Current Research
Shaping Agency: The Effect of User Communication Styles on Autonomy and Decision Support in Intelligent Conversation Agent Interactions​
This pilot study explores how different user communication styles such as formal, informal, directive, or collaborative influence trust, autonomy, and decision making when interacting with intelligent conversational agents like ChatGPT, Siri, or Alexa. By examining everyday and complex choices, the project supports the design of adaptive and user-centred AI systems.
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Minimum Standards for News Reporting
I am collaborating on an exploratory project aimed at establishing consensus standards for journalistic practices in an era of increasing media consolidation and declining diversity in news reporting. This project, involving scholars from the University of Montreal,
Laurentian University and Toronto Metropolitan University, among others, will feature scholarly research, public engagement through a dedicated platform, and an international conference on journalistic standards, scheduled for June 2025.
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Designing Reality: The impact of Artificial Intelligence on Journalistic Integrity
This project explores how artificial intelligence is reshaping journalism by prioritizing speed and engagement over accuracy, fairness, and public trust. As algorithms influence every stage of the news cycle, we investigate how a minimal set of core standards could help distinguish credible journalism from less reliable information. Drawing on research, editorial practice, and public discourse, the project aims to develop clear principles for identifying responsible journalism and supporting an informed public.
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MRU Information Integrity Centre
Stay tuned for more details!
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Loneliness by Design: Engagement Economies, Social Isolation, and the Limits of Digital Public Health Interventions
The rise of digital public health interventions to address loneliness often overlooks a critical underlying factor: the very infrastructures through which these interventions are deployed are optimized for engagement, not relational well-being. This project examines how social media platforms, AI-driven content curation, and engagement-optimized systems contribute to the manufacture and amplification of loneliness. This project is exploring the role of emerging technologies and social reliance on engagement economies on the experiences of loneliness and social isolation by North American youth.
Select Publications
Dwyer, L. (2024). Canadian perspectives on loneliness; digital communication as meaningful
connection. Frontiers in Public Health, 12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2024.1389099
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Duncan, S., Dwyer, L., Smith, H., Vallesi, D., Zeller, F., & Davis, C. (2024). Toward a computational
mixed methods framework to measure online deliberative discourse. Communication and the
Public, 20570473241284759. https://doi.org/10.1177/20570473241284759
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Dwyer, L., Crawford, C., & Zeller, F. (2023). Media Framing of Dominant Ideologies in Explanatory
Journalism Concerning Artificial Intelligence and Robotics. Canadian Journal of Communication,
48(4), 715–742. https://doi.org/10.3138/cjc-2022-0017
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Foster, M., Candelaria, P., Dwyer, L., Hudson, S., Lindsay, A., Nishat, F., Pacquing, M., Petrick, R.,
Ramírez-Duque, A., Stinson, J., Zeller, F., & Ali, S. (2023). Co-design of a Social Robot for Distraction
in the Paediatric Emergency Department (p. 465). https://doi.org/10.1145/3568294.3580127​
Zeller, F., & Dwyer, L. (2022). Systems of collaboration: Challenges and solutions for interdisciplinary
research in AI and social robotics. Discover Artificial Intelligence, 2(1), 12.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s44163-022-00027-3​
Dwyer, L., Woods, J., Zeller, F. (2022) Shifting sentiment; Author gender in explanatory journalism
articles on AI, technology and robotics during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Paper
presented at Congress 2022 Meeting of the Canadian Communication Association.
​Dwyer, L (2021). Designing companion robots for loneliness. Position paper presented at arttech:
Performance and Embodiment in Technology for Resilience and Mental health. 24th Annual
Conference on Computer-Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing. October, Virtual.
​Dwyer, L. (2021). Isolated Circuits; Designing companion robots for the future of loneliness. Doctoral
Keynote presented at Intersections Cross Sections Conference. March, Toronto, Can.​
Dwyer, L, Zeller, F., Smith, D., Lima, H. (2021). Communication Leveraging Social Robots for
Healthcare. Paper presented at Congress 2021 Meeting of the Canadian Communication
Association.
​Dwyer, L., Crawford C., Zeller, F. (2021) Media Framing Analysis of AI, Robotics & Technology in
Explanatory Journalism. Paper presented at the International Association for Media and
Communication Research conference in July, 2021.
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Dwyer, L. (2017). Towards a communication model for a sociable companion robot. Paper presented at
Congress 2017 Meeting of the Canadian Communication Association Graduate Masters Session.
​Zeller, F., Au Duong, J., Dwyer, L., Pavliuc, A. (2017). Modalities of Research. Paper presented at
Congress 2017 Meeting of the Canadian Communication Association. Contributing author.​
Smith, D. H., Zeller, F., Eyles, J., Eyles, E., Dwyer, L., Smith, H. (2016, July). Using 3D social worlds to
enhance participatory urban planning. Paper presented at International Conference on Social Media
& Society, 11-13 July, London, UK. Contributing author.
Some Old(ish)
Research Projects
Here you'll find brief descriptions of a selection of research projects I have been a part of. If you have any questions about the details of these projects, please reach out!
My PhD research focused on how social robot designers approach the design of companion robots using loneliness as a case study. My research takes a communications approach to the problem of social robot design and discusses the importance of user input at every stage.
Program coordinator for the NSERC-CREATE Responsible Artificial Intelligence Program. Responsible Artificial Intelligence (RAI) is a six-year multidisciplinary, multi-sector training initiative to build sustainable connections, research, training and knowledge capacity and a pipeline of highly qualified trainees in Canada’s fastest-growing knowledge economy sector.
CAN-UK-AI: Using AI-Enhanced Social Robots to Improve Children’s Healthcare Experiences
Research assistant. This is a multi-institutional research project between 5 major universities across Canada and the UK including Sick Kids Hospital. My role primarily consists of developing and expanding upon the existing literature in the co-design of AI-enhanced robots, social companion robots, and child-robot interaction in a health care context.
Research assistant studying the framing of technology in explanatory journalism through content, sentiment, and framing analyses.
Research assistant. This project focuses on the development of enhanced robotic technology for the facilitation of positive behaviour change in health care settings.
hitchBOT & Spaceball
Research assistant. The hitchBOT project involved the development of a hitchhiking social robot designed to ask the question "can robots trust humans." The spaceball project focused on virtual usability and user studies for a companion robot for astronauts.