Location

MIT Media Lab, E14-633

Description

In this interactive workshop, Dr. Brian Cugelman will discuss motivation from an evolutionary-psychology and neural chemical point of view, and discuss how ancient motivators drive online behavior. He will discuss how these principles can be used to design technologies that trigger more positive feelings, while aiming to reduce the risk of accidentally triggering negative emotions.

This session will begin with a formal lecture, covering a few key theories and research findings. Then to reinforce these principles, we will ask participants to complete a quick psychometric questionnaire, and then join breakout groups with persons who are psychologically similar, in respect to their decision making styles, social orientations, and other factors. Within the breakout groups, you will discuss your reactions to technologies that play on different emotional triggers. The talk will wrap up with a quick discussion on how to use these frameworks for research.

Biography

Since 1997, Brian Cugelman has built an extensive career in social mobilization, digital engagement, and program evaluation. Brian obtained his PhD in online social marketing with the Statistical Cybermetrics Research Group, a world-leading Internet research team. He obtained his Master's in business and computers. He is published in JMIR, the world’s top e-health journal. The United Nations General Assembly has recognized the impact of his digital campaigning work. He has been invited to act as an expert advisor for the World Anti-Doping Agency, the Heart and Stroke Foundation, and the annual International Conference on Persuasive Technology. Even the Pentagon invited Brian to present his research on persuasive design to the Cyber Influence Project. His popular workshops on digital psychology has attracted participation from many of the world's top technology firms.

Host/Chair: Agnis Stibe