The Institute of Art, Design and Technology, Dun Laoghaire (IADT) is hosting two free public events as part of the Innovation Dublin 2012 festival next week, offering an insight into how technology, the internet and digital piracy affect human behaviour.
The first of the two events, ‘The Psychology of New Media’, promises a look at how the technologies we use influence our behaviour in sometimes unusual and unexpected ways.
Drawing on recent research carried out by IADT staff and post-graduate students, the talk will examine varying aspects of the psychology of new media – ranging from social networking, the use of artificial intelligence in customer service and therapy, to using the internet when searching for medical information, online fraud and security, as well as the psychology of online dating.
The talk takes place Wednesday, 24 October, at 7pm in the institute’s Atrium Building.
It will be followed two days later by ‘Digital Piracy & Psychology’, which considers digital piracy from the standpoint that its perpetrators rarely perceive themselves as criminals – which IADT claimed has led to illegal copying and downloading of video, music or software becoming commonplace.
This talk will delve into the psychology behind piracy, “identifying why users engage in this behaviour and why they frequently don’t see it as morally or legally problematic”, IADT said. The talk will also refer to psychological and criminological theory and research to suggest ways in which levels of digital piracy might be reduced.
The latter event takes place Friday, 26 October, at 5pm, also at the Atrium Building.
More details about the IADT’s psychological research can be found online. The institute offers several full- and part-time programmes in psychology.
The events’ organiser, Dr Gráinne Kirwan, is a lecturer in psychology at IADT. She has written and spoken extensively about where psychology and technology interact, and co-authored the book The Psychology of Cyber Crime.
Psychology and technology image via Shutterstock
