The Psychology of Technology

Rapid advances in information technology have profound implications for human interaction, mental health, and the field of psychology itself.

Digital technologies increasingly impact nearly every aspect of our lives, affecting not only our well-being but also changing the way we work, design policies, define morality, and even the way we think.

This book examines research from different subdisciplines across psychology to address the ways in which technology and Big Data provide a unique window into human cognition and behavior.

Every interaction with smartphones, computers, and tablets leaves a trace, a digital footprint that offers fresh insights to psychologists studying the new frontiers of human behavior. At the same time, the use of public information provided by private citizens—social media postings, digital networks, datasets, and internet preferences—requires careful attention to ethical considerations.

An especially timely book in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, when so many people were forced to live online like never before. Many of the changes, for individuals, workplaces, and societies, will be long-lasting.

Foreword: The Critical Role of Psychological Science in Understanding The Human-Technology Relationship
Introduction: Welcome to the Psychology of Technology

• Chapter 1: What Our Data Reveal About Our Minds: Predicting Psychological Characteristics from Digital Footprints
• Chapter 2: Saying More Than We Know: How Language Provides a Window into the Human Psyche
• Chapter 3: The Big Data toolkit for Psychologists: Data Sources and Methodologies
• Chapter 4: The Psychology of Mobile Technology and Daily Mobility
• Chapter 5: "The Psychology of Virtual Reality"
• Chapter 6: Social Media and Psychological Well-Being
• Chapter 7: How Social Media Contexts Affect the Expression of Moral Emotions
• Chapter 8: Big Data in The Workplace
• Chapter 9: Human-Robot Interaction Challenges in the Workplace
• Chapter 10: The Psychology of Big Data- Developing a "Theory of Machine" to Examine Perceptions of Algorithms
• Chapter 11: Privacy and Ethics in the Age of Big Data
• Chapter 12: The Psychology of Technology—Where the Future Might Take Us
  

Sandra Matz, PhD, is an assistant professor at Columbia Business School in New York City. She was a visiting professor of marketing at University College Dublin, visiting researcher at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, and visiting researcher in the department of psychology at the University of Texas-Austin. She holds a PhD in psychology from the University of Cambridge (UK).

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