I am an Assistant Professor at the Amsterdam School of Communication Research (ASCoR). The positioning of my scholarship is driven by the tensions created constant connectivity and information abundance in today’s digital media environment. My research focuses on people’s experiences of mediated communication in today’s always-connected society in relation to well-being, and how digital inequalities shape this. I draw on a wide range of methodological approaches, ranging from experiments, longitudinal surveys, mobile experience sampling, digital trace data (data donation), and qualitative interviews.

I earned my doctorate (PhD, cum laude, 2019) at the Amsterdam School of Communication Research, University of Amsterdam. I subsequently worked as a Senior Research and Teaching Associate at the Department of Communication and Media Research (IKMZ) at the University of Zurich (2019-2020). From 2021-2023, I was a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Fellow in the Internet Use & Society Division within the same department at the University of Zurich.

My work has appeared in leading journals in the field of communication and media research, such as Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, Journal of Communication, Human Communication Research, New Media & Society, Information, Communication & Society, and Journal of Health Communication.

I am on the editorial board of the Journal of Quantitative Description: Digital Media,  the European Journal of Health Communication, and Global Perspectives in Communication. I am an active member of the International Communication Association (ICA), and have held service positions as committee member of the Student and Early Career ASECAC.

Research expertise

• digital well-being
• disconnection
• digital inequality
• algorithmic persuasion

Media appearances

My research on digital well-being has garnered national and international media attention, with citations in leading outlets such as CNN, BBC, Forbes, Metro UK, and The Independent. It has also been cited in the World Happiness Report (2021).

I frequently provide expert insights in interviews with, amongst others, Dutch national radio (NPO Radio 1), Teen Vogue UK, and Al Jazeera. 

Media contributions I have (co-)authored or appeared in:

• NPO Radio 1 (2024). Radio interview on ‘De Nacht Van…’: Wordt een smartphone-vrije week het nieuwe normaal?
• Hargittai, E., & Nguyen, M. H. (2020). How Switzerland kept in touch during COVID-19
• Molloy, L. (2025. Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg Are Pushing Some Young People to Quit Instagram and X

Other links

• Persuasion & New Media Technologies

Research methods

• Experiment
• survey
• experience sampling methods
• interviews
• data donation

Current research projects

I am currently working on three funded projects (listed below). Besides these projects, I am also working on other research projects related to digital well-being, digital inequality and literacy, online surveillance and autonomy, and AI-generated communication. I currently lead a cross-national project on digital disconnection with researchers and data collections in nine countries.

• NWO Veni (2025–2028): Disconnection in an Always-Connected Society: A Novel Perspective on Digital Inequality

Digital connectivity offers many benefits but also raises concerns about digital overload and well-being. While some successfully limit digital media use, others struggle to disconnect. Not everyone is equally equipped to manage their dis/connectivity, which reinforces existing socio-digital inequalities. This project investigates how disparities in voluntary disconnection function as a key driver of digital inequality in today’s always-connected society. It examines the competencies that individuals need to manage dis/connectivity effectively, and investigates how individual, social, and digital factors shape inequality in disconnection. Ultimately, the project redefines digital inequality, and assesses the societal implications of inequality in disconnection.

• NWO XS (2025–2026): Digital Well-Being in an Algorithmic Era

As digitalization intensifies in contemporary societies, future generations must likely focus on engaging with digital media in a balanced way—or in other words: how to disconnect. This project examines the differences in how people from various socio-digital backgrounds disconnect from digital platforms. It also focuses on how the algorithms that shape communication and content on these platforms impact users' disconnection behaviour and experiences, especially for those who may face digital disadvantages in society. Combining survey data with donations of digital trace data, the project introduces a unique methodological approach that could serve as an exemplary case for future research.

• NRF U’Good (2025–2027): Social Media Use and Relational Well-being in the Global South

As digitalisation accelerates, young people across the globe are increasingly using social media tonavigate their identities and relationships. Yet, despite making up over two-thirds of the global youth population, high-quality research on teens’ social media use in the Global South is lacking. To address this gap, we propose a more nuanced, open, participatory, local-culture inspired approach that combines insights from psychology, education, and communication sciences in our project. Our project aims to 1) develop nuanced insights on the multifaceted relationship between social media use and youth relational well-being in the Global South and 2) through participatory research methods co-develop digital skills and practices with young people that enable them to harness social media to support their relational well-being, and mitigate any possible detrimental effects. In particular, the goal of our project is to understand social media use in youths’ own context, especially when the option to use social media (“effortless play”) is in contest with meaningful work and social interactions (“effortful work”). The project focuses on teenagers (aged 14-18) in Indonesia, South Africa, India, and Vietnam.

Research grants

2025

• NWO-Veni Grant (€ 320.000), Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek (NWO; Dutch Research Council). Project: Disconnection in an Always-Connected Society: A Novel Perspective on Digital Inequality. Role: PI.
• NWO-XS Grant (€ 50.000), Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek (NWO; Dutch Research Council). Project: Digital well-being in an algorithmic era. Role: PI.

2024

• u’GOOD Project Grant (US$ 500.000), National Research Foundation (NRF; South Africa), Fondation Botnar, and Human Science Research Council (HSRC). Project: Social Media Use and Relational Well-being in the Global South. Role: Co-applicant, in collaboration with Wisnu Wiradhany and Douglas Parry (PIs), and Sakshi Ghai (Co-applicant).

2023

• Research Priority Area “Youth Digitality” (~€ 240.000), University of Amsterdam. A 4-year PhD position: “Digital literacy, time use, and academic performance in primary and secondary education.” Role: Co-PI, Co-Promotor. 

2021

• Digital Society Initiative (CHF 30.700), University of Zurich. Project: “Studying the concept, conditions, and consequences of information abundance.” Role: Collaborator. 

2020

• Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Individual Fellowship (€ 203.150), European Commission. Project: “Disconnect2Reconnect: Understanding wellbeing in an increasingly digital society.” Role: PI.
• “Strengthening the IKMZ-Community” (CHF 2.500), University of Zurich. Workshop: “Open Science in Communication Studies: Benefits, Challenges, and Applications.” Role: Co-applicant.
• “Strengthening the IKMZ-Community” (CHF 5.300), University of Zurich. Project: “Between connected and disconnected: Understanding people’s management of digital media use in everyday life.” Role: PI.
• Digital Society Initiative (CHF 1.250), University of Zurich. Project: “Between connected and disconnected: Understanding people’s management of digital media use in everyday life.” Role: PI.

2019

• Emerging Scholar Research Grant (US$ 500), Mobile Communication IG, International Communication Association (ICA). Project: “Smartphones and social media fatigue: The motivations for and experiences with social media disconnection on mobile media.” Role: PI.

• Project Grant (CHF 2.000), Web Use Project. Project: “Interviewing young adults about social media disconnection.” Role: PI.
• GRC Travel Grant (CHF 1.000). Competitive grant from the University of Zurich to attend a Data Science course and visit Tilburg University. 
• NeFCA Grant (€ 500). Grant from the Netherlands-Flanders Communication Association to organize a symposium on Visual Health Communication. 

2018

• DigiComLab Seed Grant (€ 4.750). Research Priority Area Communication, University of Amsterdam. Project: “Theorizing personalization versus customization effects in mobile communication technologies using behavioral tracking data.” Role: PI.
• UvA 385 Lustrum Grant, University of Amsterdam (€ 3.000). Competitive grant to visit the University of Kentucky and University of Utah

2017

• ASCoR PhD Research Visit Grant, University of Amsterdam (€ 3.000). Institutional grant to visit the Florida State University

2015

• ASCoR PhD scholarship (€ 1.380). Institutional cholarship to attend the summer school organized by the European Association for Communication in Healthcare (EACH)

Awards

• 2026, Top Paper Award, Mobile Communication, International Communication Association
• 2024, Top Paper Award, Mobile Communication, International Communication Association
• 2023, Top Paper Award, Mobile Communication, International Communication Association
• 2021, Top Student Paper Award (as co-author), European Conference on Health Communication
• 2020, Top Faculty Paper Award, Communication & Technology Division, International Communication Association
• 2020, Top Finalist Abby Prestin Dissertation Award, Health Communication Division, International Communication Association
• 2019, Top Finalist Public Health Dissertation Award, NCVGZ, Dutch Conference for Public Health
• 2019, Top Poster Award, GeriOnNe, Symposium on Cancer in Elderly, The Netherlands
• 2018, Top Student Paper Award, Communication & Technology Division, International Communication Association 
• 2018, Honorable Poster Award, Kentucky Conference on Health Communication (KCHC)
• 2016, Top Student Paper Award, Kentucky Conference on Health Communication (KCHC)

RPA

• Youth Digitality

MA in Communication Science 

• Health Communication
• Persuasive Design in a Digital Era
• Research Methods Tailored to the Thesis
• Academic Writing Lectures (Transparent Research Practices)

Besides teaching courses, I am also the Master Thesis Coordinator for the Persuasive Communication Track, and mentor to a group of Research Master students. I frequently supervise (Research) Master students for their thesis projects, as well as (professional) internships. 

PhD supervision

• Daniela An
• Goan Booij