Semiotic Studies) (1970-71)
- Editorial Assistant, Approaches to Semiotics monograph series, Mouton Publishers (1969-72)
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FELLOWSHIPS AND GRANTS
- Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada grant for Toronto Semiotic Roundtable 1998: Semiotics and Information Science (1998)
- Daimer-Benz Corp. grant for research on "Structures of Spatial Segments: An Empirical Study of the Semiotics of Space" (1994-96)
- School of Library and Information Science grant to conduct research on "Hypertext Usability: The Effects of Collaboration by Users with Different Levels of Domain Knowledge" (1995-96)
- Indiana University Intercampus Research Fund grant to conduct research on "Understanding and Removing Psychosocial Barriers to Museum Appreciation" at the Indianapolis Museum of Art (1993-94)
- Fulbright travel grant to Uruguay (1991)
- Indiana University grants for the International Summer Institute of Structural and Semiotic Studies [IUB Research and Graduate Development, IUB Office of the Chancellor, IUPUI Office of the Chancellor, IUPUI Dean of Faculties (1989)
- Gannett Foundation grant for research on Semiotics of Presidential Television Advertising (1988)
- Communication Development Corporation grant for the First International Conference on Marketing and Semiotics (1986)
- Indiana University Research and Graduate Development grant for the First International Conference on Marketing and Semiotics (1986)
- J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management, Northwestern University grant for First International Conference on Marketing and Semiotics (1986)
- Social Research, Inc. grant for First International Conference on Marketing and Semiotics (1986)
- Marketing Science Institute grant for the First International Conference on Marketing and Semiotics (1986)
- American Council of Learned Societies grant for special session on "Semiotics of Culture: Towards a New Synthesis in World Anthropology", annual meeting of American Anthropological Association, Houston (1977)
- National Science Foundation Predoctoral Fellowship (1970-71)
- Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research grant to participate as Secretary to the Conference on Interaction Ethology, Amsterdam (1970)
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HONORS
- President, Semiotic Society of America (1998);
- Vice-President,/President-Elect, Semiotic Society of America (1997)
- International Who's Who of Professional and Business Women (1988-)
- Who's Who of Emerging Leaders in America (1988-)
- Who's Who in the Midwest (1982-)
- The World Who's Who of Women (1990-)
- Sigma Xi (1971)
- Outstanding Young Women of America (1970)
- Alpha Lambda Delta (1965-)
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COMMUNITY SERVICE
- Founding Member, Monroe County Senior Net (1997-)
- Member, Bloomington Board of Zoning Appeals (1991-1996)
- Member, Advisory Board, Catholic Social Services Bloomington (1991-93)
- Volunteer, Monroe County Community Kitchen (1990-present)
- Member and Co-chair, Committee to found Bloomington Montessori Elementary School (1980-81)
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PUBLICATIONS
1971
Essays in Semiotics/Essais de Semiotique, ed. with Julia Kristeva and Josette Rey-Debove. The Hague: Mouton. [Portuguese translation: Ensaios de semiologia. Rio de Janeiro, 1973.]
1972
Review of D. Steinberg and R. Jakobovits (eds.), Semantics: An Interdisciplinary Reader in Philosophy, Linguistics, and Psychology. In American Anthropologist 74: 1479-81.
1973
Language and Cinema, translation of Christian Metz, Langage et cinema. The Hague: Mouton.
1974
Invited discussion in Intelligence and Aphasia, eds. Y. Lebrun and R. Hoops, pp. 8ff. Amsterdam: Swets and Zeitlinger.
"Speech surrogates: Drum and whistle systems," in Current Trends in Linguistics, vol. 12, Linguistics and Adjacent Arts and Sciences, tome 1, pp. 497-536.
1976
Invited comments on "Language, communication, and chimpanzees," by Georges Mounin, Current Anthropology 17: 17-18.
Speech Surrogates: Drum and Whistle Systems, ed. with Thomas A. Sebeok. 2 vols. The Hague: Mouton.
1977
"Aboriginal sign `languages' from a semiotic point of view," with Thomas A. Sebeok, Ars Semeiotica 1: 69-97.
"Semiotics of culture: Great Britain and North America," Annual Review of Anthropology 6: 121-35. [Polish translation: Studia Semiotyczne 9: 127-44, 1978.]
1978
Aboriginal Sign Languages of the Americas and Australia, Volume 1, North America: Classic Comparative Perspectives, ed., with an Introduction. With Thomas A. Sebeok. New York: Plenum. xxiv + 442 pp.
Aboriginal Sign Languages of the Americas and Australia, Volume 2: The Americas and Australia, ed., with an Introduction. With Thomas A. Sebeok. New York: Plenum. xxiv + 444 pp.
1979
"Nature's way? Visual representations of childhood in American advertisements," in Semiotics of Culture, eds. Jean Umiker-Sebeok and Irene Portis Winner, pp. 173-220. The Hague: Mouton.
"Performing animals: Secrets of the trade," with Thomas A.Sebeok, Psychology Today (November): 78-92.
"Preschool intraconversational narratives," Journal of Child Language 6: 91-109.
Semiotics of Culture, ed. with Irene Portis Winner. The Hague: Mouton.
"`You know my method': A juxtaposition of Sherlock Holmes and C.S. Peirce," with Thomas A. Sebeok, in Methodology in Semiotics, eds. N. Baron and N. Bhattacharya, Semiotica 26 (3/4): 203-50.
1980
"Les animaux savants: les secrets du dressage," with Thomas A. Sebeok, Psychologie: Le magazine du mieux-ątre, No. 122, pp. 36-39 (March).
"Letter to the Editors, "More on Monkey Talk," with Thomas A. Sebeok, The New York Review of Books 27 (19): 59-60 (December 4).
"Pierwotne "jezyki" znakowe ze stanowiska semiotyki," with Thomas A. Sebeok Studia Semiotyczne 10: 15-42.
"Questioning apes," with Thomas A. Sebeok, in Speaking of Apes. A Critical Anthology of Two-Way Communication with Man, eds. Jean Umiker-Sebeok and Thomas A Sebeok, pp. 1-59.
"Silence is golden? The changing role of non-talk in preschool conversations," in The Relation Between Verbal and Nonverbal Communication, ed. Mary Ritchie Key, pp. 295-314. The Hague: Mouton.
Speaking of Apes. A Critical Anthology of Two-Way Communication with Man, ed. with Thomas A. Sebeok. New York: Plenum. xx + 480 pp.
"Tiere haben ihren eigenen Kopf," with Thomas A. Sebeok, Psychologie Heute 7 (5): 30-34 (May).
`You Know My Method.' A Juxtaposition of Sherlock Holmes and C.S. Peirce, with Thomas A. Sebeok. Bloomington: Gaslight Publications.
1981
"Clever Hans and smart simians: The self-fulfilling prophecy and kindred methodological pitfalls," with Thomas A. Sebeok, Anthropos 76 (1/2): 89-165.
"Los animales sabios: Secretos del oficio," with Thomas A. Sebeok, Estudios de Psicologia 5/6: 71-76.
"More on Monkey Talk," with Thomas A. Sebeok, in Science: Good, Bad and Bogus, ed. Martin Gardner, pp. 404-406. Buffalo: Prometheus Books.
"Performing animals: Secrets of the trade," with Thomas A. Sebeok, in Language: Introductory Readings, 3rd edition, eds. Virginia P. Clark et al., pp. 265-72. New York: St. Martins Press.
"The seven ages of woman: A view from American magazine advertisements," in Gender and Nonverbal Behavior, eds. Clara Mayo and Nancy M. Henley, pp. 209-52. New York: Springer.
Sherlock Holmes no Kogoron: C. S. Peirce to Holmes no Hikakukenkyn, with Thomas A. Sebeok. (Translated by Takao Tomiyama.) Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten. (Winner of the Nobuhara Award, 1982.)
1982
"Du kennst meine Methode": Charles S. Peirce und Sherlock Holmes, with Thomas A Sebeok. Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp. 104 pp.
"Rejoinder to the Rumbaughs," with Thomas A. Sebeok, Anthropos 77 (3/4): 574-78.
"Sherlock Holmes e le abduzioni," with Thomas A. Sebeok, Alfabeta 34 (March): 15-17.
1983
"Amplification (to Gopnik)," with Thomas A. Sebeok, Journal of Social and Biological Structures 6 (3): 280-82.
"`Voi conoscete il mio metodo': un confronto fra Charles S. Peirce e Sherlock Holmes," with Thomas A. Sebeok, in The Sign of Three: Holmes, Dupin, Peirce, eds. Thomas A. Sebeok and Umberto Eco, pp. 11-54. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
1984
"Foreword," with Thomas A. Sebeok, Communication and Expression in Hoofed Mammals, by Fritz R. Walther, pp. ix-x. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
1985
"Workshop on semiotics and marketing," Semiotica 57 (1/2): 189-96.
1986
"Garrick Mallery," in Encyclopedic Dictionary of Semiotics. Berlin: de Gruyter.
"Growing signs: From firstness to thirdness in life and advertising," in Iconicity. Essays on the Nature of Culture, eds. Paul Bouissac, Michael Herzfeld, and Roland Posner, pp. 527-73. Tubingen: Stauffenburg Verlag.
"Preface," with T.A. Sebeok, The Semiotic Sphere, pp. ix-x. New York: Plenum.
"Report on the First International Conference on Marketing and Semiotics," Bulletin of the International Association for Semiotic Studies 10 (December): 28-30; also in Semiotische Berichte 4: 309-10.
1987
"Editorial," with David G. Mick,Marketing Signs 1 (1) (August, 1987).
Marketing and Semiotics: New Directions in the Study of Signs for Sale (ed.). Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. [Preface, pp. ix-xii.]
Monastic Sign Languages, ed. with Thomas A. Sebeok. 2 vols. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. [Preface, with Thomas A Sebeok, pp. vii-xvi.]
"Performing Animals: Secrets of the Trade," with Thomas A. Sebeok, in The Lexington Reader, ed. Lynn A. Bloom, pp. 733-39. Lexington, MASS: D.C. Heath & Co.
Sherlock Holmes y Charles S. Peirce, with Thomas A. Sebeok. Barcelona: Paidos.
"The First International Conference on Marketing and Semiotics," Semiotica 64 (1/2): 195-196.
The Semiotic Web 1986, ed. with Thomas A. Sebeok. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. [Preface, with T. A Sebeok, pp. ix-xi.]
1988
The Semiotic Web 1987, ed. with Thomas A. Sebeok. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. [Preface, with T. A Sebeok, pp. ix-xi].
1989
Peirce and Holmes [In Chinese], with Thomas A. Sebeok. Peking: Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
The Semiotic Web 1988, ed. with Thomas A. Sebeok. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. [Preface, with T. A. Sebeok, pp. vii-ix].
1990
Ismeri a modszeremet, with Thomas A. Sebeok. Budapest: Gondolat.
The Semiotic Web 1989, ed. with Thomas A. Sebeok. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. [Preface, with Thomas A. Sebeok, pp. ix-xi].
1991
Recent Developments in Theory and History. The Semiotic Web 1990, ed. with Thomas A. Sebeok. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. [Preface, with Thomas A. Sebeok, pp. ix-xi.]
1992
Biosemiotics. The Semiotic Web 1991, ed. with Thomas A. Sebeok. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
Clothing, Fashion and Consumer Identity.(ed.). Special Issue of Semiotica 91 (1/2).
"Meaning construction in a cultural gallery: A sociosemiotic study of consumption experiences in the Indianapolis Children's Museum," in Advances in Consumer ResearchXIX, eds. John F. Sherry, Jr. and Brian Sternthal, pp. 46-55.
"Die 7 Lebensalter der Frau - ein Blick auf die 70er Jahre," in Frauen der Werbung. Aufklarung Uber Fabeltiere, ed. Christiane Schmerl, pp. 93-130. Munich: Frauenoffensive.
1994
"Behavior in a museum: A semio-cognitive approach to museum consumption experiences," Signifying Behavior. Journal of Research in Semiotics, Communication Theory, and Cognitive Science 1 (1): 52-100.
"La costruzione di significato in un museo: implicazioni per una semiotica delle pratiche di consumo," in Semiotica al marketing. Le tendenze della ricerca nel marketing, nel consumo, nella pubblicita, Roberto Grandi (ed.), pp. 31-55. Milan: FrancoAngeli.
Advances in Visual Semiotics. The Semiotic Web 1992, ed. with Thomas A. Sebeok. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
Din Nou Pe Urmele Lui Sherlock Holmes (with Thomas A. Sebeok). Cluj: Editura Echinox. [Romanian translation of `You Know My Method.' A Juxtaposition of Sherlock Holmes and C.S. Peirce]
"La construction du sens dans une galerie: Une etude socio-semiotique de la consommation des experiences dans un musee," in Figures architecturales, formes urbaines, ed. Pierre Pellegrino, pp. 697-717. Paris: Economica.
1996
"Power and the Construction of Gendered Spaces," International Review of Sociology/Revue Internationale de Sociologie Vol. 6, no. 3, pp. 389-403.
1997
"The Semiotic Swarm of Cyberspace: Cybergluttony and Internet Addiction in the Global Village", in The Semiotics of the Seven Deadly Sins, J. Umiker-Sebeok and J.D. Johansen (eds) Semiotica.
The Semiotics of the Seven Deadly Sins, ed. with J. D. Johansen, special issue of Semiotica. Journal of the International Association for Semiotic Studies. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
1998 and Beyond
"Browsing Visual Information in Virtual Environments: Multiresolutional Sign Interpretation and Domain Knowledge," in Computational Semiotics (= Proceedings of the First International Conference on Computational Semiotics), Claude Vogel & Suzanne Bertrand-Gastaldy (eds.). Paris: Vendome (in press).
"Semiotics and the Information Sciences: The Case of Computer Semiotics," in Semiotics and the Sciences. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter (in press).
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Last updated February 23, 1998