We talked to Evelyn Murray, Psychology PhD candidate at Aston University, at the BPS Cyberpsychology Conference in July last year.

She presented her research on how people perceive social media and what counts as a social media platform. We were amazed by how little agreement there is! We knew immediately that we wanted to hear about her research on the podcast.

Exploring Public Perceptions of Social Media: A Preregistered Mixed-Methods Study" - (Preprint link) https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/n7xr3_v1

And you can find Evelyn on LinkedIn here https://www.linkedin.com/in/evelyn-murray-7ba154248/

Is fandom good for your mental health—or quietly wrecking it? We are joined by researcher Derek Laffan to discuss his research on K-pop, the positives and negatives of fandom communities. Join us and dive into Cyberpsychology of stans, ships, and parasocial love: K‑pop, influencers and parasocial relationships, parasocial grief, and shipping conspiracies.

Resources

Positive Psychosocial Outcomes and Fanship in K-Pop Fans: A Social Identity Theory Perspective - Laffan et al. (2021).

Effects of Online Fan Community Interactions on Well-Being and Sense of Virtual Community - Kim et al. (2023).

The role of cyberbullying victimization in the relationship between psychological sense of community and well‑being among BTS fans. - Laffan et al. (2023)

This week we're focusing on cyberstalking, something far more serious than secretly checking someone's Instagram. We're joined by an incredible guest, Dr Cassidy Weekes, whose research focuses on exactly this issue. We're talking criminal harassment that ruins lives, and we'll look at some high profile cases and stories from the media that highlight just how disturbing this behavior gets.

We talk about who the perpetrators are, and what drives them, how they use everything from constant messaging to spyware, GPS tracking, and hacking accounts. We also look at the effects on victims, who can end up with anxiety, depression, PTSD, and serious impacts on their lives and loved ones.

This episide definitely needs a content warning and pleae find resources below if you have, or are, experiencing anything like this.

Dr Cassidy Weekes on LinkedIn