How do algorithms work on digital communication platforms? Aaron Brace explains more to Ian MacRae

Ian MacRae talks to Dr. Aaron Brace about how algorithms shape our online relationships and interactions, with a focus on the influence of algorithms in the world of online dating.

How do algorithms work on digital communication platforms? 

What is their purpose, how do they filter social interactions and prioritize certain types over others? 

What kind of messages tend to get through? How do algorithms encourage certain behaviours, emotions, presentation styles?

Are algorithms on dating apps essentially the same? Do they encourage different behaviours or have any effect at all?

Do we even know what the algorithms in dating apps are doing? None of them are open source... so do we really know what they're doing, or if they're any good?

How and why are online dating apps different from other ways of meeting people for romantic or sexual relationships? Can we really compare? 

And what long-term effects do the algorithms in dating apps have on our relationships and our society. Do we even know…?

 

Dr. Aaron Brace is the Co-Founder of ad-tech start-up Tack Tech, the first platform of its kind to enable advertisers to automate AI-driven audience testing and deploy ads across multiple ad networks simultaneously. Prior to this he spent 3 years at Facebook in Dublin, and many more as a Data Scientist in the media industry. Aaron has a PhD in Psychology from the University of Sussex. Find him on Linkedin at:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/aaron-brace-data

 

Ian MacRae is an award-winning author, psychologist and psychometrician, He has written six books about workplace psychology including High Potential: How to Spot, Manage and Develop Talented People at Work, and his latest book is Dark Social: Understanding the darker side of work, personality and social media. His books have been translated into ten different languages.

@iansmacrae on Twitter.