Conceptual Misalignment

How often do we misunderstand each other without knowing it? How accurately do we understand each other's intentions--what our conversational partners really mean by the words they use, or the opinions their utterances reflect? And when does it matter if we aren't completely aligned--can misalignment be tolerable or even desirable?

Publications

Featured
When do misunderstandings matter? Evidence from survey interviews about smoking

Schober, Michael F.; Suessbrick, Anna L.; Conrad, Frederick G. (2018). Topics in Cognitive Science10(2), 452-482 [LINK] [request]

Conceptual alignment in conversation

Schober, Michael F. (2005). In Other minds: How humans bridge the divide between self and others (pp. 239-252). New York: Guilford Press. [LINK] [request]

Readers' varying interpretations of theme in short fiction

Kurtz, Victoria; Schober, Michael F. (2001). Poetics29(3), 139-166. [LINK] [request]

Technology Mediated Communication

How are we affected by the new modes of interaction that we can now choose and switch between? What is synchronous interaction in person still best for, and when might we prefer or benefit from the distance or privacy allowed by other modes--texting, video, email, voice messaging, social media? How is interacting with an automated virtual partner different from interacting with a person?

Publications

Featured
Predictors of willingness to participate in survey interviews conducted by live video

Schober, Michael F.; Okon, Shlomit; Conrad, Frederick G.; Hupp, Andrew L.; Ong, Ai Rene; Larsen, Kallan M. (2023). Technology, Mind, and Behavior 4(2) [LINK]

Precision and disclosure in text and voice interviews on smartphones

Schober, Michael F.; Conrad, Frederick G.; Antoun, Christopher; Ehlen, Patrick; Fail, Stefanie; Hupp, Andrew L.; Johnston, Michael; Vickers, Lucas; Yan, H. Yanna; Zhang, Chan (2015). PLOS ONE10(6) [LINK]

Why do survey respondents disclose more when computers ask the questions?

Lind, Laura H.; Schober, Michael F.; Conrad, Frederick G.; Reichert, Heidi (2013). Public Opinion Quarterly 77(4), 888-935 [LINK] [request]

Musical Interaction

What does it take for people to make music together? How is the back-and-forth of musical interaction like and unlike spoken dialogue? How similarly must musicians think to be able to collaborate successfully? How similarly do different listeners and audiences experience the same performance or recording?

Publications

Featured
Discrepancies and disagreements in classical chamber musicians’ characterisations of a performance

Spiro, Neta; Schober, Michael F. (2021). Music & Science (4) [LINK]

Listeners' and performers' shared understanding of jazz improvisations

Schober, Michael F.; Spiro, Neta (2016). Frontiers in Psychology (7) [LINK]

Jazz improvisers' shared understanding: A case study

Schober, Michael F.; Spiro, Neta (2014). Frontiers in Psychology, 5 [LINK]

New Kinds of Social Measurement

What can we learn from the digital and physical traces that people leave in the world--social media posts, logged behavior on their mobile devices, expenditure records, etc.--and to what extent can these traces complement what we learn from studying people's behavior more directly, in surveys or in the lab?

Publications

Featured
New data in social and behavioral research

Conrad, Frederick G; Keusch, Florian; Schober, Michael F (2021). Public Opinion Quarterly85(S1), 253–263 [LINK]

Social media as an alternative to surveys of opinions about the economy

Conrad, Frederick G.; Gagnon-Bartsch, Johann A.; Ferg, Robyn A.; Schober, Michael F.; Pasek, Josh; Hou, Elizabeth (2019). Social Science Computer Review, 39(4), 489-508. [LINK] [request]

Social media analyses for social measurement

Schober, Michael F.; Pasek, Josh; Guggenheim, Lauren; Lampe, Cliff; Conrad, Frederick G. (2016). Public Opinion Quarterly80(1), 180–211 [LINK] [Request]