The intersection of computers and psychology is a crucial juncture for innovation and user-centered design in technology. But it’s also where many harmful effects to people are unintentionally caused. That’s why we need psychologists to play a bigger role in tech development–particularly given that many technology companies change human behavior at scale and profit from behavioral changes, and generally embrace scientific innovation.
Traditionally, psychological research relies on two fundamental methods of data collection which are laboratory experiments and surveys or interviews [1]. The former investigate one particular aspect in a controlled, small setting, while the latter examine broader behavior using self-report questionnaires or (potentially structured) interviews. Both have their own limitations.
Computers can, however, process and analyze massive amounts of information at a high speed, and in ways that traditional methods are not able to. This is why they are powerful tools for psychologists and opens up a completely new field of research. For example, a new field called Psycho(neuro)informatics is emerging that merges psychology and computer science to develop models of human brains and intelligence. This requires experts in the field: psychologists who have domain expertise, and computer scientists with the knowledge to design large-scale tracking systems and manage and analyze the resulting data.
There was not much collaboration in the past. Google directors, for instance are more likely have completed studies in computational and computer science (29%) than psychology (less than 2%). This has led to a lack of psychology in the top management of tech companies, and has had the result that many tech products do not consider psychological factors.
