HCI+D and the Cognitive Science Program Welcome Dr. Munmun De Choudhury

The Center for Human-Computer Interaction + Design and the Cognitive Science Program are excited to welcome Dr. Munmun De Choudhury, Associate Professor at the School of Interactive Computing at Georgia Tech, to Northwestern on April 30th.
Dr. Choudhury will be giving a talk entitled: "Does Social Media Support or Worsen Our Mental Well-Being? What Quasi-Experimental Studies Can Tell Us" on April 30th at 4pm in Swift Hall, Room 107. There will be a reception to follow.

Social media platforms continue to accrue important roles in our lives. Popular discourse has discussed the impact of social media on a variety of outcomes, from political polarization to issues of social justice. Is social media good or bad when it comes to mental well-being? This talk seeks to answer this question through a series of quasi-experimental observational studies, looking to a population that stands to both benefit as well as get harmed online -- those who struggle with mental illnesses. First, through propensity score modeling of language change online, I will situate how
social support can help to reduce suicidal thoughts. In contrast, a second study will employ an interrupted time series and difference-in-differences approach to reveal the alarming ways online harassment can aggravate mental health outcomes. Ultimately, I will discuss how the answer to this question depends on the context. Adopting a human-centered lens, I will discuss the complex role of social media in patients' social reintegration efforts following a major psychiatric episode. At a moment in our society where popular discourse is laden with moral panic around the role of social media in mental health, I will conclude with pragmatic paths forward that can amplify its positive uses while mitigating the harms, for those marginalized by mental illness.