Recent News

In a recent article for CNN Health, Dr. Wisniewski emphasized the importance of empowering youth with informed choices rather than restrictive measures, stressing the need for solutions that balance risks and benefits. She advocated for avoiding fear-based or restrictive approaches, highlighting the necessity for nuanced strategies. Read the full article...

Congratulations to Dr. Xavier Caddle on the successful defense of his doctoral dissertation. Dr. Caddle will be rejoining the Computer Science Department at the University of West Indies in Barbados as a full-time faculty member this coming fall. We are immensely proud of his achievements and wish him great success...

Congratulations to our postdoctorate Dr. Jinkyung (Katie) Park for winning the prestigious 2024 iSchools Doctoral Dissertation Award! Dr. Park's dissertation has been recognized for its innovative research and significant contribution to the field of information science. The iSchools Doctoral Dissertation Award, introduced in 2013, is a prestigious annual competition that...

Congratulations to Dr. Mamtaj Akter on successfully defending her doctoral dissertation entitled, “Leveraging Community Oversight to Promote Mobile Privacy and Security Within Trusted Communities.” Dr. Akter will begin a tenure-track Assistant Professor position next fall in the Computer Science Department at the New York Institute of Technology (NYIT). We are incredibly...

Congratulations to Dr. Ashwaq Alsoubai on successfully defending her doctoral dissertation entitled, “A Human-Centered Approach to Improving Adolescent Real-Time Online Risk Detection Algorithms.” Dr. Alsoubai will be starting an Assistant Professor position in the Computer Science Department at King Abdulaziz University next fall. We are extremely proud of her accomplishments and...

Congratulations to our recent PhD graduate Dr. Alsoubai and her advisor Dr. Pamela Wisniewski for showcasing their work on the Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) blog. The blog discusses the challenges youth face in the digital world, focusing on privacy breaches, cyber threats, and the impact of social media...

Our PhD candidate Zainab Agha is giving a talk as part of LIVE Sprak weekly talks at Vanderbilt University. The talk will take place this Wednesday, April 3rd, and will be about incorporating human-centered design practices in research. Zainab Agha will introduce concepts and best practices within human-centered design by...

Congratulations to STIR Lab undergraduate students Yiwei Wang, Enya Bullard, and Abbie Chen on presenting their research titled “Designing a Social Media Simulation to Evaluate Online Safety Nudges” at the Vanderbilt Undergraduate Research Fair, mentored by PhD candidate Zainab Agha. The Vanderbilt Undergraduate Research Fair provides an opportunity for our undergraduates to share their work in a...

In a recent blog post for the Imagining the Digital Future Center, Dr. Pamela Wisniewski shared concerns about regulating AI without clear definitions, citing a 2023 White House initiative on AI Accountability and related lawsuits. She emphasized the critical role of human effort in learning, warning that AI could undermine...

Warm congratulations to Campbell Headrick, our Master's student, on the successful defense of his thesis, "Youth Discussions of Security and Privacy." With this achievement, Campbell becomes the first lab Master's student to defend his thesis at Vanderbilt University.

Congratulations to Dr. Pamela Wisniewski on being a part of a White House panel hosted by the Task Force on Kids Online Health and Safety. The panel hosted several other distinguished panelists and was also attended by the Surgeon General of the United States Dr. Vivek Murthy. Assistant Secretary Davidson's...

Congratulations to the STIR Lab researchers and their collaborators on getting five full papers conditionally accepted at CHI 2024. The papers' titles, abstracts, and authors are as follows: "I'm gonna KMS": From Imminent Risk to Youth Joking about Suicide and Self-Harm via Social Media Authors:Naima Samreen Ali, Sarvech Qadir, Ashwaq Alsoubai,...