Date/Time:
November 1st at noon (12 PM EST)

Location:
In person at MIT: E15-384; + lunch!
Remove via Zoom link: https://mit.zoom.us/j/92830450593

Speaker:
Cecilie S. Traberg (University of Cambridge)

Abstract:
Social influence is a part of everyday human life – we make attempts to influence the judgements, beliefs, and opinions of others, we are influenced ourselves and we actively resist influence. In today’s complex information ecosystem where social information is ubiquitous, our judgments of (mis)information can be influenced by a series of socio-cognitive processes, either due to group dynamics, or through direct influence, coercion, or deception attempts. But how do social influence and group processes interact with the more cognitive process of judgement formation? In this talk, I present a series of experimental and intervention studies on the impact of social influence mechanisms and group dynamics on susceptibility to believing misinformation, how these processes impact the efficacy of so-called psychological ‘vaccines’ against persuasion and finally, some of the strategies individuals use to ‘win’ when they compete for influence.

Speaker's Bio:
Cecilie S. Traberg is a Psychology PhD Candidate at University of Cambridge in the Social Decision-Making Lab, a current Visiting Fellow at Harvard University in the Digital Emotions Lab and a Storytelling Fellow at University Arts London. Cecilie uses a combination of methods (experimental, RCTs and interactive games) to study how social context and interaction impacts our judgments of and resistance to misinformation. Cecilie is both a Harding Distinguished Postgraduate Scholar and an Economic and Social Research Scholar. She also holds an MPhil in Psychology from Cambridge University, an MSc in Social Cognition from UCL and a BSc (Hons) in Marketing and Psychology from Lancaster University.