Guide
Nicola Power, Mark Levine, Richard Philpot, Jennifer Alcock
The Psychology Of Interoperability - Study Two Summary
Guide |
2 min read
Report
Nadine Salman, Zainab Al-Attar
Autism and Extremism: The Questions that Operational Practitioners Should be Asking
Report |
4 min read
Article
Zoey Reeve
Misleading a Group to Ineffectiveness
Article |
3 min read
Special
Nicola Power, Mark Levine, Richard Philpot
The Psychology of Interoperability: A Systematic Review and Case Study from the UK Emergency Services
Special |
1 min read
Report
Anastasia Kordoni, Shengnan Liu, Miriam Koschate-Reis, Mark Levine
Detecting Hybrid Social Identities: A Computational Analysis of Influence & Resilience in Online (RWE) Communities
Report |
5 min read
Report
Zoe Marchment, Paul Gill
How robust is the evidence base for the human ability to recognise suspicious activity/hostile reconnaissance?
Report |
2 min read
Guide
Nicola Power, Jennifer Alcock, Mark Levine, Richard Philpot
The Psychology of Interoperability - Study One Summary
Guide |
1 min read
Article
Susan Steen
A Communication Perspective on Resilience
Article |
5 min read
Article
Lorraine Hope, Feni Kontogianni, Alejandra De La Fuente Vilar
How did you escape? A rapport-based framework for time-critical questioning involving cooperative interviewees
Article |
5 min read
Article
Heather Shaw, Charlotte Sibbons, Stacey Conchie, Paul Taylor
Are emerging digital behavioural biometrics able to identify us?
Article |
4 min read
Guide
Alexandra Phelan, Jessica White, Claudia Wallner, James Paterson
Introductory Guide to Understanding Misogyny and the Far-Right
Guide |
10 min read
Report
Kat Gibbs, Sophie Nightingale
Bias in Emerging Biometric Systems: A Scoping Review
Report |
2 min read
Report
Charis Rice, Martin Innes, Jenny Ratcliffe
Situational Threat And Response Signals (STARS): Public-Facing Counter-Terrorism Strategic Communication Campaigns [FULL LITERATURE REVIEW & SUMMARY BRIEFING]
Report |
3 min read
Poster
Charis Rice, Martin Innes, Jenny Ratcliffe
The STARS Framework
Poster |
1 min read
Report
Charis Rice, Martin Innes, Jenny Ratcliffe
Situational Threat And Response Signals (STARS): Public-facing Counter-Terrorism Strategic Communication Campaigns [SOCIAL MEDIA ANALYSIS]
Report |
2 min read
Article
Heidi Ellis, Emma Cardeli, Stevan Weine
Moving away from ‘Trauma’ towards ‘Trauma and...’
Article |
7 min read
Article
Stevan Weine, Mary Bunn, Emma Cardeli, Heidi Ellis
Trauma informed Care and Violent Extremism Prevention
Article |
7 min read
Article
Marika Madfors, Simon Oleszkiewicz, Matthew Jones
Proximity-Based Evidence Disclosure: Enhancing Evidence Reliability
Article |
4 min read
Article
Alexandria Bradley
Prison safety and security: Exploring the impact of Trauma-Informed Practice and Trauma-Responsive Interventions
Article |
6 min read
Article
Vivian Khedari
“I have never hurt anybody”
Article |
7 min read
Article
Lotta Carlsson
Working with victims of torture
Article |
6 min read
Thesis Summary
Abbie Marono
The role of closeness in the relationship between nonverbal mimicry and cooperation
Thesis Summary |
1 min read
Report
James Hewitt, James Lewis, Sarah Marsden
The Psychological Effects of Criminal Justice Measures: A Review of Evidence Related to Terrorist Offending
Report |
7 min read
Guide
Kat Gibbs, Sophie Nightingale
AI In Recruitment: Is It Possible to Use it Responsibly?
Guide |
5 min read
Article
Stacey Conchie
Trust in Security Contexts
Article |
4 min read
Article
Isabelle van der Vegt, Bennett Kleinberg, Paul Gill
Linguistic Threat Assessment: Challenges and Opportunities
Article |
5 min read
Article
Shanon Shah
How (Not) To Make A Violent Copycat: Lessons From ‘Dark Fandoms’
Article |
4 min read
Article
Ben Marshall
Putting the Behaviour into Behavioural Analytics
Article |
4 min read
Report
Oli Buckley
Collecting And Leveraging Identity Cues With Keystroke Analysis (CLICKA)
Report |
2 min read
Article
Steven Watson
Risk, benefits, and the affect heuristic in security behaviours
Article |
6 min read
Article
Emily Collins, Phillip Morgan, Dylan Jones
If This Then…What? Security And Privacy In Trigger-Action Systems
Article |
3 min read
Article
Steven Watson
Risk, benefits, and the affect heuristic in security behaviours
Article |
6 min read
Report
Fiona Gabbert, Gordon Wright
Quantifying The Effectiveness Of A Rapport-Building Training Programme
Report |
2 min read
Report
Ewout Meijer, Katherine Hoogesteyn, Brianna Verigin, Danielle Finnick
Rapport Building: Online Vs In-Person Interviews
Report |
3 min read
Article
Emma Williams, Emma Slade
What Influences Consumer Adoption and Secure Use of Smart Home Technology?
Article |
3 min read
Article
Oli Buckley
CLICKA
Article |
4 min read
Article
Kristoffer Geyer
Understanding digital traces
Article |
4 min read
Article
Duncan Hodges
A to Z of Data
Article |
3 min read
Article
Paul Taylor
From data to datum: What should I do in this case?
Article |
4 min read
Article
Joanne Hinds
Behaviour Prediction: The Challenges and Opportunities of Big Data
Article |
4 min read
Article
Ryan Boyd, Paul Kapoor
Psychological Profiling and Event Forecasting Using Computational Language Analysis
Article |
5 min read
Article
Debi Ashenden
Data and the Social and Behavioural Sciences
Article |
4 min read
Article
Jan-Willem Bullée
Social Engineering: From Thoughts to Awareness
Article |
3 min read
Article
Heather Shaw, David Ellis
Apple or Android? What your choice of operating system says about you
Article |
2 min read
Article
David Ellis, Lukasz Piwek
The future of wearable technology
Article |
2 min read
Article
Paul Taylor
The promise of social science
Article |
3 min read
Article
Sheryl (Prentice) Menadue
How Technology Could Help Predict Terrorist Attacks
Article |
3 min read
Frame, Fame and Fear Traps: The Dialectic of Counter-Terrorism Strategic Communication

From the journal abstract:

This paper explores the challenges and complexities navigated and negotiated in public facing counter-terrorism strategic communication campaigns. Informed by frame analysis of campaign assets, practitioner interviews and public focus groups, the discussion pivots around three high-profile UK public messaging campaigns. Building from Goffman’s theory of “normal appearances” and the established concept of a “frame trap”, the analysis identifies two further shaping tensions. A “fear trap” occurs when counter-terrorism messages seek to “outbid” other risks in order to capture public attention, thereby unintentionally creating the negative emotional reactions sought through acts of terrorism, or overly-reassuring messages that induce public disengagement. In contrast, a “fame trap” results from creating “too much” public awareness of terrorism, by using commercial marketing logics. In practice, frame, fame and fear traps overlap and interact across different contexts, and the analysis uses the concept of a dialectic of anomaly and normality to highlight implications for future scholarship and practice.


Rice, C., Innes, M., & Ratcliffe, J. (2024). “Frame, Fame and Fear Traps: The Dialectic of Counter-Terrorism Strategic Communication.” Studies in Conflict & Terrorism, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1080/1057610X.2024.2360669

Authors: Charis Rice, Martin Innes, Jenny Ratcliffe
https://doi.org/10.1080/1057610X.2024.2360669
The psychology of interoperability: A systematic review of joint working between the UK emergency services

Emergency responding requires effective interoperability, whereby different emergency teams combine efforts and expertise to contain and reduce the impact of an emergency. Within the United Kingdom, the capacity for the Emergency Services to be interoperable has been criticized by public enquiries. This systematic review had three goals to: (i) define interoperability; (ii) identify the structural principles that underpin interoperability and (iii) identify the psychological principles that outline how interoperability can be achieved. A PRISMA framework was used to identify 137 articles, including 94 articles from the systematic review, 15 articles from grey literature and 28 articles based on author expertise. We identified two structural principles of interoperability: (i) being able to communicate and exchange information effectively; and (ii) having a decentralized and flexible team network. We identified three psychological principles that informed how interoperability might be embedded in the team: (i) establishing trust between team members; (ii) developing secure team identities and (iii) building cohesive goals. We defined interoperability as a shared system of technology and teamwork built upon trust, identification, goals, communication and flexibility. Regular psychologically immersive training that targets these psychological principles will help to embed interoperability into the social fabric of multi-team systems operating in high-reliability organizations.

(From the journal abstract)


Power, N., Alcock, J., Philpot, R., & Levine, M. (2023). The psychology of interoperability: A systematic review of joint working between the UK emergency services. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 00, 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1111/joop.12469

Authors: Nicola Power, Jennifer Alcock, Ricky Green, Mark Levine
https://bpspsychub.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/joop.12469
The problem with the internet: An affordance-based approach for psychological research on networked technologies

The internet is often viewed as the source of a myriad of benefits and harms. However, there are problems with using this notion of “the internet” and other high-level concepts to explain the influence of communicating via everyday networked technologies on people and society. Here, we argue that research on social influence in computer-mediated communication (CMC) requires increased precision around how and why specific features of networked technologies interact with and impact psychological processes and outcomes. By reviewing research on the affordances of networked technologies, we demonstrate how the relationship between features of “the internet” and “online behaviour” can be determined by both the affordances of the environment and the psychology of the user and community. To achieve advances in this field, we argue that psychological science must provide nuanced and precise conceptualisations, operationalisations, and measurements of “internet use” and “online behaviour”. We provide a template for how future research can become more systematic by examining how and why variables associated with the individual user, networked technologies, and the online community interact and intersect. If adopted, psychological science will be able to make more meaningful predictions about online and offline outcomes associated with communicating via networked technologies.


Olivia Brown, Laura G.E. Smith, Brittany I. Davidson, David A. Ellis,(2022) The problem with the internet: An affordance-based approach for psychological research on networked technologies, Acta Psychologica, Volume 228. 

Authors: Olivia Brown, Brittany Davidson, Laura G. E. Smith, David Ellis
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actpsy.2022.103650
Fuzzy constructs in technology usage scales

The mass adoption of digital technologies raises questions about how they impact people and society. Associations between technology use and negative correlates (e.g., depression and anxiety) remain common. However, pre-registered studies have failed to replicate these findings. Regardless of direction, many designs rely on psychometric scales that claim to define and quantify a construct associated with technology engagement. These often suggest clinical manifestations present as disorders or addictions. Given their importance for research integrity, we consider what these scales might be measuring. Across three studies, we observe that many psychometric scales align with a single, identical construct despite claims they capture something unique. We conclude that many technology measures appear to measure a similar, poorly defined construct that sometimes overlaps with pre-existing measures of well-being. Social scientists should critically consider how they proceed methodologically and conceptually when developing psychometric scales in this domain to ensure research findings sit on solid foundations.


Brittany I. Davidson, Heather Shaw, David A. Ellis, (2022) Fuzzy constructs in technology usage scales, Computers in Human Behavior, Volume 133,

Authors: Brittany Davidson, Heather Shaw, David Ellis
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2022.107206
‘Language of lies’: Urgent issues and prospects in verbal lie detection research

Since its introduction into the field of deception detection, the verbal channel has become a rapidly growing area of research. The basic assumption is that liars differ from truth tellers in their verbal behaviour, making it possible to classify them by inspecting their verbal accounts. However, as noted in conferences and in private communication between researchers, the field of verbal lie detection faces several challenges that merit focused attention. The first author therefore proposed a workshop with the mission of promoting solutions for urgent issues in the field. Nine researchers and three practitioners with experience in credibility assessments gathered for 3 days of discussion at Bar-Ilan University (Israel) in the first international verbal lie detection workshop. The primary session of the workshop took place the morning of the first day. In this session, each of the participants had up to 10 min to deliver a brief message, using just one slide. Researchers were asked to answer the question: ‘In your view, what is the most urgent, unsolved question/issue in verbal lie detection?’ Similarly, practitioners were asked: ‘As a practitioner, what question/issue do you wish verbal lie detection research would address?’ The issues raised served as the basis for the discussions that were held throughout the workshop. The current paper first presents the urgent, unsolved issues raised by the workshop group members in the main session, followed by a message to researchers in the field, designed to deliver the insights, decisions, and conclusions resulting from the discussions.


Nahari, G., Ashkenazi, T., Fisher, R. P., Granhag, P. A., Hershkovitz, I., Masip, J., Meijer, E., Nisin, Z., Sarid, N., Taylor, P. J., Verschuere, B., & Vrij, A. (2019). Language of Lies: Urgent issues and prospects in verbal lie detection research. Legal and Criminological Psychology, 24, 1-23.

Authors: Galit Nahrari, Tzachi Ashkenazi, Ronald P. Fisher, Pär-Anders Granhag, Irit Hershkowitz, Jaume Masip, Ewout Meijer, Zvi Nisin, Paul Taylor, Bruno Verschuere, Aldert Vrij
https://doi.org/10.1111/lcrp.12148
The Relationship between Complications, Common Knowledge Details and Self-handicapping Strategies and Veracity: A Meta-analysis

Practitioners frequently inform us that variable ‘total details’ is not suitable for lie detection purposes in real life interviews. Practitioners cannot count the number of details in real time and the threshold of details required to classify someone as a truth teller or a lie teller is unknown. The authors started to address these issues by examining three new verbal veracity cues: complications, common knowledge details, and self-handicapping strategies. We present a meta-analysis regarding these three variables and compared the results with ‘total details’. Truth tellers reported more details (d = 0.28 to d = 0.45) and more complications (d = 0.51 to d = 0.62) and fewer common knowledge details (d = -0.40 to d = -0.46) and self-handicapping strategies (d = -0.37 to d = -0.50) than lie tellers. Complications was the best diagnostic veracity cue. The findings were similar for the initial free recall and the second recall in which only new information was examined. Four moderators (scenario, motivation, modality, and interview technique) did not affect the results. As a conclusion, complications in particular appear to be a good veracity indicator but more research is required. We included suggestions for such research.


Vrij, A., Palena, N., Leal, S., & Caso, L. (2021). The relationship between complications, common knowledge details and self-handicapping strategies and veracity: A meta-analysis. European Journal of Psychology Applied to Legal Context, 13 (2), 55-77

Authors: Aldert Vrij, Sharon Leal, Nicola Palena, Letizia Caso
https://doi.org/10.5093/ejpalc2021a7
Unraveling the Misconception About Deception and Nervous Behavior

In this article, we attempt to unravel the misconception about deception and nervous behavior. First we will cite research demonstrating that observers believe lie tellers display more nervous behaviors than truth tellers; that observers pay attention to nervous behaviors when they attempt to detect deception; and that lie tellers actually feel more nervous than truth tellers. This is all in alignment with a lie detection approach based on spotting nervous behaviors. We then will argue that the next, vital, step is missing: Research has found that lie tellers generally do not display more than truth tellers the nervous behaviors laypersons and professionals appear to focus on. If observers pay attention to nervous behaviors but lie tellers do not come across as being nervous, lie detection performance is expected to be poor. Research has supported this claim. We finally discuss ideas for research into lie detection based on non-verbal behaviors.


Vrij, A., & Fisher, R. P. (2020). Unravelling the misconception about deception and nervous behaviour. Frontiers in Psychology, section Personality and Social Psychology, 11, 1377

Authors: Aldert Vrij, Ronald P. Fisher
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01377
Extending the verifiability approach framework: The effect of initial questioning

The verifiability approach (VA) is a lie-detection tool that examines reported checkable details. Across two studies, we attempt to exploit liar's preferred strategy of repeating information by examining the effect of questioning adult interviewees before the VA. In Study 1, truth tellers (n = 34) and liars (n = 33) were randomly assigned to either an initial open or closed questioning condition. After initial questioning, participants were interviewed using the VA. In Study 2, truth tellers (n = 48) and liars (n = 48) were interviewed twice, with half of each veracity group randomly assigned to either the Information Protocol (an instruction describing the importance of reporting verifiable details) or control condition. Only truth tellers revised their initial statement to include verifiable detail. This pattern was most pronounced when initial questioning was open (Study 1) and when the information protocol was employed (Study 2). Thus, liar's preferred strategy of maintaining consistency between statements appears exploitable using the VA.


Harvey, A., Vrij, A., Leal, S., Sariktas, G., & Nahari, G. (2017). Extending the Verifiability Approach framework: Examining the effect of preliminary questioning on the VA procedure. Submitted to Applied Cognitive Psychology, 32, 787-804.

Authors: Aldert Vrij, Sharon Leal, Adam Charles Harvey, George Sarikas, Louise Jupe, Galit Nahrari
https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.3465
Psychological Perspectives on Interrogation

Proponents of “enhanced interrogation techniques” in the United States have claimed that such methods are necessary for obtaining information from uncooperative terrorism subjects. In the present article, we offer an informed, academic perspective on such claims. Psychological theory and research shows that harsh interrogation methods are ineffective. First, they are likely to increase resistance by the subject rather than facilitate cooperation. Second, the threatening and adversarial nature of harsh interrogation is often inimical to the goal of facilitating the retrieval of information from memory and therefore reduces the likelihood that a subject will provide reports that are extensive, detailed, and accurate. Third, harsh interrogation methods make lie detection difficult. Analyzing speech content and eliciting verifiable details are the most reliable cues to assessing credibility; however, to elicit such cues subjects must be encouraged to provide extensive narratives, something that does not occur in harsh interrogations. Evidence is accumulating for the effectiveness of rapport-based information-gathering approaches as an alternative to harsh interrogations. Such approaches promote cooperation, enhance recall of relevant and reliable information, and facilitate assessments of credibility. Given the available evidence that torture is ineffective, why might some laypersons, policymakers, and interrogation personnel support the use of torture? We conclude our review by offering a psychological perspective on this important question.


Vrij, A., Meissner, C. A, Fisher, R. P., Kassin, S. M., Morgan III, A., & Kleinman, S. (2017).  Psychological perspectives on interrogation.  Perspectives on Psychological Science, 12, 927-955.

Authors: Aldert Vrij, Christian Meissner, Ronald P. Fisher, Saul M Kassin, Charles A Morgan III, Steven M Kleinman
https://doi.org/10.1177%2F1745691617706515
A cognitive approach to lie detection: A metaanalysis

Introduction. This article provides a meta-analysis of a new, cognitive approach to (non-)verbal lie detection. This cognitive lie detection approach consists of three techniques: (1) imposing cognitive load, (2) encouraging interviewees to say more, and (3) asking unexpected questions.

Method. A meta-analysis was carried out on studies using the cognitive approach, 14 of which directly compared the cognitive approach to a standard approach.

Results. The cognitive lie detection approach produced superior accuracy results in truth detection (67%), lie detection (67%), and total detection (truth and lie detection combined, 71%) compared to a traditional standard approach (truth detection: 57%; lie detection: 47%; total detection: 56%).

Conclusions. Practitioners may find it useful to use a cognitive lie detection approach in their daily practice.


Vrij, A., Fisher, R., Blank, H. (2017). A cognitive approach to lie detection: A meta-analysis. Legal and Criminological Psychology, 22, 1-21.

Authors: Aldert Vrij, Ronald P. Fisher, Hartmund Blank
https://doi.org/10.1111/lcrp.12088
Language Style Matching : A Comprehensive List of Articles and Tools

Language style matching (LSM) is a technique in behavioural analytics which assess the stylistic similarities in language use across groups and individuals. The procedure targets the similarity of functions words, analysing the way people use language rather than the content. Function words consist of pronouns, articles, conjunctions, prepositions, auxiliary verbs e.t.c. which have a syntactical role in language. To assess the similarity of language use between interlocutors, the percentage of function words used can be compared within and across conversations using a metric designed to calculate the matching of specific word categories and overall LSM (Ireland et al., 2011) . It is also possible to assess language style matching to a group’s aggregate style. High language style matching is an indicator of interpersonal and group mimicry and has been shown to influence psychological factors and behavioural outcomes. These are listed in this preprint and categorised by topic. The list aims to be a complete summary of the existing literature to date exploring LSM. Therefore, please email the author if there are any projects and tools not listed below.


Shaw, H., Taylor, P., Conchie, S., & David Alexander Ellis, D. (2019, Mar 6). Language Style Matching: A Comprehensive List of Articles and Tools

Authors: Heather Shaw, Paul Taylor, Stacey Conchie, David Ellis
https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/yz4br
Reading Lies: Nonverbal Communication and Deception

The relationship between nonverbal communication and deception continues to attract much interest, but there are many misconceptions about it. In this review, we present a scientific view on this relationship. We describe theories explaining why liars would behave differently from truth tellers, followed by research on how liars actually behave and individuals’ ability to detect lies. We show that the nonverbal cues to deceit discovered to date are faint and unreliable and that people are mediocre lie catchers when they pay attention to behavior. We also discuss why individuals hold misbeliefs about the relationship between nonverbal behavior and deception—beliefs that appear very hard to debunk. We further discuss the ways in which researchers could improve the state of affairs by examining nonverbal behaviors in different ways and in different settings than they currently do.

(From the journal abstract)


Vrij, A., Hartwig, M., & Granhag, P. A. (2018). Reading lies: Nonverbal communication and deception. Annual Review of Psychology, 70, 297-315. Doi: annurev-psych-010418-103135

Authors: Aldert Vrij, Pär-Anders Granhag
10.1146/annurev-psych-010418-103135
CLICKA: Collecting and leveraging identity cues with keystroke dynamics

The way in which IT systems are usually secured is through the use of username and password pairs. However, these credentials are all too easily lost, stolen or compromised. The use of behavioural biometrics can be used to supplement these credentials to provide a greater level of assurance in the identity of an authenticated user. However, user behaviours can also be used to ascertain other identifiable information about an individual. In this paper we build upon the notion of keystroke dynamics (the analysis of typing behaviours) to infer an anonymous user’s name and predict their native language. This work found that there is a discernible difference in the ranking of bigrams (based on their timing) contained within the name of a user and those that are not. As a result we propose that individuals will reliably type information they are familiar with in a discernibly different way. In our study we found that it should be possible to identify approximately a third of the bigrams forming an anonymous users name purely from how (not what) they type.

Authors: Oli Buckley, Duncan Hodges
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cose.2022.102780
An Inventory of Problems–29 (IOP–29) study investigating feigned schizophrenia and random responding in a British community sample

Compared to other Western countries, malingering research is still relatively scarce in the United Kingdom, partly because only a few brief and easy-to-use symptom validity tests (SVTs) have been validated for use with British test-takers. This online study examined the validity of the Inventory of Problems–29 (IOP–29) in detecting feigned schizophrenia and random responding in 151 British volunteers. Each participant took three IOP–29 test administrations: (a) responding honestly; (b) pretending to suffer from schizophrenia; and (c) responding at random. Additionally, they also responded to a schizotypy measure (O-LIFE) under standard instruction. The IOP–29’s feigning scale (FDS) showed excellent validity in discriminating honest responding from feigned schizophrenia (AUC = .99), and its classification accuracy was not significantly affected by the presence of schizotypal traits. Additionally, a recently introduced IOP–29 scale aimed at detecting random responding (RRS) demonstrated very promising results.

(From the journal abstract)


Winters, C. L., Giromini, L., Crawford, T. J., Ales, F., Viglione, D. J., & Warmelink, L. (2020). An Inventory of Problems–29 (IOP–29) study investigating feigned schizophrenia and random responding in a British community sample. Psychiatry, Psychology and Law, 1–20.

https://doi.org/10.1080/13218719.2020.1767720
Behavioral consistency in the digital age

Efforts to infer personality from digital footprints have focused on behavioral stability at the trait level without considering situational dependency. We repeat Shoda, Mischel, and Wright’s (1994) classic study of intraindividual consistency with data on 28,692 days of smartphone usage by 780 people. Using per app measures of ‘pickup’ frequency and usage duration, we found that profiles of daily smartphone usage were significantly more consistent when taken from the same user than from different users (d > 1.46). Random forest models trained on 6 days of behavior identified each of the 780 users in test data with 35.8% / 38.5% (pickup / duration) accuracy. This increased to 73.5% / 75.3% when success was taken as the user appearing in the top 10 predictions (i.e., top 1%). Thus, situation-dependent stability in behavior is present in our digital lives and its uniqueness provides both opportunities and risks to privacy.

(From the journal abstract)


Shaw, H., Taylor, P., Ellis, D. A., & Conchie, S. (2021). Behavioral consistency in the digital age [Preprint]. PsyArXiv.

Authors: Heather Shaw, Paul Taylor, David Ellis, Stacey Conchie
https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/r5wtn
Quantifying smartphone “use”: Choice of measurement impacts relationships between “usage” and health

Problematic smartphone scales and duration estimates of use dominate research that considers the impact of smartphones on people and society. However, issues with conceptualization and subsequent measurement can obscure genuine associations between technology use and health. Here, we consider whether different ways of measuring “smartphone use,” notably through problematic smartphone use (PSU) scales, subjective estimates, or objective logs, lead to contrasting associations between mental and physical health. Across two samples including iPhone (n = 199) and Android (n = 46) users, we observed that measuring smartphone interactions with PSU scales produced larger associations between mental health when compared with subjective estimates or objective logs. Notably, the size of the relationship was fourfold in Study 1, and almost three times as large in Study 2, when relying on a PSU scale that measured smartphone “addiction” instead of objective use. Further, in regression models, only smartphone “addiction” scores predicted mental health outcomes, whereas objective logs or estimates were not significant predictors. We conclude that addressing people’s appraisals including worries about their technology usage is likely to have greater mental health benefits than reducing their overall smartphone use. Reducing general smartphone use should therefore not be a priority for public health interventions at this time.

(From the journal abstract)


Shaw, H., Ellis, D. A., Geyer, K., Davidson, B. I., Ziegler, F. V., & Smith, A. (2020). Quantifying smartphone “use”: Choice of measurement impacts relationships between “usage” and health. Technology, Mind, and Behavior, 1(2).

https://doi.org/10.1037/tmb0000022
The Rise of Consumer Health Wearables: Promises and Barriers

Will consumer wearable technology ever be adopted or accepted by the medical community? Patients and practitioners regularly use digital technology (e.g., thermometers and glucose monitors) to identify and discuss symptoms. In addition, a third of general practitioners in the United Kingdom report that patients arrive with suggestions for treatment based on online search results. However, consumer health wearables are predicted to become the next “Dr Google.” One in six (15%) consumers in the United States currently uses wearable technology, including smartwatches or fitness bands. While 19 million fitness devices are likely to be sold this year, that number is predicted to grow to 110 million in 2018. As the line between consumer health wearables and medical devices begins to blur, it is now possible for a single wearable device to monitor a range of medical risk factors. Potentially, these devices could give patients direct access to personal analytics that can contribute to their health, facilitate preventive care, and aid in the management of ongoing illness. However, how this new wearable technology might best serve medicine remains unclear.

(From the journal abstract)


Piwek, L., Ellis, D. A., Andrews, S., & Joinson, A. (2016). The Rise of Consumer Health Wearables: Promises and Barriers. PLOS Medicine, 13(2), e1001953.

Authors: Lukasz Piwek, David Ellis, Adam Joinson
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1001953
Understanding the Psychological Process of Avoidance-Based Self-Regulation on Facebook

In relation to social network sites, prior research has evidenced behaviors (e.g., censoring) enacted by individuals used to avoid projecting an undesired image to their online audiences. However, no work directly examines the psychological process underpinning such behavior. Drawing upon the theory of self-focused attention and related literature, a model is proposed to fill this research gap. Two studies examine the process whereby public self-awareness (stimulated by engaging with Facebook) leads to a self-comparison with audience expectations and, if discrepant, an increase in social anxiety, which results in the intention to perform avoidance-based self-regulation. By finding support for this process, this research contributes an extended understanding of the psychological factors leading to avoidance-based regulation when online selves are subject to surveillance.

(From the journal abstract)


Marder, B., Houghton, D., Joinson, A., Shankar, A., & Bull, E. (2016). Understanding the Psychological Process of Avoidance-Based Self-Regulation on Facebook. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 19(5), 321–327.

https://doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2015.0564
An evidence synthesis of strategies, enablers and barriers for keeping secrets online regarding the procurement and supply of illicit drugs

This systematic review attempts to understand how people keep secrets online, and in particular how people use the internet when engaging in covert behaviours and activities regarding the procurement and supply of illicit drugs. With the Internet and social media being part of everyday life for most people in western and non-western countries, there are ever-growing opportunities for individuals to engage in covert behaviours and activities online that may be considered illegal or unethical. A search strategy using Medical Subject Headings terms and relevant key words was developed. A comprehensive literature search of published and unpublished studies in electronic databases was conducted. Additional studies were identified from reference lists of previous studies and (systematic) reviews that had similar objectives as this search, and were included if they fulfilled our inclusion criteria. Two researchers independently screened abstracts and full-texts for study eligibility and evaluated the quality of included studies. Disagreements were resolved by a consensus procedure. The systematic review includes 33 qualitative studies and one cross-sectional study, published between 2006 and 2018. Five covert behaviours were identified: the use of communication channels; anonymity; visibility reduction; limited posts in public; following forum rules and recommendations. The same technologies that provide individuals with easy access to information, such as social networking sites and forums, digital devices, digital tools and services, also increase the prevalence of inaccurate information, loss of privacy, identity theft and disinhibited communication. This review takes a rigorous interdisciplinary approach to synthesising knowledge on the strategies adopted by people in keeping secrets online. Whilst the focus is on the procurement and supply of illicit drugs, this knowledge is transferrable to a range of contexts where people keep secrets online. It has particular significance for those who design online/social media applications, and for law enforcement and security agencies.

(From the journal abstract)


Grimani, A., Gavine, A., & Moncur, W. (2020a). An evidence synthesis of strategies, enablers and barriers for keeping secrets online regarding the procurement and supply of illicit drugs. International Journal of Drug Policy, 75, 102621.

Authors: Aikaterini Grimani, Anna Gavine, Wendy Moncur
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugpo.2019.102621
A simple location-tracking app for psychological research

Location data gathered from a variety of sources are particularly valuable when it comes to understanding individuals and groups. However, much of this work has relied on participants’ active engagement in regularly reporting their location. More recently, smartphones have been used to assist with this process, but although commercial smartphone applications are available, these are often expensive and are not designed with researchers in mind. To overcome these and other related issues, we have developed a freely available Android application that logs location accurately, stores the data securely, and ensures that participants can provide consent or withdraw from a study at any time. Further recommendations and R code are provided in order to assist with subsequent data analysis.

(From the journal abstract)


Geyer, K., Ellis, D. A., & Piwek, L. (2019). A simple location-tracking app for psychological research. Behavior Research Methods, 51(6), 2840–2846.

Authors: Kristoffer Geyer, David Ellis, Lukasz Piwek
https://doi.org/10.3758/s13428-018-1164-y
Immersive simulations with extreme teams

Extreme teams (ETs) work in challenging, high pressured contexts, where poor performance can have severe consequences. These teams must coordinate their skill sets, align their goals, and develop shared awareness, all under stressful conditions. How best to research these teams poses unique challenges as researchers seek to provide applied recommendations while conducting rigorous research to test how teamwork models work in practice. In this article, we identify immersive simulations as one solution to this, outlining their advantages over existing methodologies and suggesting how researchers can best make use of recent advances in technology and analytical techniques when designing simulation studies. We conclude that immersive simulations are key to ensuring ecological validity and empirically reliable research with ETs.

(From the journal abstract)


Brown, O., Power, N., & Conchie, S. M. (2020). Immersive simulations with extreme teams. Organizational Psychology Review, 10(3–4), 115–135.

Authors: Olivia Brown, Nicola Power, Stacey Conchie
https://doi.org/10.1177/2041386620926037
Unraveling the Misconception About Deception and Nervous Behavior

In this article, we attempt to unravel the misconception about deception and nervous behavior. First we will cite research demonstrating that observers believe lie tellers display more nervous behaviors than truth tellers; that observers pay attention to nervous behaviors when they attempt to detect deception; and that lie tellers actually feel more nervous than truth tellers. This is all in alignment with a lie detection approach based on spotting nervous behaviors. We then will argue that the next, vital, step is missing: Research has found that lie tellers generally do not display more than truth tellers the nervous behaviors laypersons and professionals appear to focus on. If observers pay attention to nervous behaviors but lie tellers do not come across as being nervous, lie detection performance is expected to be poor. Research has supported this claim. We finally discuss ideas for research into lie detection based on non-verbal behaviors.

(From the journal abstract)


Vrij, A., & Fisher, R. P. (2020). Unraveling the Misconception About Deception and Nervous Behavior. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 1377.

Authors: Aldert Vrij, Ronald P. Fisher
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01377
What demographic attributes do our digital footprints reveal? A systematic review

To what extent does our online activity reveal who we are? Recent research has demonstrated that the digital traces left by individuals as they browse and interact with others online may reveal who they are and what their interests may be. In the present paper we report a systematic review that synthesises current evidence on predicting demographic attributes from online digital traces. Studies were included if they met the following criteria: (i) they reported findings where at least one demographic attribute was predicted/inferred from at least one form of digital footprint, (ii) the method of prediction was automated, and (iii) the traces were either visible (e.g. tweets) or non-visible (e.g. clickstreams). We identified 327 studies published up until October 2018. Across these articles, 14 demographic attributes were successfully inferred from digital traces; the most studied included gender, age, location, and political orientation. For each of the demographic attributes identified, we provide a database containing the platforms and digital traces examined, sample sizes, accuracy measures and the classification methods applied. Finally, we discuss the main research trends/findings, methodological approaches and recommend directions for future research.

(From the journal abstract)


Hinds, J., & Joinson, A. N. (2018). What demographic attributes do our digital footprints reveal? A systematic review. PLOS ONE, 13(11), e0207112.

Authors: Joanne Hinds, Adam Joinson
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0207112
Do smartphone usage scales predict behavior?

Understanding how people use technology remains important, particularly when measuring the impact this might have on individuals and society. However, despite a growing body of resources that can quantify smartphone use, research within psychology and social science overwhelmingly relies on self-reported assessments. These have yet to convincingly demonstrate an ability to predict objective behavior. Here, and for the first time, we compare a variety of smartphone use and ‘addiction’ scales with objective behaviors derived from Apple's Screen Time application. While correlations between psychometric scales and objective behavior are generally poor, single estimates and measures that attempt to frame technology use as habitual rather than ‘addictive’ correlate more favorably with subsequent behavior. We conclude that existing self-report instruments are unlikely to be sensitive enough to accurately predict basic technology use related behaviors. As a result, conclusions regarding the psychological impact of technology are unreliable when relying solely on these measures to quantify typical usage.

(From the journal abstract)


Ellis, D. A., Davidson, B. I., Shaw, H., & Geyer, K. (2019). Do smartphone usage scales predict behavior? International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 130, 86–92.

Authors: David Ellis, Brittany Davidson, Heather Shaw, Kristoffer Geyer
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhcs.2019.05.004
How is Extraversion related to Social Media Use? A Literature Review

With nearly 3.5 billion people now using some form of social media, understanding its relationship with personality has become a crucial focus of psychological research.

As such, research linking personality traits to social media behaviour has proliferated in recent years, resulting in a disparate set of literature that is rarely synthesised. To address this, we performed a systematic search that identified 182 studies relating extraversion to social media behaviour.

Our findings highlight that extraversion and social media are studied across six areas: 1) content creation, 2) content reaction, 3) user profile characteristics, 4) patterns of use, 5) perceptions of social media, and 6) aggression, trolling, and excessive use.

We compare these findings to offline behaviour and identify parallels such as extraverts' desire for social attention and their tendency to display positivity. Extraverts are also likely to use social media, spend more time using one or more social media platforms, and regularly create content.

We discuss how this evidence will support the future development and design of social media platforms, and its application across a variety of disciplines such as marketing and human-computer interaction.

(From the journal abstract)


Thomas Bowden-Green, Joanne Hinds & Adam Joinson, 2020. How is extraversion related to social media use? A literature review. Personality and Individual Differences. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2020.110040

Human and Computer Personality Prediction From Digital Footprints

Is it possible to judge someone accurately from his or her online activity? The Internet provides vast opportunities for individuals to present themselves in different ways, from simple self-enhancement to malicious identity fraud. We often rely on our Internet-based judgments of others to make decisions, such as whom to socialize with, date, or employ. Recently, personality-perception researchers have turned to studying social media and digital devices in order to ask whether a person’s digital traces can reveal aspects of his or her identity. Simultaneously, advances in “big data” analytics have demonstrated that computer algorithms can predict individuals’ traits from their digital traces. In this article, we address three questions: What do we currently know about human- and computer-based personality assessments? How accurate are these assessments? Where are these fields heading? We discuss trends in the current findings, provide an overview of methodological approaches, and recommend directions for future research.

(From the journal abstract)


Joanne Hinds and Adam Joinson. 2019. ‘Human and Computer Personality Prediction From Digital Footprints’. Current Directions in Psychological Science, https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721419827849.

What Demographic Attributes Do Our Digital Footprints Reveal?

To what extent does our online activity reveal who we are? Recent research has demonstrated that the digital traces left by individuals as they browse and interact with others online may reveal who they are and what their interests may be. In the present paper we report a systematic review that synthesises current evidence on predicting demographic attributes from online digital traces. Studies were included if they met the following criteria: (i) they reported findings where at least one demographic attribute was predicted/inferred from at least one form of digital footprint, (ii) the method of prediction was automated, and (iii) the traces were either visible (e.g. tweets) or non-visible (e.g. clickstreams). We identified 327 studies published up until October 2018. Across these articles, 14 demographic attributes were successfully inferred from digital traces; the most studied included gender, age, location, and political orientation. For each of the demographic attributes identified, we provide a database containing the platforms and digital traces examined, sample sizes, accuracy measures and the classification methods applied. Finally, we discuss the main research trends/findings, methodological approaches and recommend directions for future research.

(From the journal abstract)


Joanne Hinds and Adam N. Joinson. 2018. ‘What Demographic Attributes Do Our Digital Footprints Reveal? A Systematic Review’. PLOS ONE, 13 (11): e0207112. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0207112.

Predicting Collective Action from Micro-Blog Data

Global and national events in recent years have shown that social media, and particularly micro-blogging services such as Twitter, can be a force for good (e.g., Arab Spring) and harm (e.g., London riots). In both of these examples, social media played a key role in group formation and organisation, and in the coordination of the group’s subsequent collective actions (i.e., the move from rhetoric to action).

Surprisingly, despite its clear importance, little is understood about the factors that lead to this kind of group development and the transition to collective action. This paper focuses on an approach to the analysis of data from social media to detect weak signals, i.e., indicators that initially appear at the fringes, but are, in fact, early indicators of such large-scale real-world phenomena.

Our approach is in contrast to existing research which focuses on analysing major themes, i.e., the strong signals, prevalent in a social network at a particular point in time. Analysis of weak signals can provide interesting possibilities for forecasting, with online user-generated content being used to identify and anticipate possible offline future events. We demonstrate our approach through analysis of tweets collected during the London riots in 2011 and use of our weak signals to predict tipping points in that context.

(From the journal abstract)


Charitonidis, Christos, Awais Rashid, and Paul J. Taylor. 2017. ‘Predicting Collective Action from Micro-Blog Data’. In Prediction and Inference from Social Networks and Social Media, 141–70. Lecture Notes in Social Networks. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-51049-1_7.

Can Programming Frameworks Bring Smartphones into the Mainstream of Psychological Science?

Smartphones continue to provide huge potential for psychological science and the advent of novel research frameworks brings new opportunities for researchers who have previously struggled to develop smartphone applications.

However, despite this renewed promise, smartphones have failed to become a standard item within psychological research. Here we consider the key issues that continue to limit smartphone adoption within psychological science and how these barriers might be diminishing in light of ResearchKit and other recent methodological developments.

We conclude that while these programming frameworks are certainly a step in the right direction it remains challenging to create usable research-orientated applications with current frameworks.

Smartphones may only become an asset for psychology and social science as a whole when development software that is both easy to use and secure becomes freely available.

(From the journal abstract)


Piwek, Lukasz, David A. Ellis, and Sally Andrews. 2016. ‘Can Programming Frameworks Bring Smartphones into the Mainstream of Psychological Science?’ Frontiers in Psychology 7. https://doi. org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01252.

Mimicry in Online Conversations: An Exploratory Study of Linguistic Analysis Techniques

A number of computational techniques have been proposed that aim to detect mimicry in online conversations. In this paper, we investigate how well these reflect the prevailing cognitive science model, i.e. the Interactive Alignment Model. We evaluate Local Linguistic Alignment, word vectors, and Language Style Matching and show that these measures tend to show the features we expect to see in the IAM, but significantly fall short of the work of human classifiers on the same data set. This reflects the need for substantial additional research on computational techniques to detect mimicry in online conversations. We suggest further work needed to measure these techniques and others more accurately.

(From the journal abstract)


Carrick, Tom, Awais Rashid, and Paul. J. Taylor. 2016. ‘Mimicry in Online Conversations: An Exploratory Study of Linguistic Analysis Techniques’. In 2016 IEEE/ACM International Conference on Advances in Social Networks Analysis and Mining (ASONAM), 732–36. http://eprints.lancs.ac.uk/80520/1/asonam_mimicry.pdf

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