Background

The term “female technology” (“femtech”) encompasses technological innovations that are specifically tailored to the specific health needs of women (Frost & Sullivan, 2020). These include products and services in the areas of period tracking, menopause support, pregnancy support, and therapies for pelvic floor disorders. 
In recent years, the topic has become increasingly relevant in both scientific research and media coverage. Despite this development, however, there has been little research to date on how femtech companies and their founders shape and address stigmatized or taboo topics in their communication on social media.

Objective

The aim of the thesis is to manually record and systematically evaluate the Instagram communication of 27 femtech companies/founders. As part of a data-driven content analysis, the study will examine how stigmatized and taboo topics are addressed in social media communication; the use of tools such as ChatGPT is explicitly encouraged. The study by (Werner et al., 2023) can be used as inspiration for a qualitative approach. The data collection for this thesis is part of a dissertation. 

Methodology 

1. Literature review: Familiarization with the theoretical foundations of taboo/ stigma research and the current state of research on femtech.
2. Material collection: Review of Instagram channels and extraction of posts, including images and user comments.
3. Content analysis: Systematic analysis of the collected articles using appropriate methods.
4. Evaluation: Identification of key modes of communication in relation to femtech in general, stigma, and taboo.
5. Discussion: Reflection on the results in the context of existing literature.

Requirements

• Interest in technological innovations in women's health/ the healthcare sector and an interest in understanding social media communication.
• Knowledge of qualitative and data-driven research methods is an advantage.
• Independent and structured way of working
• Very good German language skills, essential for reviewing social media content 
• Very good academic performance
• Ability to work independently
• Very good communication skills 
• Enrollment in the Industrial Engineering, G-TIME, Medical Engineering, or a comparable degree program at the TUHH
• The work should be written in English 

What we offer:

• Close supervision from doctoral researcher with the opportunitiy for thesis results to be embedded as part of a dissertation 
• Access to resources for literature search, data extraction, and scientific writing
• The opportunity to contribute to a highly relevant and timely research topic

If you are interested please send your complete application (short letter of motivation explaining why you would like to work on this topic, resume, current transcript of grades) to Amanda Baum (amanda.baum@tuhh.de) by October 15, 2025. If you have any questions, please contact Amanda Baum by email. 

Please note that Amanda Baum is officially on parental leave until October 15, 2025; therefore, please expect delays in email responses. However, you will receive final acceptances or rejections for processing the topic by October 15, 2025. The start of substantive work, with supervision, is only possible from October 15, 2025. Thank you for your understanding! 

Sources

Werner, M. D., Punzi, M. C., & Turkenburg, A. J. K. (2023). Period Power: Organizational Stigma, Multimodality, and Social Entrepreneurship in the Menstrual Products Industry. Journal of Management Studies.

Internet sources

Frost & Sullivan. (2020, January 21). Growth Opportunities in the Global Femtech Market, Forecast to 2024. store.frost.com/growth-opportunities-in-the-global-femtech-market-forecast-to-2024.html

Background

The term “female technology” (“femtech”) encompasses technological innovations that are specifically tailored to the specific health needs of women (Frost & Sullivan, 2020). These include products and services in the areas of period tracking, menopause support, pregnancy support, and therapies for pelvic floor disorders. 
In recent years, the topic has become increasingly relevant in both scientific research and media coverage. Despite this development, however, there has been little research to date on how femtech companies and their founders shape and address stigmatized or taboo topics in their communication on social media.

Objective

The aim of the thesis is to manually record and systematically evaluate the LinkedIn communication of 27 femtech companies/founders. As part of a data-driven content analysis, the study will examine how stigmatized and taboo topics are addressed in social media communication; the use of tools such as ChatGPT is explicitly encouraged. The study by (Werner et al., 2023) can be used as inspiration for a qualitative approach. The data collection for this thesis is part of a dissertation. 

Methodology 

1. Literature review: Familiarization with the theoretical foundations of stigma research and the current state of research on femtech.
2. Material collection: Review of LinkedIn channels and extraction of posts, including images and user comments.
3. Content analysis: Systematic analysis of the collected articles using appropriate methods.
4. Evaluation: Identification of key modes of communication in relation to femtech in general, stigma, and taboo.
5. Discussion: Reflection on the results in the context of existing literature.

Requirements

• Interest in technological innovations in women's health/ the healthcare sector and an interest in understanding social media communication.
• Knowledge of qualitative and data-driven research methods is an advantage.
• Independent and structured way of working
• Very good German language skills, essential for reviewing social media content 
• Very good academic performance
• Ability to work independently
• Very good communication skills 
• Enrollment in the Industrial Engineering, G-TIME, Medical Engineering, or a comparable degree program at the TUHH
• The work should be written in English 

What we offer:

• Close supervision from doctoral researcher with the opportunitiy for thesis results to be embedded as part of a dissertation
• Access to resources for literature search, data extraction, and scientific writing
• The opportunity to contribute to a highly relevant and timely research topic

If you are interested send your complete application (short letter of motivation explaining why you would like to work on this topic, resume, current transcript of grades) to Amanda Baum (amanda.baum@tuhh.de) by October 15, 2025. If you have any questions, please contact Amanda Baum by email. 

Please note that Amanda Baum is officially on parental leave until October 15, 2025; therefore, please expect delays in email responses. However, you will receive final acceptances or rejections for processing the topic by October 15, 2025. The start of substantive work, with supervision, is only possible from October 15, 2025. Thank you for your understanding! 

Sources

Werner, M. D., Punzi, M. C., & Turkenburg, A. J. K. (2023). Period Power: Organizational Stigma, Multimodality, and Social Entrepreneurship in the Menstrual Products Industry. Journal of Management Studies.

Internet sources

Frost & Sullivan. (2020, January 21). Growth Opportunities in the Global Femtech Market, Forecast to 2024. store.frost.com/growth-opportunities-in-the-global-femtech-market-forecast-to-2024.html