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PhD Research Programmes & Funding Schemes

PhD Research Programme

The UCD School of Information and Communication Studies doctoral programme provides an environment that enables creative, energetic, and motivated students to complete original research that makes a substantial contribution to knowledge in information, communication, media and library science. Our PhD students work with research active supervisors in a variety of fields and have the opportunity to join and collaborate with research groups in the school and across the university.(opens in a new window)
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Ongoing PhD Opportunities

The staff of ICS work in a wide variety of research areas encompassing many aspects of information and communications studies.

Please look at the list below of - Academic Staff - Research Profiles & PhD Project Areas for Supervision (listed in alphabetical order) to see if your project would fit with our staff interests and expertise.

To be considered for admission to the School, you will need to have the support of at least one of our staff who are willing to supervise your thesis project. Staff will want to see a CV and a draft of your proposed project before agreeing to supervise so please contact staff before applying.
It is the applicant's responsibility to find an appropriate supervisor; the PhD coordinator will not be able to do so.

PhD scholarships offered by the school can be viewed on our PhD Vacancies page.

Minimum Requirements

The following are the minimum requirements necessary to undertake a PhD in ICS. These are based on UCD’s PhD Entry Requirements

  • Education: Applicants are required to have both: 
    • A Masters degree in a relevant subject with Distinction (GPA greater than 3.08) from an accredited institution.
    • An Undergraduate degree with a minimum of 2.1 (GPA greater than 3.08) from an accredited institution.

Academic Transcripts for each degree must be supplied.

Students who are currently completing a Masters, or who are waiting to graduate may be considered by individual supervisors at their discretion. Such students must familiarise themselves with their intended funding schemes' requirements to see if they are eligible to apply.

Note: Applicants who do not hold a Masters degree may apply to ICS but they will be required to enter the PhD programme via the MLitt programme and will be provided the option of advancing to stage two of the PhD programme after successful completion of a Transfer Assessment Panel (TAP). Important: Applicants who do not have a Masters degree are not eligible for an ICS Scholarship (see below). Applicants without a Masters degree who are interested in applying for one of the other funding schemes listed below must familiarise themselves with those schemes' requirements to see if they are eligible to apply.

  • English Language Proficiency: Applicants to a PhD programme in UCD from countries where English is not the primary language must meet the University’s Minimum English Language Proficiency Requirement of a minimum of IELTS 6.5 with not less than 6 in any strand in the Academic Version or equivalent.

The following are not required, but should be included in an application if available.

  • Letters of recommendation: From an applicant’s undergraduate or Master’s thesis supervisor, or from a lecturer or professor who taught the student, or from an employer.
  • Research Experience: Applicants who have research experience in addition to their undergraduate and or Masters theses projects should include details of it in their application. This may include experience as a Research Assistant, an Internship or any other experience of academic research.

We welcome students from a wide variety of academic and professional backgrounds.
Since the PhD programme includes 30 credits of classwork, you will have the opportunity to learn some of the skills and knowledge you will need to complete your thesis.

Expressions of Interest

Step 1

Prospective applicants interested in applying to undertake a PhD in ICS should review the funding schemes linked below. Applicants should read all of the information about each funding scheme on each funding agency’s website. In particular, prospective applicants should pay close attention to:

  • Eligibility requirements
  • Application processes
  • What fees are covered, and whether a stipend is provided
  • Submission dates
  • Required documentation

Important: Prospective applicants should pay particular attention to submission deadlines of the funding schemes listed below. Ideally, applicants should send an expression of interest email to potential supervisors a minimum of 3-4 months (or more) before a funding scheme’s submission deadline. The closer to the deadline an applicant contacts a potential supervisor, the less likely they will agree to supervise them. 

Step 2

Prospective applicants should review the profiles of the ICS Academic Staff Research Profiles on this page, to identify one whose research aligns with their own interests. Applicants should also review their research publications on (opens in a new window)Google Scholar or (opens in a new window)ORCID, their (opens in a new window)UCD profile including the research projects they have been involved with, the subjects they teach, academic achievements, public policy contributions, and their contributions to their domain, e.g., editorship of journals, conference programme boards, standardisation committees, accreditation panels. 

A key element of a successful PhD is the alignment between the experience and interests of a supervisor and the interests of a student. Thus, prospective applicants should put time and effort into researching a suitable supervisor.

Step 3

Applicants should carefully prepare the following and include them in an expression of interest email.

  • Cover Letter: Applicants are required to submit a 1 - 2 page cover letter introducing themselves, outlining why they want to do a PhD, why they want to work with their chosen faculty member, their research interests, and why they want to research their chosen topic.
  • Curriculum Vitae: Applicants are required to submit a detailed CV demonstrating their suitability to undertake a PhD. This should focus on the research they have undertaken, including final year undergraduate projects, Masters thesis, or other relevant work. 
  • Research Proposal: Prepare a 3 - 4 page research proposal outlining the topic, the problem the applicant wants to investigate, how they propose to tackle it, and why it is important that this research is done. 
  • Academic Transcripts: Applicants are required to attach their Undergraduate and Masters academic transcripts. Applicants must clearly show that they meet the minimum entry requirements of UCD and the funding scheme.
  • Writing Sample: Applicants are required to submit a sample of their writing, such as their Master's thesis, a research paper, or an assignment. 
  • English Language Proficiency: Applicants for whom English is not their first language must attach proof of English language proficiency. Formats of acceptable proof can be found on UCD’s Minimum English Language Requirements webpage.

The following are not required, but should be included in an application if available.

  • Letters of Recommendation: Applicants are required to supply the names and details of two referees who have taught or supervised them and who can attest to their academic abilities and suitability to research. These referees may be contacted to supply references by the member of faculty the applicant approaches. The applicant should contact their referees prior to submitting an application to ensure that they are willing to provide letters of recommendation. Applicants may also submit letters of recommendation with their application which will be checked by the faculty member. 

Please note, prospective applicants should not send copies of sensitive documents such as their birth certificates or passports with their expression of interest email. However, this information may be required later in the process by the funding scheme, and will be required by UCD if their application is successful.

Step 4

Applicants should send their expression of interest email to their chosen ICS faculty member with the required information and documents outlined above. 

  • Email Title: Please put “PhD Supervision Request” followed by the applicant's name, funding scheme and topic area in the subject line. E.g., “PhD Supervision Request - Joe/Jane Blogs - IRC Funding - Impact of new media on political communication.” 
  • Important: Members of faculty in ICS receive frequent requests for supervision. A prospective supervisor will not move forward with your application if it is clearly a generic mass email, of low quality or generally underprepared. Mass emails are easily spotted by staff members and this will not help your prospective application to have a positive outcome. Ensure that you are directly addressing the supervisor you are contacting and that you are clearly indicating how you are a match with that supervisor’s research interests. Doing this will increase the likelihood of a positive reply. 



PhD Funding Schemes.

ICS currently has PhD students from around the world who engage in independent, international and EU research projects, which contribute to the positive collaborative environment in the school. This webpage provides details of the main funding schemes available to prospective applicants interested in undertaking a PhD in ICS. 

Applicants who are self-funded or who are availing of a national funding scheme from their home country should follow the instructions outlined in Steps 2, 3 and 4 (in the How to Apply, steps 1-4 section).

Important:

    • Prospective applicants must: 
      • Familiarise themselves with the details of the PhD funding scheme they want to apply to
      • Meet the minimum entry requirements for UCD and of the funding scheme they want to apply to.
    • Mass emails from unqualified or unsuitable candidates who have not followed the instructions below will be deleted.
  • Prospective applicants must have the explicit permission of a member of faculty in ICS before using their name to apply to a funding scheme. PhD Coordinators will not match applicants with potential supervisors; this is the applicant’s responsibility.
  • Members of faculty in ICS will not write or co-write an application. They will only provide advice and feedback on complete or near-complete drafts to candidates whom they have agreed to work with.
  • Members of faculty in ICS may invite potential applicants for an interview before agreeing to supervise them.

Further information about staff members can be found in the drop-down lists for individual staff. Please see Academic Staff Research Profiles for details first then view the individual staff and their PhD Project Areas for Supervision (staff listed in alphabetical order) to see if your project would fit with our staff interests and expertise.

School of Information and Communication Studies Scholarship.

The School of Information and Communication Studies occasionally has scholarships available which suitably qualified applicants can apply for. PhD scholarships in UCD School of Information and Communication Studies can be viewed on our PhD Vacancies page.

Applicants should check the details of each scholarship with the supervisor. The details below are for guidance only.

  • Position: Full-time 
  • Fees: Tuition fees waived by ICS
  • Remuneration: PhD studentship is renewable for up to four years and consists of:
    • Stipend: €22,000k per annum (tax-free)
    • Travel: ICS scholarship students will be prioritised when applying for travel funding and overheads from ICS Research Committee
    • Equipment: Limited equipment funding is also available from ICS Research Committee
  • Eligibility: EU and non-EU students are equally eligible for studentships under this award

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UCD Graduate Studies - current scholarship opportunities.


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Other sources of funding:

IRC Government of Ireland Postgraduate Scholarship Programme

The IRC Government of Ireland Postgraduate Scholarship Programme is a yearly competition open to EU and non-EU applicants. 

This scholarship is designed to support suitably qualified research master's and doctoral candidates pursuing, or intending to pursue, full-time research in any discipline.

Please check the IRC website for full details of the call.

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China Scholarship Council Scheme 

Citizens of the People’s Republic of China may apply to the China Scholarship Council (CSC) scheme to undertake a PhD or to visit ICS. Detailed information about the CSC can be found on the official UCD CSC webpage. The programme is closed for 2024 intake.

Prospective applicants to the CSC scheme must follow the instructions in Steps 2, 3 and 4 above when approaching potential supervisors in ICS.

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(opens in a new window)Fulbright - Ireland-USA, Ireland-United States Commission for Educational Exchange.

(opens in a new window)Mitchell - The George J. Mitchell Scholarship Program is a national, competitive scholarship sponsored by the US-Ireland Alliance.

Please note that our PhD programme is face to face, especially during the early years when students will need to take taught modules. Other responsibilities will include attending supervisory sessions and Research Studies Panels. UCD School of Information and Communication Studies (ICS) and other units at UCD offer numerous research events, training in research skills, and opportunities for enriching your education, and expanding your networks.

Further Information

Further information regarding the application process, scholarships and questions, can be found on the Graduate Studies website

UCD ICS hosts visiting PhD scholars for less than 6 months or less than 12 months. As a visiting PhD student scholar you will be provided a desk to complete your work, library access, and be invited to participate in School and university events.

Application process

1. Check eligibility requirements

Currently enrolled in an accredited PhD Programme in information science, library science, communication studies or a related discipline.

Be in good financial standing with your home university

For non-native English speakers, an English language certificate is required: IELTS overall score of 6.5, with a minimum of 6.0 in each section.

2. Conduct research on School staff areas of expertise.

Search the UCD staff profiles and search published literature on Google scholar to get an idea about staff research expertise.

3. Contact a school staff member and ask if they would be willing to supervise you for a temporary proposed project. You will not be considered for a place in the programme if a staff member has not agreed to supervise you. While the PhD Coordinator may be able to offer advice, it is expected that exceptional applicants will locate their own supervisor.

4. Apply to the PhD Programme Coodinator using the application form below.

Applications must include all necessary documents to be considered.

Please look at the list below of - Academic Staff - Research Profiles & PhD Project Areas for Supervision (listed in alphabetical order) to see if your project would fit with our staff interests and expertise.

To be considered for admission to the School, you will need to have the support of at least one of our staff who are willing to supervise your thesis project. Staff will want to see a CV and a draft of your proposed project before agreeing to supervise, so please contact staff before applying.
It is the applicant's responsibility to find an appropriate supervisor; the PhD coordinator will not be able to do so.

ICS is one of the most multidisciplinary schools at UCD, representing disciplines, topics and approaches from the humanities, social sciences, and STEM. Unique research areas to UCD include Communications, Digital Policy, and Information Science, as well as the highly technologically grounded HCI and Information Systems.
The School is uniquely and prestigiously designated as an iSchool, a university-level institution devoted to understanding the role of information in society; ICS is the only iSchool in the country, as well as on the whole of the Island.

Marguerite Barry

Research profile & PhD project areas for supervision.
Title: Associate Professor
Email: (opens in a new window)marguerite.barry@ucd.ie
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/marguerite.barry

Highlevel profile:
Dr Marguerite Barry is Associate Professor and Head of School of Information & Communication Studies and a funded investigator with (opens in a new window)ADAPT Centre, SFI Research Centre for AI-Driven Digital Content Technology, working on the Digital Governance strand on issues around autonomy and responsibility in the design and deployment of AI. She is a supervisor on the SFI funded (opens in a new window)D-REAL CRT PhD programme, a member of the UCD Human-Computer Interaction ((opens in a new window)HCI@UCD) research group and currently supervises PhD projects on ethical and policy frameworks in technology enabled mental health applications, understanding online social support for wellbeing and on ethical frameworks for constructive journalism. She is Programme Director of the Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters MSc in Transition, Innovation and Sustainability Environments (EMJM TISE) at UCD and teaches Information Ethics, Digital Media and Creative & Interactive Storytelling.

Background:
My work focuses on understanding digital interaction for different communication strategies towards better design and more positive experiences with technology. Recent research has focused on ethical design for digital technologies to support well-being, including mental health, and developing practical frameworks to inform design and development. This work is motivated by over a decade of industry experience in digital media project management and media production following an undergraduate degree in Law and postgraduate studies in Journalism. My PhD studies focused on developing an understanding of interactivity and its potential for empowerment. My research is also shaped by care ethics and virtue ethics perspectives, science, technology and society (STS) studies and focuses on guiding students, researchers and practitioners towards developing design and development methodologies and practices to elicit ethical thinking, with a particular interest in participatory and creative approaches. My work is published in digital media, STS and human-computer interaction journals and conferences.

Current research focus:
My research interests are in critical and creative media and technology studies, communication and human-computer interaction studies with a particular focus on ethics in technology and design, using qualitative and mixed methods. I am interested in supervising projects that seek to understand communication behaviours and how digital technologies can be empowering for people and society rather than exacerbating vulnerabilities. I currently supervise projects that examine the role of design in producing more ethical structures, platforms and interfaces. 

Projects ares for supervision.
Dr Barry is interested in supervising projects focused on:

  • Technology ethics and ethical approaches to digital design
  • Societal implications of digital media applications and uses
  • Understanding users and behaviours in communication and media
  • Ethics and digital media/technology design in specific domains/contexts (e.g., Health and wellbeing; Culture and creative arts; Museums & heritage; Politics and public life; Public services and ‘smart’ technologies)
  • Digital media history – uses, practices, platforms, policies, content etc.

Projects can be based in digital media, communication or human-computer interaction studies and a focus on methods and theory-building is welcome.

Research keywords:
Technology Ethics; Digital Ethics; Digital Media Studies; Human-Computer Interaction; Science and Technology Studies; Positive Computing; Critical Media Studies; Critical Data Studies; Interactivity Theory; Human Factors; Communication Studies.

Marco Bastos

Research profile & PhD project areas for supervision.
Title: Assistant Professor
Email: (opens in a new window)marco.bastos@ucd.ie
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/marco.bastos

Highlevel profile:
Marco Bastos is the University College Dublin Ad Astra Fellow at the School of Information & Communication Studies and Senior Lecturer in Media and Communication in the Department of Media, Culture and Creative Industries at City, University of London. He has held research positions at the University of California at Davis, Duke University, University of São Paulo, and the University of Frankfurt. His research leverages computational methods and network science to explore the intersection of communication and critical data studies.

Background:
Marco Bastos is the University College Dublin Ad Astra Fellow at the School of Information & Communication Studies and Senior Lecturer in Media and Communication in the Department of Media, Culture, and Creative Industries of City, University of London. Previous to that he held research positions at the University of California at Davis, Duke University, University of São Paulo, and the University of Frankfurt. His research leverages computational methods, network science, and large-scale social media data to explore the intersection of communication and critical data studies, particularly the cross-effects between online and offline social networks. Dr Bastos is the lead investigator in the Twitter-funded project investigating echo chambers and political polarization in the aftermath of the Brexit vote and the author of Social Media: Social Networks Online and Offline (Routledge, 2021) and Brexit, Tweeted (BUP, 2024). His work has appeared in the Journal of Communication, Social Networks, and New Media & Society and his research on disinformation and social media manipulation has been covered by the BBC, New York Times, Guardian, Washington Post, Bloomberg, Wired, and BuzzFeed.

Current research focus:
Marco's research explores the social implications of technology, including the dynamics of social influence and contagion and the forecasting of social phenomena with digital trace data. Methodologically, Marco’s research leverages network science and computational methods to explore the intersection of communication and critical data studies. His research group studies political communication, algorithmic filtering, large language models, and the study of problematic content and misinformation online.

Projects areas for supervision.
Dr Bastos is interested in supervising projects focused on:

  • Mal, mis, and disinformation, including problematic content
  • Influence operations, including automation and coordinated campaigns
  • Algorithmic studies, including recommender systems
  • Generative models, including the fine-tuning of Large Language Models
  • Spatial social media, including social networks spanning offline groups
  • Digital journalism, including incidental and selective exposure
  • Directionality of homophily, including clustering and echo chambers
  • Political communication, including asymmetric polarization 
  • Protest and contentious communication, including hashtag activism
  • Large-scale web archiving or low-quality content

Research keywords:
Communication; Computational Social Sciences; Critical Data Studies; Social Networks; Propaganda; Disinformation; Political Communication; Journalism; Digital Sociology; Social Media Network Science; Exponential Random Graphs; Spatial Analysis; Time Series Analysis; Natural Language Processing; Word Embeddings; Machine Learning; Large Language Models; Computer Vision; Qualitative Methods.

Patrick Brodie

Title: Assistant Professor
Email: (opens in a new window)patrick.brodie@ucd.ie
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/patrick.brodie

Highlevel profile:
Dr Patrick Brodie is an Assistant Professor and Ad Astra Fellow in the School of Information & Communication Studies at University College Dublin. He is a member of the UCD Earth Institute and the (opens in a new window)UCD Centre for Digital Policy. He has previously held grants and fellowships from the Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) and Fonds de Recherche du Québec - Société et Culture (FRQSC).

Background:
Dr Brodie received his PhD in Film and Moving Image Studies from the Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema at Concordia University in Montréal, Canada. Prior to joining UCD, he was an FRQSC Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Art History and Communication Studies at McGill University and a Scholar-in-Residence in the School of Irish Studies at Concordia. His first book project, Wild Tides: Media Infrastructure and Financial Crisis, currently under review with a major university press, focuses on media infrastructural development and privatisation in post-financial crisis Ireland, with an emphasis on the political economies and environmental politics of media and technology industries as tools of “recovery” amidst global economic turbulence.

Current research focus:
An interdisciplinary scholar, Dr Brodie’s current research employs methodologies and theories across media studies, geography, environmental humanities, and science and technology studies (STS) to understand the ways in which digital technologies and infrastructures re-shape environmental systems and economies. In particular, he is interested in the material politics of “extraction,” broadly conceived across data-driven systems, their material and energetic inputs, and their “externalities.” He recently completed a project, Media Rurality, a co-edited collection with Dr Darin Barney under review with a major university press, and he is co-writing, with Dr Patrick Bresnihan, a book entitled From the Bog to the Cloud: Contesting Eco-Modernity in Ireland (under contract with Bristol University Press). Finally, he is developing a large-scale project focusing on the colonial and postcolonial “prehistories” of energetic and communications infrastructures in Ireland as a way of understanding contemporary logics of transition at a time of twinned “digitalisation and decarbonisation.”

Project areas for supervision.
Dr Brodie welcomes proposals focusing on the following areas:

  • The environmental politics of data-driven and AI technologies and infrastructures
  • Intersections between energy, extraction, and digital systems
  • Environmental data justice
  • Elemental media philosophy and politics
  • Histories of uneven development and interactions between science, technology, and the state
  • Studies of digital supply chains and logistical technologies
  • Rural media and politics
  • Post-, anti-, and de-colonial approaches to digital media, data, and AI

Research keywords:
Digital Infrastructure; Environmental Media; Extraction; Data Colonialism; Science and Technology Studies; Political Ecology; Critical Data Studies; Media Rurality; Artificial Intelligence.

Benjamin Cowan

Title: Professor
Email: (opens in a new window)benjamin.cowan@ucd.ie
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/benjamin.cowan

Highlevel profile:
Ben is Professor at UCD's School of Information & Communication Studies. His research lies at the juncture between psychology, human-computer interaction and communication systems in investigating how people interact with collaborative conversational AI. 

Background:
Ben is Professor at UCD's School of Information & Communication Studies. He completed his undergraduate studies in Psychology & Business Studies (2006) as well as his PhD in Usability Engineering (2011) at the University of Edinburgh. His mixed methods research combines approaches and theories from the fields of psychology, human-computer interaction and speech technology to investigate how design and cognitive processes influence user behaviour in collaborative conversational AI interactions. Professor Cowan is the co-founder and co-director of the school’s (opens in a new window)HCI@UCD group, one of the largest HCI groups in Ireland, co-founder of the SFI (opens in a new window)D-REAL Centre for Research Training (D-REAL) and is a co-PI in the SFI (opens in a new window)ADAPT Centre, a €100 million research centre conducting cutting edge research on the future of AI driven content technologies. Professor Cowan also co-founded the ACM SIGCHI International Conference on Conversational User Interfaces (ACM CUI) and is an ACM Distinguished Speaker, conducting international keynote presentations on topics related to conversational AI. Professor Cowan is passionate about PhD education, having won the UCD Deans Award for Outstanding Supervision (2021), whilst regularly acting as PhD external examiner for leading universities across Europe. He has successfully graduated four PhD students, and has previously supervised five postdoctoral researchers, collaborating with them to produce award winning research published at leading conferences in human-computer interaction (e.g., ACM CHI).

Current research focus:
My current research focuses specifically on how theory and quantitative methods from psychological and cognitive science can be applied to understand and design collaborative conversational AI experiences, specifically how the use of common ground occurs in human-AI dialogue. Recent work focuses on how users divide communicative labour between conversational partners when some are automated, as well as devising methods and metrics for assessing people’s perceptions of conversational AI partner’s capabilities (termed partner models).

Projects ares for supervision.
Professor Cowan welcomes proposals around the following topics: 

  • Common ground use in multiparty human-machine dialogue collaboration
  • Collaborative multimodal conversational AI dialogue
  • User centred issues in large language model interaction
  • Cognitive processes in human-conversational AI dialogue
  • Cognitive psychology inspired tests for AI dialogic intelligence
  • Bilingual user behaviours and/or cognitive processes in speech based conversation AI interaction
  • Perceptions of conversational AI capabilities and their effects on user language choices

Research keywords:
Conversational User Interfaces; Conversational AI; Large Language Models; Dialogue; Psychology; Psycholinguistics; Human-Computer Interaction.

Amber Cushing

Title: Associate Professor
Email: (opens in a new window)amber.cushing@ucd.ie
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/amber.cushing

Highlevel profile:
Amber Cushing is an Associate Professor at the UCD ischool and a member of the Cultural Analytics research group of the SFI (opens in a new window)Insight Centre for Data Analytics. Her broad research areas include archives and digital preservation and personal information management. 

Background:
Dr Cushing holds a PhD in Information and Library Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where she was advised by Dr Deborah Barreau. She holds a MLIS with a concentration in Archives Management from Simmons University Graduate School of Information and Library Science and a BA in History with a minor in Politics from Mount Holyoke College. Broadly conceived, her work focuses on the social context of maintaining digital information over time. Her early work focused on gaining an understanding of digital preservation at the personal level–self extension (the contribution of digital possessions to identity) and personal digital archiving, beginning in 2010. Following this, she moved to understanding how to bridge this work with DP work in GLAMs with the IRC funded WALK1916 project. This project investigated how GLAMs could personalise access to their digital collections with a mobile walking tour app using participatory archiving techniques. This project also highlighted ethical issues in participatory work, challenged traditional concepts of the purpose of GLAMs in society, and foregrounded the need for education in the GLAM sector.

Current research focus:
Her current work explores two different strains: 1) how Artificial intelligence (AI) technology (a new technology in the field of digital preservation) may contribute to the future of digital preservation theory and challenge long standing concepts associated with archival theory; and 2) a feminist approach to personal archiving and personal information management that emphasises care over efficiency.

Projects ares for supervision.
I am interested in supervising projects centred in: 

  • Personal archiving
  • Digital preservation work using AI technology
  • Feminist approaches to PIM 

These projects should be designed using a social science perspective and mainly employ qualitative methods.

Research keywords:
Personal Archiving; Digital Preservation; Personal Information Management; Digital Cultural Heritage; Glams; Qualitative Methods.

Kevin Doherty

Title: Assistant Professor
Email: (opens in a new window)kevin.doherty@ucd.ie
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/Kevin.Doherty

Highlevel profile:
Kevin Doherty is AdAstra Assistant Professor of Human Computer Interaction at the School of Information & Communication Studies at UCD, a leading member of the cross-disciplinary (opens in a new window)HCI@UCD research group, and co-Director of UCD’s MSc in Human Computer Interaction Programme. Kevin is also a member of the AI Healthcare Hub at the UCD Institute for Discovery, the (opens in a new window)ADAPT Centre’s Health Working Group, UCD’s Community of Practice for Public Engagement, the Irish Chapter of ACM SIGCHI, and the Copenhagen Center for Health Technology. 

Background:
Kevin holds a PhD in HCI from Trinity College Dublin, an MSc in Medical Device Design from the National College of Art and Design, Dublin, and an MAI in Electronic & Computer Systems from the Grenoble Institute of Technology. This interdisciplinary background, Kevin has leveraged to support and inform the design, development and evaluation of technological solutions to a range of significant healthcare challenges—in partnership with academic, industry and clinical collaborators spanning Imperial College London, Microsoft Research Cambridge, the Irish National Rehabilitation Hospital, and mental health technology startups including SilverCloud Health and Monsenso, among many others. This includes the development of BrightSelf, a mobile application deployed across English NHS clinics to provide timely access to mental healthcare for women in distress during pregnancy, and Kevin’s leadership of the health technology arm of the SOFIA project; a national effort to improve care for patients with severe mental illness through Danish general practice. Through their research, Kevin, his collaborators and students have realised a significant impact on the international practice of healthcare; yielding publications at leading HCI conferences and journals, and receiving honours including three best paper awards at the ACM CHI conference, and the 2019 ACM Europe Council Award.

Current research focus:
Dr Doherty’s current research focuses on advancing a human-centred approach to person-centred care for the digital age, including the design, development and evaluation of digital tools to enhance the clinical practice of healthcare, everyday mental health, and wellbeing. This includes at present; digital and AI tools to support the online and face-to-face practice of therapy, self-report technologies to inform and facilitate access to mental healthcare, and decision-support systems to augment care for chronic, co-morbid conditions. In this work, Dr Doherty and his collaborators employ mixed-methods, interdisciplinary and in-situ research and design approaches with a focus on developing caring teams and cultures in close collaboration with representative patient groups, professionals, and communities of practice. Dr Doherty welcomes proposals from candidates with backgrounds spanning HCI, computer science, psychotherapy, psychology, and other disciplines, with a passion for advancing a human-centred computer science, fostering interdisciplinary design research practices, and questioning what it means to care;

Project areas for supervision.
Dr Doherty is interested in supervising projects focused on:

  • Human-centred applications of AI in healthcare; including to support shared decision-making
  • Relationship-, person- and patient-centred tools, approaches and paradigms; including to support the online and in-person practice of therapy 
  • Digital health interventions; informed by psychotherapeutic frameworks (DBT, CFT, EFT, EAT) and/or positive computing principles (empathy, compassion, resilience etc.)
  • Creative design research methods; including toolkits to enhance participation in research and foster ethical design values
  • Design patterns for user engagement and disengagement; including for long-term use, gamification, and dark design patterns
  • Models of effective interdisciplinary collaboration; including for cooperative problem-solving in the practice of design, software development and/or care
  • Self-report (EMA) tools and methods; including to support collaborative self-tracking, self-care, reflection and reminiscence
  • Conversational tools, including to inform consultations and leverage health data in support of care

Research keywords:
Human Computer Interaction; Healthcare; Mental Health Technology; Design Research; Engagement; Self-Report; Decision-Making; Therapy; Positive Computing; Care.

Elizabeth Farries

Title: Assistant Professor
Email: (opens in a new window)elizabeth.farries@ucd.ie
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://digitalpolicy.ie/people/elizabeth-farries/

Highlevel profile:
Dr Elizabeth Farries is the Director of the (opens in a new window)UCD Centre for Digital Policy together with Prof Siapera. She also directs the MSc, Graduate Diploma and Professional Certificate programmes in Digital Policy in the School of Information & Communication Studies. Liz previously directed programmes in technology and human rights with the International Network of Civil Liberties Organizations (INCLO), where she remains as a Senior Fellow. A qualified barrister and solicitor in Canada, Liz carried litigation files relating to intellectual property, indigenous and human rights.

Background:
Elizabeth’s research lies at the intersection of new technologies and regulation. She has a particular interest in advocating around digital policy cycles and assemblages emerging in the digital transformation. Her related research interests include gendered safety online, secure and private online communications, digital identities, as well as policing surveillance technologies, pandemic technologies, data retention and protection, and international intelligence sharing.

Current research focus:
‘Digital Policy’ - emerging technologies, regulatory structures, impacts, unforeseen opportunities/consequences, future proofing

Projects ares for supervision.
Dr Farries is interested in supervising projects focused on:

  • Digital access
  • Surveillance societies
  • Transformation of work/digital disruptions
  • Social media voices/harms
  • Digitisation and sustainability
  • Civil society organising around digital transformations
  • Human rights structures in the digital age

Research keywords:
Critical Data Studies; Digital Sociology; Digital Policy; Law; Regulation; Privacy; Data Protection; Peaceful Assembly; Artificial Intelligence; Decolonial; Cybermisogny; Image-Based Sexual Abuse; Surveillance.

Crystal Fulton

Title: Professor 
Email: (opens in a new window)crystal.fulton@ucd.ie
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/crystal.fulton

Highlevel profile:
Crystal Fulton is a Professor in the School of Information & Communication Studies at University College Dublin (UCD), Ireland. Her research focuses on the intersection of people, information, and communication.

Background:
A member of the school for over 25 years now, Professor Fulton continues to explore social participation in a range of everyday social settings, from information worlds in serious leisure contexts to the social margins and darker communities. Her work has revealed new constructs around information creation, secrecy, and manipulation, extending the boundaries of our understanding of information behaviour. Funded by the Irish Research Council for Ireland, she conducted the country’s first national project to examine the social impact of gambling addiction, and further research for the Department of Justice and Equality, her research has been used to support new legislation in Ireland. 

She is currently the President of the Association for Information Science and Technology (ASIS&T), as well as a UCD Teaching & Academic Development Fellow and member of UCD’s Centre for the Study of Higher Education.

Current research focus:
Her current research includes investigating how hidden information practices can lead to information creation and resilience, particularly in the digital environment.

Projects ares for supervision.
Professor Fulton is interested in supervising projects focused on:

  • Information behaviour of particular groups
  • Social literacies, including Digital literacy, Information literacy, and Media literacy
  • Digital interactions leading to Digital Citizenship and Digital Resilience
  • Learning, learners, and learning practices, particularly in virtual learning environments
  • Collaborative information seeking and authorship

Research keywords:
Education; Information Behaviour; Information Creation; Information Secrecy.

Stefanie Havelka

Title: Assistant Professor
Email: (opens in a new window)stefanie.havelka@ucd.ie
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/stefanie.havelka

Highlevel profile:
Dr Stefanie Havelka is a Lecturer/Assistant Professor at the School of Information & Communication Studies at University College Dublin in Ireland. Previously, she was the Web and Mobile Services Librarian, Assistant Professor at Lehman College, The City University of New York, and the Information Technology Manager at the Goethe-Institut New York. 

Background:
She holds a Bachelor's in Information Management from Stuttgart Media University, Germany, a Master's in Communication and Information Studies from Rutgers University, USA, a Master's in Library and Information Science, and a Certificate of Advanced Studies in Digital Libraries from Syracuse University, the USA, and a Doctorate In Library and Information Science from Humboldt University zu Berlin, Germany.

Dr Havelka is an interdisciplinary, primarily qualitative researcher at the intersection of library and information science, human-computer interaction, social computing, and emerging technologies. Her research explores the challenges and opportunities of equal and inclusive access and use of information, privacy and security behaviour, privacy and security literacy, and digital literacies. While she is interested in other contexts, her main research focus emphasises how these topics impact Library and Information Professionals (LIPs) and libraries. She is particularly interested in investigating the impact of artificial intelligence, digital literacies, privacy, security, and ethics. Moreover, as a researcher from a marginalised group, she is especially interested in expanding research perspectives beyond the Western, Educated, Industrialised, Rich, and Democratic (WEIRD).nShe has published articles on mobile privacy, apps, behaviour, mobile information literacy, and Universal Design for Learning.

Her research correlates with UCD’s Rising to the Future strategy theme 2, Transforming through Digital Technology, and theme 4, Empowering Humanity, and UCD's Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Strategy as well as with ICS's vision to grow the “research reputation in Library and Information Studies, Communication and Media, Digital Policy, and Human-Computer Interaction studies.”

Current research focus:
Human-computer interactions related to mobile privacy and security; digital literacies (including information literacy and mobile literacy); diversity, inclusiveness, equity, and accessibility; knowledge organisation and metadata

Projects areas for supervision:
TBA

Research keywords:
HCI; Privacy and Security; Digital Literacies; Ubiquitous Computing; Critical Librarianship.

Kylie Jarrett

Title: Professor
Email: (opens in a new window)kylie.jarrett1@ucd.ie 
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/Kylie.Jarrett1

Highlevel profile:
Prof. Kylie Jarrett is Professor in the School of Information and Communication Studies. Her expertise is the political economy of the internet, web, and social media. She has a particular focus on digital labour and platform work, especially from a Marxist feminist perspective but she also has an interest in the intersection of gender and sexuality and digital media. 

Background:
Kylie received her BA and PhD in Communication Studies from the University of South Australia, where she subsequently worked in the Centre for Teaching and Learning as an Academic Developer. In 2007, she moved to Ireland as Lecturer in the Department of Media Studies at Maynooth University and coordinator of the Digital Media undergraduate programme. She joined UCD in 2024. Her research began in the 1990s with a focus on online fan cultures and their intersection with media industry economics. This led to an ongoing focus on commercial dimensions of online spaces and her doctoral study of consumer empowerment discourses on e-commerce platform ninemsn. She has authored two books - Digital Labor (2022, Polity) and Feminism, Labour, and Digital Media: The Digital Housewife (2016, Routledge) - and co-authored two others - #NSFW: Sex, Humor and Risk in Social Media (2019, MIT Press) and Google and the Culture of Search (2013, Routledge) - along with a range of articles and book chapters on various digital media platforms and companies.

Current research focus:
Kylie’s current research is centred on the application of social reproduction theory to the analysis of various forms of digital labour: gig work, online creation, and platform traders. As part of this, she is analysing the online craft retail platform Etsy. 

Projects areas for supervision:
I welcome proposals on the following topics:

  • Digital labour
  • Platform work
  • Online creators, including influencers
  • Online sexuality and gender
  • Political economy of media industries
  • Social media

Research keywords:
Digital platforms; creative labour; platform work; digital labour; political economy; social media.

Páraic Kerrigan

Title: Assistant Professor
Email: (opens in a new window)paraic.kerrigan@ucd.ie
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/paraic.kerrigan

Highlevel profile:
Dr Páraic Kerrigan is an Assistant Professor in the School of Information & Communication Studies at University College Dublin. His research interests lie at the intersection of gender and sexuality in relation to new and emerging technologies and critical data studies. He is a member of the UCD (opens in a new window)Centre of Digital Policy where he is also the programme director of the MSc Communication and Media programme and has been a funded investigator across a series of projects funded by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland, Safefood Ireland and the Irish Research Council. Much of his research and public advocacy work centres around queer rights and queer cultural awareness. 

Background:
Páraic completed his PhD in Maynooth University, where he focused on the ways in which media infrastructures and systems created stereotypes and influenced audience perceptions around the LGBTQ community. This research formed the basis of his first monograph, LGBTQ Visitibility, Media and Sexuality in Ireland, which was published with Routledge in 2021. He joined UCD as Teaching Fellow in 2018, later becoming an Assistant Professor in 2021. He holds a BA in Media Studies and English and MA in Gender and Sexuality. Páraic’s interdisciplinary background across Social Sciences and Humanities has informed his research, allowing him to integrate diverse perspectives and methodologies into his work. His research career has demonstrated a long-standing and deep commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion, with his work focusing on diversifying culture, creating a more sustainable society and developing pragmatic solutions for improving inclusion and diversity in society. He has examined intersections of these areas in the fields of Communications & Media, Critical Data Science, Cultural Studies and Social Science more broadly. He has developed diversity toolkits for the Irish media industry, pragmatic reporting guidelines for journalists and media around LGBTQ issues and food poverty along with developing responsive research to censorship challenges to the queer community alongside community organisations such as LGBT Ireland. 

Current research focus:
Páraic’s current work focuses on two different strands: 1. How emerging technology, such as AI and Machine Learning are creating vulnerabilities or vulnerabilising LGBTQ minorities further; and 2. AI interventions for LGBTQ community needs.

Projects areas for supervision.
Dr Kerrigan is interested in supervising projects focused on:

  • Intersections of Gender and Sexuality with AI and Machine Learning
  • Critical Data Studies
  • Queer Media Studies
  • Media Industries
  • Creative Labour and Media Work
  • Queer Irish Culture

Research keywords:
Gender, Sexuality & Media; Queer Media; Vulnerability Studies; Critical Data Studies; Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI); Artificial intelligence.

Aphra Kerr

Title: Professor
Email: (opens in a new window)aphra.kerr@ucd.ie 
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/aphra.kerr

High level profile:
Aphra Kerr is a Professor in the School of Information & Communication Studies at University College Dublin (UCD), Ireland and a senior adviser at the UCD Centre for Digital Policy. She is also an adjunct Professor of Sociology at Maynooth University and a Co-PI at the ADAPT Centre for AI and Digital Content Technology.  

Background:
She has previously held positions as Professor of Sociology at Maynooth University (2005-2024), Postdoctoral Fellow at the Centre for Media Research at the University of Ulster (UK) (2004-2005), and Postdoctoral Fellow and Assistant Lecturer at Centre for Society, Technology and Media and the School of Communications at Dublin City University (2000-2004). She has held visiting positions at the Institute for Advanced Studies at the University of Edinburgh (UK, 2019), the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania (USA, 2011) and at the Institute for New Technologies at the United Nations University, Maastricht (Netherlands, 1996). She was a Government of Ireland Post-Doctoral Fellow (IRCHSS) based at the Centre for Society, Technology and Media from 2001-2003. 

Aphra is the author of two monographs on digital games published by Sage and Routledge respectively (2006 and 2017), was associate editor of the Digital Communication and Society three volume encyclopaedia (2015), and has published over 80 peer reviewed publications. 

Her primary research interests have included: the political economy and culture of the digital games industry; production studies and work in the digital media industries; the ethics, social shaping and governance of AI;  and digital policy more generally. 

Aphra has received research funding from a range of sources including Science Foundation Ireland, the IRC/IRCHSS, the North South Research Programme of DFERIS, Creative Europe, Horizon Europe, SSHRC (Canada) and worked with a range of civil society organisations. 

Current research focus:
Currently I am involved in projects focussed on the ethics and governance of AI across the media and public sector, including digital twins (ADAPT related projects including two in collaboration with Dublin City Council’s Smart Dublin unit); the application of games to support algorithmic literacy (Algowatch) and an exploration of the exposure of young people to gambling marketing through mediated live sport on the island of Ireland (YouGamSI). I am co-PI on the ‘Global Media and Internet Concentration Project’ funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council in Canada (2021-2026) and on the Ireland management committee for the COST funded network ‘Grassroots of Digital Europe: from Historic to Contemporary Cultures of Creative Computing’ (GRADE) (2022-2026).

Projects areas for supervision:
I am open to discussions on projects in the following areas:

  • The production and datafication of Digital games
  • The emergence of esports as a form of work and a spectacle 
  • AI & Ethics in practice in particular domains
  • Media industry platformisation and concentration
  • Analysis and Evaluation of Digital Policy in the areas of AI, digital games, gaming, 

Research keywords:
Cultural Industries; Digital games; AI Ethics; AI work; Algorithmic Literacy; Platforms;  Media Power; Digital Policy.

Susan Leavy

Title: Assistant Professor
Email: (opens in a new window)susan.leavy@ucd.ie
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/susan.leavy

Highlevel profile:
Susan Leavy is an Assistant Professor in the School of Information and Communication with research interests concerning artificial intelligence, text mining, cultural analytics and AI Ethics. She is a funded investigator with (opens in a new window)Insight Centre of Data Analytics and co-leads the Trustworthy AI research group. She is Ireland’s nominee to the Global Partnership for AI (GPAI) and is on Ireland’s AI Advisory panel.

Background:
She earned a PhD at Trinity College Dublin detecting bias in political news with machine learning and natural language processing. She holds an MPhil in Gender and Women's studies, an MSc in Artificial Intelligence and a BA in Philosophy and English Literature. Susan also worked internationally managing the design and development of large-scale trading platforms in the financial technology sector.

Current research focus:
AI Ethics, Auditing Recommender Algorithms, AI Auditing, Digital Policy.

Projects areas for supervision.
Dr Leavy is interested in supervising projects focused on:

  • AI Auditing
  • AI Safety, Ethics and Trustworthiness
  • Digital Policy
  • AI Ethics
  • AI & Society
  • AI & Gender in Society

Research keywords:
AI Ethics; AI Auditing; Recommender Algorithms and Society; Language Models & Gender Representation.

Lai Ma

Title: Assistant Professor
Email: (opens in a new window)lai.ma@ucd.ie
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/lai.ma

Highlevel profile:
Dr Lai Ma is Assistant Professor at UCD School of Information & Communication Studies, Fellow of the UCD Geary Institute for Public Policy and a member of the UCD (opens in a new window)Centre for Digital Policy and the UCD (opens in a new window)Centre for Innovation, Technology and Organisation (CITO). She is Principal Investigator of a project funded by the National Open Research Forum (NORF) and she has led and collaborated on various projects funded by Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) and Higher Education Authority (HEA).

Background:
Dr Ma received her PhD in Information Science from Indiana University Bloomington with a doctoral minor in inquiry methodology specialising in hermeneutics, phenomenology, and critical social theory. Her early work focused on the relationship between the concepts and theories of information and epistemologies and methodologies in information science. She accepted the offer to join UCD upon completion of her PhD and has since worked on various topics in the nascent area research-on-research including research metrics, societal impact, open access with an underlying question: What is information?

Current research focus:
Dr Ma reads history of knowledge and history of science and considers concepts and apparatuses in science and technology studies (STS) to understand the development of open research infrastructure and the political economy of information. Her publications include conceptual works and qualitative studies, and she welcomes mixed-methods approaches that exploit the power of large datasets. She is currently leading a project to understand the concept of openness in the social sciences and humanities. The project will contribute to theoretical understanding of open research, while providing evidence and insights for practices and implementation.

Projects areas for supervision.
Dr Ma welcomes research proposals on:

  • The political economy of knowledge production: the relationship between universities, library consortia, commercial publishers and other key actors
  • The evolving open research landscape, especially from the perspectives of science and technology (STS) and/or history of science/knowledge
  • The movement of bibliodiversity, epistemic diversity, and multilingualism in the context of geopolitical tensions

Research keywords:
Research on Research (Meta-research); Knowledge Production; Open Research; Political Economy of Information; Research Infrastructure; Epistemic Diversity; Epistemic Injustice.

Claire McGuinness

Title: Assistant Professor 
Email: (opens in a new window)claire.mcguinness@ucd.ie
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/claire.mcguinness

High level profile:
Dr Claire McGuinness is an Assistant Professor and the undergraduate programme coordinator in the UCD School of Information & Communication Studies (ICS). Her primary research interests sit at the intersection of meta-literacies, education, and professional information work, focusing on the critical educational role that library and information services play within educational, community, civic, and everyday settings. Cognate research interests span digital learning, media literacy, reflective practice, and professional LIS education.

Background:
With a previous professional background in health sciences library work, Claire completed an MLIS in 1995, followed by a PhD in Library and Information Studies in 2005, which explored academic-library collaborative relationships in the context of embedded information literacy instruction in higher education. She has taught in the School for 20+ years, developing and leading modules on information and digital literacy, and pedagogy and teaching for information professionals, as well as modules focused on professional development and workplace experience for MLIS students. She is closely involved in the professional LIS and media literacy communities in Ireland and contributes significantly to the Library Association of Ireland’s Literacies Committee and Media Literacy Ireland. Claire’s published work to date includes three books; Becoming Confident Teachers: A Guide for Academic Librarians (Chandos, 2011); Digital Detectives: Solving Information Dilemmas in an Online World (with Crystal Fulton, Chandos, 2016); and The Academic Teaching Librarian's Handbook (Facet, 2021).

Current research focus:
Recent and current research encompasses projects that focus on media literacy training for public librarians, students’ perceptions and experiences of large language models such as ChatGPT in higher education, and the impact of far-right censorship challenges on public libraries. Common threads that link these projects include mis-and disinformation, human information behaviour and trust in information sources, the role of educators in relation to information disorder, media, information and digital literacy, and the future of libraries in the evolving information ecosystem. Adopting primarily qualitative research approaches, each project also builds in practical deliverables that are designed to offer immediate support to the participant communities.

Project areas for supervision.
Dr McGuinness is interested in supervising projects focused on:

  • Media, digital and information literacy (MDIL) – theories, frameworks, pedagogies, tools, etc.
  • Student learning and experience of MDIL.
  • Educational role of librarians and information professionals in relation to MDIL.
  • Artificial Intelligence and libraries/librarianship.
  • Professional identity, reflective practice and CPD for librarians and information professionals.
  • Professional education and competencies for information professionals.
  • Future and evolution of libraries – academic, public, special, etc. 

Research keywords:
Libraries; Librarianship; Media, Digital and Information Literacy; Digital Learning; Professional Identity; Reflective Practice; Librarians as Educators; Student Learning; Fake News. 

Tijana Milosevic

Title: Assistant Professor
Email: (opens in a new window)tijana.milosevic@ucd.ie
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/tijana.milosevic/about

High level profile:
Dr Tijana Milosevic is an Assistant Professor and a fellow at the (opens in a new window)Centre for Digital Policy at UCD’s School of Information & Communication Studies (ICS). Her main research topic is human dignity and how this value is produced and lived in everyday life, both digitally and offline. Tijana's main area of study is children and young people's digital media use and how it impacts their wellbeing; as well as exposure to online risks, such as cyberbullying. She has also studied online intermediation and digital media policy. She regularly engages in online safety-related policy consultations, engages with the media and has provided expert evidence in front of Irish parliamentary committees. Tijana has published over 20 academic articles in interdisciplinary journals such as New Media & Society, Social Media & Society and International Journal of Communication, among others, and she is also the author of "Protecting Children Online: Cyberbullying Policies of Social Media Companies'' (MIT Press, 2018). She is currently a member of the Pool of European Youth Researchers, a joint initiative of the Council of Europe and European Commission. 

Background:
Tijana was a research fellow on project Cilter (funded by the Disruptive Technologies Innovation Fund, Ireland), which involved the development of parental controls technologies; and an MSCA fellow at Dublin City University's Anti-Bullying Centre (ABC) and the SFI (opens in a new window)ADAPT Centre; and a PI on Meta-funded project: "Co-designing with children: A rights-based approach to fighting cyberbullying." She is a member of the EU Kids Online research network for Ireland and Serbia, and has coordinated the national survey with children in Serbia. She worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Oslo’s Institute of Media and Communication. She also led the Irish data collection for “Kids Digital Lives in Covid-19 Times (KiDiCoTi),” an international project coordinated by the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission (JRC). The project in Ireland included a survey on a national sample of children aged 10-18 about their digital media use and online risks during the Covid-19 lockdown. On behalf of ABC, she has testified about children’s digital media use and online safety in front of the Irish Parliamentary Committees (Oireachtas) three times since 2019, and has given numerous media interviews to the Irish and international media.

Previously, Tijana also researched young children’s privacy, especially from commercial data collection, as a member of COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology) DigiLitEY project. Tijana Milosevic completed her PhD at American University in Washington DC’s School of Communication. She previously researched media coverage of cyberbullying in the US mainstream media and a range of topics: from media coverage of the War in Iraq to climate change, public diplomacy, and the effect of copyright policies on the visual arts community in the US. She interned and worked at media organisations, such as the BBC and Radio Free Europe; public affairs and public diplomacy organisations like Fleishman-Hillard and The Public Diplomacy Council; and finally as a teacher at the French International School in Belgrade, which sparked her interest in understanding children’s behaviour, especially in relation to digital media. Tijana holds a PhD in Communication from American University (2015), and an MA in Media and Public Affairs from George Washington University, both in Washington DC. 

Current research focus:
Tijana's continuing her research into children and young people's digital media use, with a focus on dignity. Specifically, she is interested in whether and how dignity plays a role in motivating children and young people's social interactions both online and offline; the role it plays in bullying behaviours and microaggressions; she is also examining how dignity violations are normalised, not only among young people but in adult populations as well, especially in academic and other workplace environments. Tijana is also co-supervising a PhD student in Dublin City University's School of Computing, SFI (opens in a new window)ADAPT Centre and ABC (funded by the Irish Research Council and Google) who is working on AI-based content moderation and online safety.

She is currently involved in preparing the next round of survey and qualitative research with children within the EU Kids Online network. The survey covers a range of topics from digital media use to online risks, harms, and digital skills and wellbeing.

Project areas for supervision.
Dr Milosevic is interested in supervising projects focused on:

  • Digital policy (online intermediation, online safety and risks, children's rights, children and young people's digital media use)
  • Children's digital media use (risks such as cyberbullying, grooming, self-harm, among others; wellbeing, digital skills, literacy and citizenship)
  • Online safety and cybersecurity
  • Dignity theory
  • Privacy
  • Artificial intelligence and content moderation
  • Children and young people's digital media use and ethics (e.g., use of LLMs)

Research keywords:
Children and Young People's Digital Media Use; Dignity; Online Safety; Online Risks; Cyberbullying; Online Intermediation; Digital Policy; Children's Rights In Digital Environments; Digital Citizenship; Artificial Intelligence; Privacy.

Eugenia Siapera

Title: Professor
Email: (opens in a new window)eugenia.siapera@ucd.ie 
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/eugenia.siapera

High level profile:
Eugenia Siapera is Professor of Information and Communication Studies and the co-Director of the (opens in a new window)UCD Centre for Digital Policy (with Dr Elizabeth Farries). Her research interests are in the area of critical digital studies, social justice and digital media, digital policy, politics, communication and digital journalism. 

Background:
Eugenia holds a PhD in Social and Political Sciences from the European University Institute. She has a BSc (Hons) in Social Psychology and an MSc in Media and Communications both from the London School of Economics and Political Science. She was a Marie Sklodowska Curie postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Amsterdam and has held academic positions in the UK and Greece. 

Current research focus:
Eugenia is currently concluding an Irish Research council project on Alternative Tech Platforms and Harmful Narratives. Her research focus is on contemporary forms of harmful communication, the role of platform governance, and the effects of new technologies on inequalities and more broadly on questions of social justice. 

Project areas for supervision.
Professor Siapera is interested in supervising projects focused on:

  • Hate speech and beyond
  • Platform related research
  • Online misogyny
  • Anti-feminism and racism
  • Digital governance and policy
  • Social justice and digital media
  • The (digital) far right and culture wars
  • Journalism
  • Contemporary political communication

Research keywords:
Platforms; Digital Policy; Platform Governance; Online Hate Speech; Journalism.

Kalpana Shankar

Title: Full Professor
Email: (opens in a new window)kalpana.shankar@ucd.ie
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/kalpana.shankar

Highlevel profile:
Kalpana Shankar is a Full Professor in the School of Information & Communication Studies. Her research and teaching interests focus on data and society, research and information infrastructures, and open science. She is the co-director of the PhD programme in ICS.

Background:
After completing my Ph.D. in library and information science at UCLA, I conducted postdoctoral research in the Center for Embedded Networked Sensing at UCLA and completed a AAAS Science Policy Fellowship at the National Institutes of Health Office of Evaluation. I was an Assistant Professor at Indiana University-Bloomington's School of Informatics and Computing before joining the staff at UCD in the School of Information and Library Studies in July 2011. My research focuses on what is increasingly called “research on research”: the uses of data and information (digital and otherwise) in the research enterprise, open science, and data management, as well more recently work on research evaluation and peer review. I work primarily with qualitative research methods, document analysis, and theoretical approaches from Science, Technology, and Society (STS) but have collaborated with others to use simulation methods and surveys.

Current research focus:
I am currently PI of ROCHE (A Review of Open science in Connected Health), a National Open Research Foundation (NORF) funded project to examine the tensions between open science mandates and commercialisation in the digital health/connected health research ecosystem in Ireland with an eye to developing policy for research institutions in Ireland. Other interests include the role of geopolitical ruptures in shaping research/science policy and the role of externalities in shaping individual research trajectories. I am also interested in the use of “unusual” methods in approaching such topics (visual, simulation, large-data). 

Project areas for supervision.
I welcomes proposals focusing on the following areas:

  • Assessing and understanding information infrastructures
  • Research and science policy and ruptures (financial downturn, politics, political upheavals)
  • Research careers/culture (cognitive mobilites, equity/diversity/inclusion)
  • Postcolonial/anticolonial approaches to understanding research and innovation

Research keywords:
Information Infrastructures; Research Policy; Research on Research; Qualitative Methods; Science/technology/society.

Brendan Spillane

Title: Assistant Professor
Email: (opens in a new window)brendan.spillane@ucd.ie 
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/Brendan.Spillane

ICS profile:
Dr Brendan Spillane is an Assistant Professor in the School of Information & Communication Studies in University College Dublin (UCD) and a Funded Investigator in the Science Foundation Ireland (opens in a new window)ADAPT Centre for AI-Driven Digital Content Technology where he set up the Harmful Information Working Group, and a member of the UCD (opens in a new window)Centre for Digital Policy.

Background:
He completed his PhD in the School of Computer Science and Statistics in Trinity College Dublin which was focused on the impact of Bias as a dimension of Credibility on the judgement of news. After completing his PhD, he held concurrent positions as a Postdoctoral researcher on the H2020 PROVENANCE project ((opens in a new window)http://www.provenanceh2020.eu/) developing tools to detect and warn users of disinformation, and a two-year Government of Ireland IRC Postdoctoral Fellowship conducting a Systematic Literature Review and Meta Analysis of credibility research to inform the design of new tools and theory to analysis disinformation.His work is focused on Human Judgement of Information at the intersection of Human Computer Interaction (HCI), Behavioural Science and Information Science. Common topics in his work include Bias, Credibility, Misinformation and Disinformation, News, and Information Security.

Current research focus:
Dr Spillane is the Principal Investigator of the 3-year, €4m, 17 partner Horizon Europe VIGILANT project ((opens in a new window)www.vigilantproject.eu) which will run from November 2022 - November 2025. The exciting project, which kicked off in November 2022, will equip European Police Authorities with advanced technologies from academia to detect and analyse disinformation campaigns that are linked with criminal activities. His winning proposal received a perfect 15:15 score. 

He is also a partner in a new 3-year, €3.1m, 15 partner, Horizon Europe Research Innovation Action project called ATHENA ((opens in a new window)https://project-athena.eu/) which is focused on countering disinformation linked to Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference which began in November 2023.

Project areas for supervision.
Dr Spillane is interested in supervising projects focused on:

  • Misinformation, disinformation and other related forms of problematic content (e.g., hate-speech, radicalisation, incel, extremist). 
  • Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference (FIMI) 
  • Bias, credibility and news in general
  • The intersection of HCI and news, specifically relating to the design of news websites and news apps and how humans interact with them
  • Chatbots, dialogue and conversational agents and misinformation and disinformation 
  • Visual, auditory and message cues of disinformation
  • Perception of human like agents in information confused environments

Research keywords:
Misinformation; Disinformation; Fake News; Bias; Credibility; News; Information Security; Human Judgement of Information; Human Computer Interaction (HCI); Behavioural Science; Information Science.

James Steinhoff

Title: Assistant Professor
Email: (opens in a new window)james.steinhoff@ucd.ie
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/james.steinhoff/about

Highlevel profile:
Dr James Steinhoff is an Assistant Professor / Lecturer and Ad Astra Fellow in the School of Information & Communication Studies. He is author of Automation and Autonomy: Labour, Capital and Machines in the Artificial Intelligence Industry (Palgrave Macmillan 2021) and co-author of Inhuman Power: Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Capitalism (Pluto 2019). 

Background:
Before he came to UCD, Dr Steinhoff was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Institute of Communication, Culture, Information and Technology at the University of Toronto Mississauga and a Postdoctoral Scholar at the eScience Institute at the University of Washington. He holds a PhD in Media Studies from the University of Western Ontario.

Current research focus:
Dr Steinhoff’s research may be categorised as critical artificial intelligence (AI) studies. His work to date focuses broadly on the political economy of AI, data, automation and digital labour. He is especially interested in understanding how AI is produced, the dynamics of the AI industry and in better understanding the relations between capitalism and technology. Currently he is developing research projects on the political economy of synthetic data and virtual reality. 

Project areas for supervision.
Dr Steinhoff is interested in supervising projects focused on:

  • Critical AI/data studies
  • Political economy of AI 
  • Synthetic data
  • Social implications of AI
  • Sociological dimensions of data science 
  • Digital labour
  • Automation
  • Political economy of virtual reality and simulations

Research keywords:
Artificial Intelligence; Machine Learning; Political Economy; Automation; Capitalism; Labour; Data Science; Data; Synthetic Data; Virtual Reality.

Madeleine Steeds

Title: Assistant Professor
Email: (opens in a new window)madeleine.steeds@ucd.ie 
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/Madeleine.Steeds

Highlevel profile:
Dr Madeleine Steeds is an Assistant Professor in information and communication studies. Their work focuses on the intersection of HCI, cognitive psychology and social psychology. Specifically they research how technologies may support or harm human cognitive processes, how stereotypes can be perpetuated by technology, and they are co-investigator on the grant “Queer Joy as a Digital Good”.

Background:
Madeleine completed their BSc and Masters in advanced psychology at the University of Leeds in the UK. They then undertook their PhD in the department of computer science at the University of Manchester (UK) which focused on how we stereotype everyday devices, and how this may impact what we attend to and memorise from those devices. Madeleine was an associate lecturer at the University of York (UK) in Psychology in Education before moving to UCD for their postdoc. This IRC-funded project focused on the impact of gendered voice assistants on gender stereotypes in society.

Current research focus:
My current research falls into three major strands. The first investigates the impact of technology on human cognition. How can technology be used to augment human cognition and what are the long term benefits and costs of such augmentations and interactions? The second considers associations made with technology, how devices are stereotyped and the consequences of such associations for the individual and society. The final strand considers how technology can support and benefit marginalised individuals, and how computer-mediated communication can be used to support and allow self-expression.

Project areas for supervision.
Dr Steeds is interested in supervising projects focused on:

  • Cognitive offloading to technology
  • Impact of technology use on cognitive processes
  • Learning from technology
  • Stereotypes and associations with technology
  • Technology’s impact on societal stereotypes and prejudice

Research keywords:
Memory; Attention; Stereotypes; Cognition; Cyberpsychology; Gender; Educational Technology; Anthropomorphised Technology; Conversational User Interfaces.

Arjumand Younus

Title: Assistant Professor
Email: (opens in a new window)arjumand.younus@ucd.ie
UCD Profile: (opens in a new window)https://people.ucd.ie/arjumand.younus

Highlevel profile
Dr Arjumand Younus is an Assistant Professor at UCD’s School of Information & Communication Studies, teaching and researching in the area of Artificial Intelligence, Society, and Digital Policy. She is also serving in the capacity of co-director for Women in Research Ireland which is a volunteer-run registered charity working for better representation of women and under-represented groups in academia.

Background
Prior to her role as Assistant Professor in School of Information & Communication Studies at UCD, Arjumand was an Assistant Professor at UCD’s School of Sociology, teaching and researching in the area of Computational Social Science. Before these appointments, she worked as a Research Scientist in Afiniti AI, and a part-time lecturer in Technological University Dublin. Arjumand has contributed to SFI funded projects during her different post-doctoral positions at CONSUS-UCD and (opens in a new window)INSIGHT-UCD. Arjumand received a joint PhD in Computer Science from National University of Ireland Galway (Ireland) and University of Milano-Bicocca (Italy), MS degree in Computer Science from Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (South Korea), and BS in Computer Science from the University of Karachi (Pakistan). She is the recipient of Google Women Techmakers scholarship for Europe, Middle East and Africa region.

Current research focus:
Dr Younus’s research broadly falls under the theme of artificial intelligence for social good. Her work broadly covers natural language processing and machine learning. She is especially interested in understanding how AI can help towards various assessments of inequality in society, and then help make policy suggestions on top of that.

Project areas for supervision.
Dr Younus is interested in supervising projects focused on:

  • Text analytics for assessing needs of vulnerable groups
  • Exploring capabilities of large language models
  • Machine learning tools/frameworks for societal good

Research keywords:
Large Language Models; Artificial Intelligence; Natural Language Processing; Machine Learning; Social Media Analytics.

UCD School of Information and Communication Studies

Newman Building, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland.
T: +353 1 716 8360