About the project
Generative AI (GenAI) is transforming society in exciting yet potentially worrying ways. One fear is that AI could increase societal divisions by creating misinformation, deepening polarization, and eroding trust.
The project “KnowAI” will study how people use Generative AI and how the tools vary. This way we will uncover how these technologies can shape peoplesʼ knowledge and opinions. We specifically investigate how different variations of AI technology interact with peoplesʼ motivation, abilities, trust and cognitive biases.
The research team is interdisciplinary and consists of scholars with expertise in political communication, political science, sociology, digital media studies and computer science.
Through experiments, interviews, and surveys, we study how GenAI can amplify or reduce polarization in society.
Objectives
The primary objective of “KnowAI” is to contribute to strengthen research on public opinion formation in an AI-infused digital media environment. We will provide novel insights that can align the consequences of AI with fundamental democratic values and practices.
Secondary objectives for the project:
- To develop a novel and updated theoretical framework for studying opinion processes in an AI-infused digital media environment.
- To empirically assess how AI influence knowledge acquisition, misinformation, and opinion formation, and the democratic consequences of this process.
- To reimagine how AI can foster confidently informed citizens and reduce polarization in society.
