Dan Heaton
PhD Student,
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Research Summary
Dan is currently undertaking his PhD, entitled Agency, Trust and Blame in Decision-Making Algorithms: An Analysis of Twitter Discourses, which he is scheduled to complete in 2024. This… read more
Current Research
Dan is currently undertaking his PhD, entitled Agency, Trust and Blame in Decision-Making Algorithms: An Analysis of Twitter Discourses, which he is scheduled to complete in 2024. This interdisciplinary project aims to investigate the agency, blame and trust associated with public-facing decision-making algorithms through a combination of Computer Science and Linguistics methodologies. Examples such as the NHS Covid-19 contact-tracing app, the 202 A Level grade calculation algorithm and ChatGPT will be examined due to their societal impact and discussion on social media. Concerns regarding algorithmic agency and responsibility, alongside trust issues, have emerged, requiring nuanced analysis. By integrating popular Natural Language Processing (NLP) computational linguistic tools with Corpus Linguistics and Discourse Analysis, Dan's PhD seeks to understand how grammatical and social agency portrayal impacts trust and blame perceptions. Methodologically, the project involves three phases: initial NLP-based computational analysis, followed by CL tools to examine grammatical constructions, and finally DA to delve deeper into whether the algorithms are presented as social actors on Twitter and the implications for trust and blame. Through this approach, Dan's PhD aims to offer insights into the complex dynamics surrounding algorithmic agency and public trust.