Simon Nash, an engagement and experience expert, introduces the concept of what we mean by "digital psychology" and how Reading Room are incorporating this into our core consultancy offering.

1. The increasing importance of ‘Digital
Psychology’ as a strategic toolkit
10 July 2014

2. A little about me (@simonnash)
• Digital planner and content strategist
• Passionate about optimising services and experiences and an advocate for
digitally-led organisational change
• Helped Arts Council England, Pernod Ricard, Visit England and London
Business School transform the way they work with digital.
• Interested in emerging digital technologies and their impact on culture and
society meetup.com/Digital-Conversations
Introduction

3. Hat tip to Dr Chryssa Stefanidou
• Leading the introduction of behavioural sciences disciplines (Behavioural
Psychology, Experimental Psychology, Social Cognitive Psychology and
Behavioural Economics) at Reading Room in the UK
• PhD research involved extensive experimental research into the strength of
human relationships with media and how those relationships are shaped and
established within a psychological framework
• Currently working with Nationwide Building Society, UN FAO
Introduction

4. What I’m talking about...
Two things
• What do we mean by the term
‘digital psychology’?
• How we think it can be applied to
digital strategy?
Introduction

5. Everybody is talking about psychology
What is digital psychology?

6. Apparently psychology
is the ‘secret sauce’.
So what’s the fuss
about?
What is digital psychology?

7. Psychologists attempt to understand the role of
mental functions in individual and social behavior,
while also exploring the physiological and biological
processes that underlie cognitive functions and
behaviors. Wikipedia

8. Enter the computer
What is digital psychology?

9. Followed by the social network
What is digital psychology?

10. Now mobile is upping the ante
What is digital psychology?

11. Digital technology now as much a part of
culture as culture is a part of technology
What is digital psychology?
Tech Culture

12. Fertile ground for media psychology
What is digital psychology?

13. Inspiration for new specialisms
What is digital psychology?

14. So web psychology is a thing?
What is digital psychology?
http://moz.com/blog/web-psychology-whiteboard-friday

15. Yes.
What is digital psychology?

16. Psychology applied to digital
What is digital psychology?
Understanding rational and emotional
factors in house purchases

17. Psychology applied to digital
What is digital psychology?
Understanding how to engender trust in a
financial services brand concept

18. But...
What is digital psychology?

19. We think ‘Digital
Psychology’ should
mean more than the
simple application of
psychology principles to
digital channels.
What is digital psychology?

20. Complex systems demand more scientific
and experimental approaches
What is digital psychology?
The great advantage of the
experimental method is that the
causal relationship between
variables can be determined
with much greater certainty.
This is done in two ways: by
controlling all factors except the
independent variable and by
randomly assigning people to
condition
.

21. Changing contexts
1. Established principles
2. v.s. new contexts
What is digital psychology?

22. Changing behaviour
What is digital psychology?

23. Established principles vs. new contexts
Innovative applications
New channels
Challenges
established thinking
Changing behaviour
What is digital psychology?

24. So what is digital psychology...
What is digital psychology?

25. Simples!
What is digital psychology?

26. For example…
Sonja Song’s experimental research examined the psychological aspects of
sharing content on social networks and found evidence of Daniel Kahneman’s
‘Fast and Slow Thinking’. http://blog.sonyasong.com/
Sharing Fast and Slow
Applying digital psychology?

27. Sharing Fast and Slow
Sonja Song found that users’ unconscious attention (system 1) can be gained
through larger images, use of capital letters and phrases like Breaking News.
Applying digital psychology?

28. Sharing Fast and Slow
However she also found that more complex text could introduce cognitive strain
and shift the reader into conscious attention (system 2). Her investigation
indicated this may lead to fewer but higher quality engagements.
Applying digital psychology?

29. Sharing Fast and Slow
In other words whilst we should use impactful communications to grab the user’s casual
attention (System 1), more complex messages can then be introduced to engage more
thoughtful attention (System 2) and thus increase the likelihood of response/action.
Applying digital psychology?

30. Understanding multi-tasking & media
Applying digital psychology?

31. Encouraging adoption of new technologies
Applying digital psychology?

32. Encouraging adoption of new technologies
Applying digital psychology?

33. Designing the Internet of Things
Applying digital psychology?

34. To summarise…
What is digital psychology?

35. The fundamental question is ‘how will
human relationships with technology
develop over time?’
Simon – Jaquin and the O/S
Closing thoughts

36. Digital Psychology brings together digital disciplines and the
behavioural sciences whilst introducing more sophisticated
experimental approaches to audience research.
We believe that ‘Digital Psychology’ offers us a hugely useful toolkit
to explore and understand the emerging challenges posed by new
technologies, devices and platforms.
So we’re going back to first principles to challenge our
methodologies to extract deeper insights from our research so that
we can conceive more sophisticated strategies and design better
services and experiences.
Hopefully today’s event will start you thinking about how to
apply ‘digital psychology’ to your own challenges?
Closing thoughts

38. So where’s the potential?