Sijia Qian

Education: Ph.D. in Communication (emphasis on Computational Social Science)

Courses Taught: Research Design for Data Science DTSC 8600 

Biography: Dr. Sijia Qian’s research explores the role of emerging communication technologies, particularly social media and artificial intelligence (AI), in building a resilient information ecosystem and promoting social good across health, science, and political domains. A central aspect of her work involves understanding and mitigating the spread of multimodal misinformation through human-centered media literacy interventions and AI-powered approaches. Currently, her research focuses on three interconnected themes: 1) empowering individuals through media literacy, 2) harnessing AI to uncover message features and detect misinformation, and 3) enhancing science and health communication strategies using computational methods.

She has published peer-reviewed journal articles in top communication journals, including first-authored pieces at Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, Public Relations Review, and Journal of Health Communication. Her work has been recognized with three top paper awards from the International Communication Association and supported by the highly competitive Facebook Foundational Integrity Research Grant, Social Science Research Council, and Provost’s Dissertation Year Fellowship at UC Davis.