Lily Parsons
PhD student

Profile

Biography

I began a Psychology degree at the University of York in 2018 where I discovered my interest in social and decision-making science. After graduating, I transitioned into the technology industry, where I applied my understanding of human behaviour to product development as a User Experience (UX) Researcher at VISFO.

Now I am embarking on a PhD, sponsored by VISFO, investigating social identity as a crucial factor in any full explanation of why people are susceptible to misinformation. Since finishing my studies and working in UX, I have developed a strong sense of responsibility to always put the needs of the people using products above anything else. I want to reflect this in my research and bridge the gap between academia and industry by ensuring my findings can be applied to the real world and make a positive change.

Career

• PhD in Psychology, University of York, 2024 – Present
• User Experience Researcher, VISFO, 2022 – Present
• Associate Behavioural Scientist Internship, VISFO, 2022
• Research Assistant to Baddeley and Hitch, University of York, 2019 – 2020
• BSc in Psychology with Honours, University of York, 2018 – 2021

Research

Overview

The Role of Social Identity in Misinformation Susceptibility. 

Projects

There is a growing body of research investigating why people are susceptible to misinformation, but to date, it has tended to focus solely on the role of cognitive factors in Western populations, rather than social factors in multiple samples. This research will seek to understand the influence of identity on misinformation susceptibility, both in terms of specific identity variables and their higher-order dimensions, as well as cross-cultural variations in these relationships.

Collaborators

• Bailey House
• Lusine Grigoryan
• Rob Jenkins

Teaching

Publications