My name is Janneke Schokkenbroek, and I am an Assistant Professor of Health Psychology at Erasmus University Rotterdam. My PhD research (Communication Sciences and Criminology, Ghent University) explored harmful technology use in romantic relationships (including phenomena such as digital partner surveillance, online infidelity, and ghosting on dating apps) while my postdoctoral work (Delft University of Technology / Inholland University of Applied Sciences) examined user vulnerability to manipulative design and social media dependency. These prior works inform my current research on how people navigate intimate connections in a digital society, and how technology can be designed to support relational and social health.
Project Title
Social Health in the Digital Era: Mapping the Interplay Between Technology, Intimate Relationships, and Well-being
Systemic or Behavioral change(s) addressed
At the systemic level, the project aims to generate knowledge that helps users, designers, policymakers, and educators create healthier digital ecosystems, i.e., spaces that support autonomy, connection, and care.
At the behavioral level, it focuses on how people navigate digital technology in their relationships. By identifying patterns of digital vulnerability and resilience, the project seeks to understand how people can engage with technology in ways that sustain and strengthen their social well-being.
Empirical research strategies
The project will combine quantitative (e.g., (longitudinal/dyadic) survey research; Ecological Momentary Assessment; …), qualitative (e.g., in-depth interviews, focus groups, co-creation workshops), and digital methods (e.g., interface analysis) to study the intersection of technology and intimate relationships.
Possibilities for inter- and transdisciplinary collaboration
This research invites collaboration with colleagues across numerous disciplines such as psychology, sociology, criminology, media studies, HCI, and public health, as well as with designers and policymakers interested in how technology can support social well-being. ## Theoretical approach Bringing together social psychological, digital/sociological, and communication sciences perspectives, the project examines how individual and dyadic behaviours and practices as well as design architectures jointly shape intimate relationships and - on a broader scale - social health. It advances a framework of digital vulnerability and resilience to understand how people sustain connection in technologically mediated lives.
Social transition(s) addressed
Digital technology has become deeply influential in how we form and maintain intimate connections. Social media, dating apps, and other online platforms and technological devices offer unique opportunities for intimacy and belonging, but they also introduce challenges. This project examines how this technological transformation affects our social health: our capacity to build and sustain meaningful, supportive relationships in a digital world. It situates the digitalization of our intimate relationships as both a cultural shift and a social health challenge.