Technology and Democracy EU Science Hub (2020)

Scroll down to see more content

Technology and Democracy: Understanding the influence of online technologies on political behaviour and decision-making 

Abstract

Drawing from many disciplines, the report adopts a behavioural psychology perspective to argue that “social media changes people’s political behaviour”. Four pressure points are identified and analysed in detail: the attention economy; choice architectures; algorithmic content curation; and mis/disinformation. Policy implications are outlined in detail.

Authors

LEWANDOWSKY Stephan, SMILLIE Laura, GARCIA David, HERTWIG Ralph, WEATHERALL Jim, EGIDY Stefanie, ROBERTSON Ronald E., O’CONNOR Cailin, KOZYREVA Anastasia, LORENZ-SPREEN Philipp, BLASCHKE Yannic, LEISER Mark

Paper


Posts that link to this paper
Tags: behaviour (17) | decision making (49) | democracy (39) | disinformation (16) | emotions (12) | European Commission (11) | evidence (11) | misinformation (13) | narrative (16) | openness (6) | policy-making (4) | politics (30) | The Enlightenment (28) | trust (39)

Image Credits: Midjourney (Public Domain)

This page is part of a blook on Conversational Leadership. Parts of this book have restricted access. You can learn more about the book and how to obtain full access on the home page.


Warbrook House, Hampshire

Conversational Leadership Workshop
In-person, 7–11 September 2026
Warbrook House, Hampshire, UK

We are living and working in conditions of uncertainty, complexity, and rapid change. This week-long workshop offers a space to practise Conversational Leadership as a shared, lived experience.


Information and Registration


Leave a Reply