Further Reading

  • Chapter 1 – Further Reading

    The British Psychological Society has published a set of guidelines for the ethical conduction of Internet-mediated research. Any individuals planning to complete research in cyberpsychology should review these as early as possible into their studies.

    Cyberpsychology: The Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace is an online peer-reviewed journal with many open access articles which may be useful for further study in this field.

    It is helpful also to keep an eye on some of the research groups in the area to see what the current topics of interest are. For example, consider visiting the following:

  • Chapter 2 – Further Reading

    This article gives a helpful overview of twenty years of workshops on psychological experimentation conducted via the Internet.

    This paper discusses the utility of online surveys for qualitative research. It gives a helpful overview and practical design information, illustrated with examples.

    • Braun, V., Clarke, V., Boulton, E., Davey, L., & McEvoy, C. (2021). The online survey as a qualitative research tool. International Journal of Social Research Methodology, 24(6), 641–654. https://doi.org/10.1080/13645579.2020.1805550

  • Chapter 3 – Further Reading

    A special issue of the Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication in January 2020 considers the state of the field of study. A series of fascinating articles in this issue is available at:

    This paper by Julie Ancis provides an overview of cyberpsychology generally, but discusses online communication on various formats.

    Amy Orben and Andrew Przylbylski have published multiple papers examining how adolescent well-being may or may not be affected by digital technology use, and especially focusing on methodological problems with much of the research in this area. One of their key papers is available at:

  • Chapter 4 – Further Reading

    Minas Michikyan focuses on the role of social media in psychosocial development and adjustment in emerging adulthood where emerging adults who experienced both identity coherence and identity confusion reported presenting the false self on Facebook motivated by self-exploration.

    • Michikyan, M. (2020). Linking online self-presentation to identity coherence, identity confusion, and social anxiety in emerging adulthood. Br J Dev Psychol, 38: 543–565. 
    • https://doi.org/10.1111/bjdp.12337

    Serena Coppolino Perfumi discusses the social identity model of deindividuation effects (SIDE model) and provides an important lens through which Internet researchers can study computer-mediated interactions. This model is particularly important in explaining the dynamics that can take place when individuals communicate via computer or, for example, utilize social media platforms.

    In this study, Nicole Strimbu and Michael O’Connell seek to broaden the understanding of self-concept as a predictor of online self-presentation by expanding upon previous research with adolescents.

  • Chapter 5 – Further Reading

    The following articles provide suggestions on how to prevent negative behaviour across different digital contexts:

    • Hinduja, S. and Patchin, J. W. (2020). Digital dating abuse among a national sample of U.S. youth. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 36, 11088–11108. 10.1177/0886260519897344
    • Laffan, D. A., Stenson, A., and Flood, C. (2022). The role of cyberbullying victimization in the relationship between adult BTS fans’ psychological sense of community and wellbeing. Journal of Community Psychology, 1–16. Advanced Online Publication. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcop.22924.
    • Salawu, S., Lumsden, J. & He, Y. (2022). A mobile-based system for preventing online abuse and cyberbullying. International Journal of Bullying Prevention, 4, 66–88 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42380-021-00115-5.

    Dr. Debbie Ging and Dr. Eugenia Siapera co-edited a book about the intersection of online hate and gender. It focuses on misogyny and anti-feminism in the digital environment:

    Sexual harassment in online video game environments was explored in relation to the personality and context considerations:

    • Tang, W. Y., Reer, F., and Quandt, T. (2020). Investigating sexual harassment in online video games:        How personality and context factors are related to toxic sexual behaviors against fellow players. Aggressive Behavior, 46(1), 127–135. https://doi.org/10.1002/ab.21873.

    Dr. Rachel Kowert catalogued a variety of negative behaviour that can occur in digital gaming spaces under the umbrella of Dark Participation:

  • Chapter 6 – Further Reading

    This paper reviews Joseph Walther’s theory of hyperpersonal communication in computer-mediated communication after 25 years. It looks at how the model applies to contemporary social media and demonstrates its application in deceptive online romance and romance scams.

    Walther, J. B., and Whitty, M. T. (2021). Language, psychology, and new media: The hyperpersonal model of mediated communication at twenty-five years. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 40(1), 120–135.
    https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0261927X20967703

    This chapter examines the factors in online dating that make it a less-than-enjoyable experience. The authors suggest that the primary reason that dating is not enjoyed, is that users feel they are unable to capitalize on the strongest perceived benefit of online dating, the bigger pool of potential partners.

    Zytko, D., Grandhi, S., and Jones, Q. (2018). The (un) enjoyable user experience of online dating systems. In M. Blythe & A. Monk (Eds.), Funology 2 (2nd ed.,61–75). Springer. http://dougzytko.com/research/FUNOLOGY_chapter-zytko_grandhi_joneswithdoi.pdf

    This paper explores the changing landscape of relationship formation, looking at how people meet and how this has changed over time.

    Rosenfeld, M. J., Thomas, R. J., and Hausen, S. (2019). Disintermediating your friends: How online dating in the United States displaces other ways of meeting. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 116(36), 17753–17758. https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.1908630116

    It is common for couples to meet through online dating, and this article explains the complexity of matchmaking algorithms and looks at how our relationship with online dating apps might evolve.

    Sharabi, L. L. (2022). Finding Love on a First Data: Matching Algorithms in Online Dating. Harvard Data Science Review, 4(1).

    https://doi.org/10.1162/99608f92.1b5c3b7b

  • Chapter 7 – Further Reading

    This ‘digital detox’ workbook provides a hands-on guide for de-stressing, cultivating mindfulness, improving mood and health, and finding balance in your daily life:

    • Bowles, M. & Williams Rikard, E. (2019). Life Unplugged: A Digital Detox Workbook. New York:  Rock Point.

    This book examines the effects the Internet is having on our brains, including how smartphones and social media are influencing our thoughts and emotions:

    • Carr, N. (2010). The shallows: How the internet is changing the way we think, read and remember. Atlantic Books Ltd.

    This book puts forth the argument that our brains aren’t naturally good at media multitasking and examines how we can learn to live with technology in a balanced way. It includes dual points of view from a psychologist and a neuroscientist and provides scientific foundations and real-world examples of people addressing their own distracted minds:

    • Gazzaley, A., and Rosen, L. D. (2016). The distracted mind: Ancient brains in a high-tech world. Mit Press.

    This paper by Wood and Muñoz examines the effect of a ‘digital detox’ on student learning:

  • Chapter 8 – Further Reading

    This paper by Janghee Cho and Rick Walsh investigated how potential new members of an online community create their own mental models of that online community from their first experience of the community, and how this process impacts their decision to remain in the community or not.

    Cho, J., and Walsh, R. (2021). How Potential New Members Approach an Online Community. Computer Supported Cooperative Work, 30, 35–77. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10606-020-09390-0

    In this open-access paper by Hugo Hromic and Conor Hayes, they characterised and evaluated the dynamics of online communities. They specifically differentiated between functional and structural communities for microblogging.

    Hromic, H., anf Hayes, C. (2019). Characterising and evaluating dynamic online communities from live

    microblogging user interactions. Social Network Analysis and Mining, 9, Article 30. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13278-019-0576-8

  • Chapter 9 – Further Reading

    This paper by Fogg describes the design principles behind creating persuasive technologies.

    This paper by Knowles et al. looks at the difference between persuasion and manipulation as tools used in persuasive technologies. It also introduces the BARTER system in a case study which is designed to get people to spend locally using persuasive technologies.

    • Knowles, B., Coulton, P., Lochrie, M. & Wohl, B. (2014, February). “Convince Us”: An Argument for the Morality of Persuasion. Paper presented at the 17th ACM Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computer (CSCW’14 Workshop) ACM, Baltimore, Maryland, USA. Retrieved from: http://eprints.lancs.ac.uk/68688/1/Knowles_CSCW_final.pdf

    This chapter by Hamari et al. is an empirical review of the research using persuasive technologies (95 in total) and categorises them from positive to negative in terms of the impact of the technologies.

    • Hamari, J., Koivisto, J. and Pakkanen, T. (2014). Do persuasive technologies persuade? – A review of empirical studies. In A. Spagnolli, L. Chittaro & L. Gamberini, L. (eds), Persuasive Technology: 9th International Conference, Persuasive 2014: LNCS 8462, Proceedings (pp. 118–136). Cham, Switzerland: Springer International Publishing. Retrieved from: www.skateboardingalice.com/papers/2014_Hamari.pdf  

  • Chapter 10 – Further Reading

    This fascinating paper by Joanne Hinds, Emma Williams, and Adam Joinson considers how people’s privacy concerns were (or were not) affected by the Cambridge Analytica case.

    The Pew Research Centre has published data regarding people’s perceptions of privacy online. A summary of their results and a link to the full report are available here:

    Bruce Schneier maintains a fascinating blog ‘Schneier on Security’. As the name suggests, the primary focus is on security, but occasional posts relate more specifically to privacy.

    The IEEE publication Security & Privacy includes articles, interviews, tutorials and case studies: 

  • Chapter 11 – Further Reading

    Bruce Schneier’s website includes a vast history of blog posts, essays, newsletters, and other writings. These examine security generally, but a significant proportion focus on cybercrime.

    The International Journal of Cyber Criminology examines cybercrime from a broader perspective than psychology alone. It includes papers on a wide variety of cybercrimes, from a multitude of academic disciplines.

    The UK National Cyber Security Centre website includes a vast array of articles and blog posts which relate to cybercrime and cybersecurity.

    The Open University provides an online course on ‘The Psychology of Cybercrime’ which provides more detailed information on many of the topics covered in this chapter.

  • Chapter 12 – Further Reading

    The following book specifically focuses on real world application of human behaviour in relation to the use of the Internet. Specifically, Chapter 6 explores the term Internet Addiction from a clinical aspect.

    • Attrill, A. and Fullwood, C. (Ed.). (2016). Applied Cyberpsychology: Practical Applications of Cyberpsychological Theory and Research. Palgrave MacMillan.

    Understanding psychological theory in relation to online behaviour is core to cyberpsychology. In this book, areas such as technology interaction and interactivity, health, gaming, and cybercrime are addressed.

    • Attrill-Smith, A., Fullwood, C., Keep, M., and Kuss, D. J. (Eds.). (2018). The Oxford handbook of cyberpsychology. Oxford University Press.

    Technology itself, is neither positive nor negative, how we use technology defines its positive and negative effects on areas such as well-being. Linda Kaye explores areas of screentime, gaming, the effects of technology, and gaming among other areas.

    • Kaye, L. K. (2022). Issues and Debates in Cyberpsychology. McGraw Hill.

    In this article, Coyle, McGlade, Doherty and O’Reilly (2011) explore the first adolescent therapeutic intervention to fully integrate a computer game into Cognitive Behavioural Therapy.

    • Coyle, D., McGlade, N., Doherty, G., and O’Reilly, G. (2011). Exploratory evaluations of a computer game supporting cognitive behavioural therapy for adolescents. In Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 2937–2946). ACM.
    • http://www.davidcoyle.org/docs/Coyle%20et%20al%20CHI2011.pdf

    The following two chapters from the book Cyberpsychology give an outline of the areas involved in online addiction and online counselling. Attrill, A. (Ed.). (2015). Cyberpsychology. Oxford University Press.

    • Chapters 11: The Psychology of Online Addictive Behaviour – Mark D. Griffiths
    • Chapter 13:  Online Therapies and Counselling – Melanie Nguyen

    The three chapters from The Oxford Handbook of Cyberpsychology. Oxford University Press by Attrill-Smith, A., Fullwood, C., Keep, M., & Kuss, D. J. (Eds.). (2019) may be of interest.

    • Chapter 23: A psychological overview of Gaming Disorder – Daria J. Kuss, Halley Pontes, Orsolya Kiraly and Zsolt Demetrovics
    • Chapter 25: The therapeutic and health benefits of playing video games – Mark Griffiths
    • Chapter 28:  The psychosocial effects of gaming. Michelle Colder Carras, Rachel Kowert and Thornsten Quandt.

  • Chapter 13 – Further Reading

    Online Journals

    This open-access journal will enable instructors to keep up-to-date on important research being published in this area.  

    • Frontiers in Psychology

    https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology

    This journal, with one of the top impact ratings in the field of Cybersychology, will enable instructors to keep up-to-date on important research being published in this area.  

    • Cyberpsychology, Behaviour and Social Networking

    http://www.liebertpub.com/overview/cyberpsychology-behavior-brand-social-networking/10/

    This journal, with one of the top impact ratings in the field of Sport and Exercise Psychology, will enable instructors to keep up-to-date on important research being published in this area.  

    • The Sport Psychologist

    https://journals.humankinetics.com/view/journals/tsp/tsp-overview.xml

  • Chapter 14 – Further Reading

    Ten predictions for the future of innovation:

    Remote, hybrid, and working from home has become a regular occurrence since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Michael Drayton discusses the contribution of remote working to burn-out and offers guidance on how to get the best from remote working.

    Newman et al. (2020) conducted a systematic literature review on the concept of innovation climate on the team and organisational levels.

    • Newman, A., Round, H., Wang, S., and Mount, M. (2020). Innovation climate: A systematic review of the literature and agenda for future research. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 93, 73-109. https://doi.org/10.1111/joop.12283

    Agile changed the way in which software was designed, developed, and delivered. A successful project using Agile is heavily dependent upon teamwork and communications and how team members interact. Ultimately Agile teams rely on psychological safety.

    Whilst the ‘fail-fast’ approach is used to initiate fast learning, DePrisco (2022) discusses how this transition can be made.

  • Chapter 15 – Further Reading

    Predicting the development of the Internet as an educational space is difficult. The two reports mentioned in the chapter are well worth reading. One focuses on the technology and its implementation and the second on innovations in pedagogy.

    This 2021 Educause Horizon report profiles key trends and emerging technologies and practices shaping the future of teaching and learning. 

    The Open University Innovating Pedagogy project has reported since 2012. This 2021 report is the most recent and well worth a read.

    • Kukulska-Hulme, A., Bossu, C., Coughlan, T., Ferguson, R., FitzGerald, E., Gaved, M., Herodotou, C., Rienties, B., Sargent, J., Scanlon, E., Tang, J., Wang, Q., Whitelock, D., &  Zhang, S. (2021). Innovating pedagogy 2021: Open University innovation report 9. Milton Keynes: The Open University.        
    • http://www.open.ac.uk/blogs/innovating/

    Research into learning with the Internet has changed since the COVID-19 pandemic. Here are three articles.

    The first explores the difference between emergency remote teaching and online learning. 

    In this second article web-based learning technologies are explored. 

    This third article examines the role of video in learning.

    • Noetel, M., Griffith, S., Delaney, O., Sanders, T., Parker, P., del Pozo Cruz, B., & Lonsdale, C. (2021). Video improves learning in higher education: a systematic review. Review of Educational Research, 91(2), 204–236.
    • doi.org/10.3102/0034654321990713

  • Chapter 16 – Further Reading

    Personalisation and customisation have been key trends in retail over the last decade. This article looks at the differences between the two, and how retailers are delivering those experiences, online, through VR and AR, as well as offline.

    https://www.forbes.com/sites/katehardcastle/2021/12/31/custom-made-and-served-with-personalisationwinning-retail-makes-it-all-about-the-customer/?sh=59aaa13c7281

    A report on the importance of personalised experiences online, and in particular, getting it right for consumers. This has only become more important since the pandemic.

    https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/growth-marketing-and-sales/our-insights/the-value-of-getting-personalization-right-or-wrong-is-multiplying

    COVID-19 substantially increased the number of people shopping online. This article looks at the psychology of online shopping, and in particular, offers tips for reducing impulse buying or overspending. 

    https://time.com/6200717/online-shopping-psychology-explained

  • Chapter 17 – Further Reading

    The second edition of this book provides information on how to identify, prevent, and respond to cyberbullying incidents. It is aimed at both teachers and parents.

    This book presents research from various backgrounds, examining the way that new media can provide opportunities as well as challenges.

    This paper draws on recent research relating to the use of technologies in the home for learning, in order to explore the ways in which parents try to balance the sometimes contradictory roles of being both technology providers and technology regulators, and the ways in which young people act in response.

    Contributors produce an international overview of developments in digital literacy among younglearners, offering innovative paths between traditional narratives that offer only complete acceptance or total dismissal of digital natives.

  • Chapter 18 – Further Reading

    Hannah Marston and Colleagues provide a detailed review of 12 research papers on how to improve older adults’ lives through the integration of technology into their daily lives.

    These two research papers by Eleftheria Vaportzis and colleagues focus on the experiences of older adults learning to use tables and then in the second paper using and improving cognitive abilities.

    • Vaportzis, E., Clausen, M. G., and Gow, A. J. (2018). Older Adults Experiences of Learning to        Use Tablet Computers: A Mixed Methods Study. Frontiers in Psychology, 3.         https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01631
    • Vaportzis, E., Martin, M., and Gow, A., (2017). A Tablet for Healthy Ageing: The effect of a          Tablet Computer Training Intervention on Cognitive Abilities in Older Adults. The     American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 25(8), 841–851.           https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jagp.2016.11.015

    There have been several research studies which examined the impact of COVID-19 on older adult’s use of technology.

    • Haase et al., (2021) focused on Technology and Socialization
      • Haase, K. R., Cosco, T., Kervin, L., Riadi, I., and O’Connell, M. E. (2021). Older Adults’        Experiences with Using Technology for Socialization During the COVID-19     Pandemic: Cross-sectional Survey Study. JMIR Aging, 4(2).          doi: 10.2196/28010
    • Savage et al., (2022) focused on the barriers to the adoption of social media and video communications.
      • Savage, R. D., Nicolo, S. D., Wu, W., Li, J., Lawson, A., Grieve, J., Goel, V., and Rochon,      P. A. (2022). The Factors associated with Nonuse of Social Media or Video Communications to Connect With Friends and Family During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Older Adults: Web-Based Survey Study. JMIR Aging 2022, 5, (2). DOI:10.2196/34793

  • Chapter 19 – Further Reading

    Tremosa, L. (2021). How to Change Your Career from Psychology to UX Design. Interaction design foundation. https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/article/how-to-change-your-career-from-psychology-to-ux-design

    Vieira, T. (2020). A brief history of UX design and its evolution. The next web. https://thenextweb.com/news/a-brief-history-of-ux-design-and-its-evolution

    Gonfalonieri, A. (2020). What Brain-Computer Interfaces Could Mean for the Future of Work. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2020/10/what-brain-computer-interfaces-could-mean-for-the-future-of-work

    Farrell, S. (2017). UX Research Cheat Sheet. Nielsen Norman group. https://www.nngroup.com/articles/ux-research-cheat-sheet/

  • Chapter 20 – Further Reading

    In this commentary, Chris Ferguson reflects on the importance of digital social interaction and video games during the COVID-19 pandemic.

    Granic, Lobel, and Engels (2014) combine elements of developmental, positive, social psychology, and media psychology to propose some possible ways that video game play could have real psychosocial benefits.

    Celia Hodent is an expert in cognitive psychology and video game user experience (UX). She works as an independent game UX consultant and was previously Director of User Experience at Epic Games (the makers of Fortnite). Her book provides an interesting overview of how concepts and principles from cognitive neuroscience and user experience can be applied to video game design. Though targeted more generally at those working in the industry, her book is accessible and is likely to appeal to anyone who is interested in learning about what happens in the brain when a person plays video games.

  • Chapter 21 – Further Reading

    While there has been extensive research on the use of virtual environments for the assessment and treatment of various psychological conditions, there has been considerably less discussion about the ethical challenges inherent in this approach. Thomas Parsons considers these in this open-access article.

    In this article, which appeared in the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, Emma Barratt describes how VR spaces can become inclusive places for young people to spend time.

    The International Society for Presence Research (ISPR) holds conferences on issues relating to virtual worlds and presence, and visitors to their website can read papers presented at past conferences.

    This interview with Prof. Daniel Freeman in the BPS The Psychologist magazine discusses various fascinating aspects of his work exploring the overlap between VR and psychology.

  • Chapter 22 – Further Reading

    John McCarthy provides an overview of artificial intelligence for the lay reader in the following document.

    Poole and Mackworth (2017) authored a book (now in its second edition) describing artificial intelligence and provide it freely online. While much of the book is very technical in nature, the introductory chapters are particularly interesting for psychologists with an interest in the field.

    Ray Kurzweil responds to fears regarding the progress in artificial intelligence in an article in Time magazine online.

    Stanford University is conducting a 100-year-long study on the impact that artificial intelligence will have on many aspects of life, including psychology. The study is described briefly here.

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