Everyday users of the internet should have access to public and online spaces and platforms that offer diverse views, healthy discourse, and shared understanding
The Internet User Behavior Lab employ social science and network research to explore the complex dynamics of social media, enhance algorithmic literacy, and design evidence-based tools that increase user agency through transparency. Our team investigates social media behaviors, advocates for algorithmic literacy, and develops tools that empower users to influence the diversity of their online experiences through algorithm transparency.
We advocate for the right to repair your algorithms.
We believe that everyday users of the internet deserve empowering online experiences rather than passively accepting the algorithms that dictate their interactions. Individuals lack the ability to curate and modify the algorithms shaping social media feeds. With this in mind, we developed the Internet User Behavior Lab.
We seek to uncover the impact the algorithms have on our development and our communities, and offer solutions for users of the internet.
What is Algorithmic Literacy?
Algorithmic Literacy entails the ability of everyday citizens (those without training in computer science, data science or similar technical field) to:
recognize when they are interacting with a technological system that is likely to be driven by algorithms;
to reason (understand, infer) about what sorts of data the ADS may be collecting and have access to about the person interacting with it, the decisions the ADS might be likely to make about the person interacting with the ADS, and the ways in which the ADS is likely to make these decisions;
to respond, or to take decisions and actions about how or if they want to interact with ADS, based on their recognition and reasoning, and
to, retain, where recognition, reasoning, and response behavior is sustained and becomes a habit.
We seek to uncover the impact the algorithms have on our development and our communities, and offer solutions for users of the internet.
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Learn more about our work
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