Specializations
- Science Communication
- Social Media
- Mixed Methods
Research Areas
Biography
Spencer Williams is an Assistant Teaching Professor at the University of Washington Information School. As a researcher, he specializes in online science communication, leveraging mixed methods to better connect the public with diverse topics like computing, vaccines and nutrition. Through this work, he seeks to boost the positive impact researchers have on the world by making their insights more accessible and usable for domain non-experts. As a teacher, his work focuses on human-computer interaction, emphasizing research methods, design methods, science communication and social media topics. In his teaching, he highlights the professional and ethical issues related to class topics, weaving together rigorous theoretical grounding, practical considerations and a thoughtful approach to the unintended consequence of research and design choices. Williams holds a bachelor’s in psychology from the University of British Columbia and is a Ph.D. candidate in the Human Centered Design & Engineering Department at the University of Washington.
Education
- Ph D, Human Centered Design and Engineering, University of Washington, 2023
- MS, Human Centered Design and Engineering, University of Washington, 2022
- BA, Honours in Psychology, University of British Columbia, 2017
Awards
- UW Center for an Informed Public Innovation Fund - University of Washington Center for an Informed Public, 2023
- Nominated for HCDE Student Teaching Award - University of Washington Human Centered Design and Engineering, 2021
- Nominated for UW Excellence in Teaching Award - University of Washington Human Centered Design and Engineering, 2021
Publications and Contributions
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Journal Article, Professional JournalTo Reply or to Quote: Comparing Conversational Framing Strategies on Twitter (2024)ACM Journal on Computing and Sustainable Societies, 2(1), pp. 1-27
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Journal Article, Academic JournalAssociation between Risk Communication Format and Perceived Risk of Adverse Events after COVID-19 Vaccination among US Adults (2023)Healthcare, 11(3), pp. 11
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Journal Article, Academic JournalAn HCI Research Agenda for Online Science Communication (2022)Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction, 6(CSCW2), pp. 22
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Journal Article, Academic JournalMeta‑summaries effective for improving awareness and understanding of COVID‑19 vaccine safety research (2022)Scientific Reports, 12(Unknown Issue), pp. 11
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Conference Poster“What’s going on in Accessibility Research?” Frequencies and Trends of Disability Categories and Research Domains in Publications at ASSETS (2022)ASSETS '22: Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility, pp. 5
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Journal Article, Academic JournalThe Effects of User Comments on Science News Engagement (2021)Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction
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Conference PaperUnderstanding Analytics Needs of Video Game Streamers (2021)Prooceedings of the 2021 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, pp. 12
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Conference Workshop Paper
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Journal Article, Academic JournalParallel Journeys of Patients with Cancer and Depression: Challenges and Opportunities for Technology-Enabled Collaborative Care (2020)Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction, 4(CSCW1), pp. 36
Presentations
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Understanding COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy
(2021)
Social Determinants of Health Group - Virtual
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Using Twitter as a Researcher
(2021)
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, University of Washington - Virtual
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Information Needs of Streamers
(2020)
Workshop on Be Part Of It: Spectator Experience in Gaming and eSports at the 2020 ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI) - Virtual
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The Effects of Gamma Correction on Correlation Perception in Strip Plots
(2017)
University of British Columbia Psychology Undergraduate Research Conference - Vancouver, British Columbia, CA