Tanya Junyi Chen 陈俊沂

Tanya Junyi Chen 陈俊沂

He/Him/His

jy.chen@sjtu.edu.cn

Welcome!

My name is Junyi Chen. I am currently a third-year master’s student at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, affiliated with the Center for Future Media & Human-Machine Communication in the School of Media and Communication, and advised by Prof. Yi Mou. My research centers on human–machine communication and examines AI persuasion, human-computer interaction, and broader media effects from social, political, and cultural perspectives. My work has been published in leading SSCI journals such as Technology in Society and Journal of Information Technology & Politics.

Outside academia, I am an avid live music enthusiast. Since 2023, I have attended around 60 live music shows. Tanya Chua is my favorite singer from Singapore, which is also the origin of my English name.

Hi，我是上海交通大学媒体与传播学院的研三学生，导师是牟怡教授。我的研究聚焦于人机传播，试图从社会、政治、文化的因素，综合考察AI说服、人机互动，以及更广泛的媒介效果议题。欢迎和我联系 jy.chen@sjtu.edu.cn ！

Education

  • M.A. in Communication, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China, 2023-2026
  • B.A. in Journalism, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China, 2019-2023
  • Exchange Student, Institute of Communication Studies, Taiwan Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Aug 2025 – Jan 2026
  • Exchange Student, Social Media Lab, Stanford University, Feb–Jul 2022 (online due to the pandemic)

Research Interest

My research interests are broad, focusing primarily on AIGC persuasion and human-computer interaction.

Topics

Specifically, the research topics I am interested in include:

  • The role of machines (e.g., GenAI and algorithm) in newsrooms and socio-politics,
  • Public adoption, trust, and understanding of scientific knowledge and technology,
  • Life and death in the age of digital technology.

More about me

I grew up with endless tests under the Chinese college entrance exam system and gained admission to Nanjing University. There, I was immersed in a rich intellectual atmosphere of literature, history, and philosophy, in which humanistic ethos has profoundly shaped my research sensibilities. On the other hand, I have been extensively involved in the practical training aspects of journalism. I served as the Editor-in-Chief of NJU FactCheck, which was repeatedly recognized as an Outstanding Data Content Creator by The Paper. More importantly, I was fortunate to benefit from these practical experiences, cultivating an empirically oriented mindset within a humanistic academic environment.

Through subsequent processes of academic trial and error, I came to realize that I am best suited to pursue a “middle path” that bridges the gap between grand, abstract theories and concrete, empirical phenomena. I was privileged to participate in an exchange program at Stanford’s Social Media Lab (online due to lockdown), further completed my undergraduate thesis at Computational Communication Collaboratory, and finally secured direct admission to the graduate program at Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

我是所谓的“小镇做题家”出身，在无尽的题海战术里“上岸了”南京大学新闻传播学院。我在南大接受了浓烈的文、史、哲熏陶，这些人文气息构成了我的研究底色。另一方面，我广泛地参与新闻专业“采、写、编、评”的实践培养。我曾担任南京大学《核真录》的主编，期间，团队获评“澎湃新闻优质创作者”。更重要的是，我很幸运地从新闻实践中获益，在人文的氛围中习得了偏向实证的思维方式。

在后续的科研学习和试错中，我开始明确自己更适合走一条“中间道路”，即宏大抽象理论与现实经验现象之间的研究路径。我有幸地参加了美国斯坦福大学社交媒体实验室的交换，在南大的计算传播实验室完成大学本科的毕业论文。

  • The COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdown policy coincided with a period of significant personal growth and development for me. This period also saw me becoming increasingly exposed to a vast amount of health, science, and policy-related information shared on social media. As a result, I keep interested in public understanding of science and technology, especially from social, political, and cultural perspectives.

  • Just as I began working on my undergraduate thesis, ChatGPT burst onto the scene. As an AI immigrant, I believe that I am witnessing a profound techno-social transformation. As a researcher deeply grounded in the discipline of journalism and communication studies, I am curious about precisely how people establish, or choose not to establish, relationships with AI, and the underlying psychological mechanisms at play. Furthermore, I am equally interested in the societal factors underpinning this “AI communication”, such as the digital divide, opinion polarization, and the like.

  • 在我建立三观的成年之初，新冠肺炎病毒爆发了。在隔离期间，我目睹了社交媒体上的科学、健康、社会、国际政治信息相互交织。由此，我对“公众对科学、技术的理解”抱有浓厚的兴趣，尤其是从社会、政治、文化的角度加以考察。

  • 在我开始学习写本科毕业论文的时候，ChatGPT横空出世。作为一名“AI时代”的移民，我相信自己正亲身经历着一场重大的技术-社会变革。对于我，一个深受新闻传播学学科培养的研究者而言，我好奇人们具体如何和AI建立（或不建立）关系，背后存在何种心理机制。并且同样的，我关注“AI传播”背后的社会因素，例如数字鸿沟、观点极化，等等。