Rena (Eirini) Katsenou

Rena (Eirini) Katsenou – Short CV

Current Role: Postdoctoral Researcher, Department of Audio and Visual Arts, Ionian University, Corfu, Greece
Collaborator, Institute for Games Research (IGR), Ionian University

Scientific Field: Ethnography of Human–AI Interaction – Digital Pedagogies – Creative Methodologies in Early Childhood Education

Academic Profile

Dr. Rena Katsenou holds a PhD in Education from the School of Philosophy, University of Ioannina. Her dissertation examined how ritual practices in kindergarten shape children’s social reality, highlighting the role of interactive media—such as video games—in early processes of socialization. These insights inform her current research on hybrid human–AI interactions and digital agency.

Building on this foundation, she is a postdoctoral researcher and early childhood educator specializing in the ethnographic study of human–AI interaction, with a focus on how AI-powered agents can reshape educational practices through dialogue, play, and emotional engagement.

She designs and conducts hybrid ethnographic experiments to explore how children and educators negotiate meaning, agency, and relational dynamics in technologically mediated environments. Drawing on phenomenology, the sociology of knowledge, and posthuman theory, she develops interpretive frameworks for understanding the epistemic and social shifts emerging from these interactions.

Her methodological approach combines autoethnography and action research, centering on the design and analysis of digital tools that foster critical thinking, creativity, and empathy in educational, research, and mental health contexts.

Dr. Katsenou is affiliated with the Department of Audio and Visual Arts at the Ionian University and works closely with the Institute for Games Research (IGR), contributing to projects on educational innovation, AI literacy, and the cultural dimensions of interactive media in early childhood education.

Key Roles & Achievements

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Lead researcher in hybrid ethnographic fieldwork exploring human–AI interaction in early childhood education contexts
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Contributor to the design of teacher training modules on AI literacy and creative pedagogies for preschool educators
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Developer of methodological frameworks that integrate emotional data, narrative-based design, and child-centered co-creation
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Principal investigator e, conducted in collaboration with the Institute for Games Research (IGR), focusing on AI ethics, educational transformation, and digital sociality
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Co-designer of interdisciplinary academic and continuing education programs on applied AI
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Speaker at major international conferences including ICERI, where she presented AI in early education as a new anthropological field
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Active member of the Institute for Games Research (IGR), contributing to research on the cultural and educational impact of emerging technologies

Selected Interests & Research Areas

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Human–AI interaction in educational and cultural contexts
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Hybrid ethnography and posthuman theory
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Digital storytelling and co-agency in early childhood
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AI literacy and ethics in education
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Programming as a playful practice through natural language

Rena (Eirini) Katsenou