My Research

The Internet, digitalization, and social platforms continue to deeply transform our individual lives, the economy, and politics. In my dissertation research, I focus on the political aspects of social platforms and the ways in which these may affect political and societal polarization.

In recent projects, I (and my co-authors) investigate the use of social platform communication in politics or the conflicts between opposing different groups that aim to ‘hashjack’ the other groups' sites or hashtags to promote their own ideological beliefs. Correspondingly, I am an affiliated researcher at the ERC-funded international research project called “Digital Campaigning and Electoral Democracy” (DiCED).

Moreover, the notion of ‘platform governance’ started to fascinate me, and collaborators and I are currently observing how initiatives such as the Facebook Oversight board may affect our understanding of legitimacy and democracy. Regarding research methods, I focus on mixed methods approaches situated between qualitative assessments and computational methods such as social network analysis, regression analysis, and natural language processing.

About me

I am a Ph.D. candidate at the Hertie School in Berlin and affiliated with the Centre for Digital Governance. With my academic background in Economics and Sociology, I try to combine empirical methods with theoretical perspectives in my dissertation research on digital platforms and politics. Correspondingly, I am an affiliated researcher at the ERC-funded international research project called “Digital Campaigning and Electoral Democracy” (DiCED). Besides, I work as a public and private sector consultant for data strategy and communication. In these roles, I have worked with media consultancies in the UK and NGOs e.g. as a trainer and author for the Business Council for Democracy in Germany.

In my leisure time, I enjoy sports, music (Berlin-stereotypically especially electronic music), and long walks in Berlin´s green spaces. If you are working on related topics or are generally interested in having a chat, always reach out to me on social media or via email!