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Amy Orben

@orbenamy.bsky.social
6.3K followers 344 following 82 posts

tech + teens + better science @ digitalmentalhealth.group // Group Leader, MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, University of Cambridge // Fellow + Director of Studies, St. John's College // 📸 marcus ginns

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Reposted by Amy Orben
Eric Schares @eschares.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
🚨Update: Our analysis of global APC expenditure has now been expanded to cover more publishers (7 -> 14) and more years (2019-2025). We estimate $15B in APCs paid over seven years, $3.7B in 2025 alone. Elsevier crosses the $1B threshold by itself in 2025. arxiv.org/abs/2608.16322 #ScholComm
Line chart showing 5 biggest publishers from 2019-2025
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simine vazire @simine.com · 28/08/2026
Psych Science (the journal) is broader than you might think! Do you do descriptive research? Or research w/ underrepresented populations or cultural frameworks? Or research on AI/LLMs for psych? Or research testing lab findings in the real world? We have a special issue for that!
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Anna Alexandrova @annaalexandrova.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
Two junior research fellowships @kingscollege.bsky.social opening soon due on Oct 1st. The theme is REPLICATION conceived broadly to encompass different research projects in humanities and social sciences. As a philosopher of science I am esp hoping for applications in #philsci #metascience #hps
kings.cam.ac.uk
Current research opportunities
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Tom Metherell @tommetherell.com · 04/08/2026
Delighted to share the first published paper from my PhD project! We studied the relationships between online connection/internet use and mental health among adolescents in 12 countries in Southeast Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa 🧵 Now out in @springernature.com SPPE 👉 rdcu.be/fxNgP
Screenshot from the published article in Social Psychiatry & Psychiatric Epidemiology, entitled "Children's social connections, internet usage and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Global South: evidence from Disrupting Harm". The authors are Thomas E. Metherell, Sebastian Kurten, Sakshi Ghai, George B. Ploubidis, Darío Moreno-Agostino and Amy Orben.
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ESRC Digital Good Network @digitalgoodnet.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
With the UK government’s announcement of a social media ban for under-16s, watch our recent lecture from @orbenamy.bsky.social, a leading expert in the field, discussing the experiences of young people online and the wider policy landscape. ▶️ youtu.be/vDMkaJSX3iw
youtu.be
Professor Amy Orben: Advising policymakers on young people and digital technologies
​In a rapidly evolving digital world, there is growing interest in the impact of digital technologies, including social media, on the mental health of young people, and researchers are under…
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Georgia Turner @georgiaturner.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
🎉 Now published in Nature Communications! 🧠 We develop a novel computational reinforcement learning & habit model of Twitter data, and show that younger people & women are more behaviourally sensitive to 'Likes'. Read the paper: bit.ly/4f1vsKS
bit.ly
A computational model of reward learning and habits on social media - Nature Communications
The cognitive processes driving social media use could be key to understanding social media’s impact. Here, the authors develop a computational model of real-world social media behaviour, identifying ...
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Digital Mental Health Group, Cambridge @dmh-group.bsky.social · 19/06/2026
🎉 Congratulations to @georgiaturner.bsky.social on receiving a 2026 Psychology of Technology Institute Dissertation Award! 🎓🏆 A fantastic and well-deserved recognition of her outstanding PhD research on psychology and technology. 👏✨ www.linkedin.com/posts/digita...
linkedin.com
🎉 Congratulations to Georgia Turner on receiving a 2026 Psychology of Technology Institute Dissertation Award! 🎓🏆 The annual awards recognise exceptional doctoral research that advances our… | Digita...
🎉 Congratulations to Georgia Turner on receiving a 2026 Psychology of Technology Institute Dissertation Award! 🎓🏆 The annual awards recognise exceptional doctoral research that advances our understan...
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University of Cambridge @cam.ac.uk · 15/06/2026
The UK government says under-16s will be banned from social media by spring 2027. @orbenamy.bsky.social from @mrccbu.bsky.social gives her reaction to today's announcement, and measures it against the evidence we already have about social media restrictions. More expert reactions 👉 bit.ly/3Qq453H
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Georgia Turner @georgiaturner.bsky.social · 08/06/2026
🚨New preprint🚨 Available here: osf.io/preprints/ps... Do adolescents who report feeling addicted to social media share a single behavioural-emotional profile? We analysed data from >7,000 UK adolescents and found, strikingly, that **47%** feel addicted to social media.
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Population Research UK (PRUK) @popres-uk.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
Join our workshop on measuring adolescent digital engagement in cohorts. In this session, you’ll: 🔎 Learn insights from a new social media measures report 🤝 Contribute to shaping the future of research in this field 🌐 Connect with a community focused on evolving UK policy shorturl.at/8l1H6
Copy reads: Workshop: Measuring adolescent digital engagement in cohorts, 24 June, 15:00 – 17:00. Left side: black text on white background. Right side: social media image. Logo of Population Research UK at the top left.
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Amy Orben @orbenamy.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
So glad to see this work out! Well done @sakshighai.bsky.social
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Amy Orben @orbenamy.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Excited to see @sakshighai.bsky.social work started when a PhD in the Cambridge team published in Nature!
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Georgia Turner @georgiaturner.bsky.social · 18/05/2026
🚨 CALL FOR ABSTRACTS 🚨 1/ We invite proposals for posters and symposia for the New Directions in Social Media Research conference at St John’s College, University of Cambridge (7–8 Dec 2026). We especially welcome future-facing research on how the social world is changing in the digital age.
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Digital Mental Health Group, Cambridge @dmh-group.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
🎉 Congrats to our RAs & Placement Student on a brilliant month! 🌍 Ioanna Fokas joined panels at Oxford University and Save the Children on social media bans. 🏆 Jamil Adjallah received a travel grant to present at the BAP Meeting. 🎓 @bcdavidson.bsky.social will begin a PhD with us this October. 🚀
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Lukas Gunschera @lukasgunschera.com · 30/04/2026
🚨 Does social media use show established neurocognitive signatures of addiction? Concerns about social media addiction are widespread, yet whether platforms' design features actually engage the same neurocognitive pathways as established addictions has remained untested. doi.org/10.31234/osf...
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Digital Mental Health Group, Cambridge @dmh-group.bsky.social · 30/04/2026
Since January, Prof @orbenamy.bsky.social has given evidence to three UK Parliament select committees (Culture, Media & Sport; Science, Innovation & Technology; Education), helping bring research into policy debates on social media and young people. www.linkedin.com/feed/update/...
linkedin.com
Since January, Professor Amy Orben Buckley has contributed oral evidence… | Digital Mental Health Group - Cambridge
Since January, Professor Amy Orben Buckley has contributed oral evidence to three House of Commons Select Committee inquiries: ·      Culture, Media and Sport Committee (13 Jan 2026) ·      Science, I...
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Digital Mental Health Group, Cambridge @dmh-group.bsky.social · 24/04/2026
New from @orbenamy.bsky.social on BOLD (Jacobs Foundation): “What is the recommended screen limit for young children - and why?” “Many parents feel they are making high-stakes decisions with very little clear guidance" A look at the evidence & its limits. 🔗 boldscience.org/whats-the-re...
boldscience.org
What’s the recommended screen limit for young children – and why?
Potential screen time benefits for children must be weighed against the risks
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Brandon C Davidson @bcdavidson.bsky.social · 24/04/2026
🚨New Preprint Announcement🚨 Social Media Reward Sensitivity and Depressive Symptoms Over Time 🧵 Social media platforms are designed to maximise engagement by amplifying social rewards such as “likes”, and there is widespread concern that these digital designs contribute to mental health declines.
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Tobias Dienlin @tobiasdienlin.com · 21/04/2026
Great report by @orbenamy.bsky.social, @georgiaturner.bsky.social et al on the current evidence base of social media bans/reductions on adolescent mental heath.
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Digital Mental Health Group, Cambridge @dmh-group.bsky.social · 09/04/2026
New report from the Digital Mental Health Group @MRC CBU on social media bans. As UK debate grows, we review current evidence, key gaps, and what’s coming next to inform decision-making. 🔗 www.repository.cam.ac.uk/items/d0b4c5...
repository.cam.ac.uk
Social Media Bans: Overview of Key Studies
This report reviews key studies and meta-analyses that are directly relevant to those interested in the quality of evidence underlying current policy proposals for an under-16s social media ban. It outlines a review of keystone studies, and is not an exhaustive evaluation of the potential policy options available. This report also focuses specifically on mental health and well-being outcomes, as this is our team’s area of expertise. As such, other developmental or health outcomes that may be affected by social media restrictions are not reviewed here.
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Amy Orben @orbenamy.bsky.social · 31/03/2026
🇦🇺 Report from Australia on under-16 social media ban compliance: • Kids (8–15, parent-report) with accounts dropped from 50% → 31% • Closures came from platforms (43.6%), kids (36%), and parents (26%) Conclusion: some platforms aren’t doing enough to comply. www.esafety.gov.au/about-us/ind...
esafety.gov.au
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Amy Orben @orbenamy.bsky.social · 27/03/2026
UKgov publishes new screen time guidance for under 5s 👨‍🍼 <2s: Avoid screens except shared activities 👶 2-5s: Try for less than 1hr a day 📱 Choose safe, slow-paced content 🧑‍🧒‍🧒 Lead by example 🛌 Have screen-free areas/times Glad to have contributed. Parent guidance and research report linked below.
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Casey Newton @caseynewton.bsky.social · 25/03/2026
This verdict seemed very likely the moment that TikTok and Snap settled rather than go to trial. A landmark moment for Big Tech www.nytimes.com/2026/03/25/t...
nytimes.com
Meta and YouTube Found Negligent in Landmark Social Media Addiction Case
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Amy Orben @orbenamy.bsky.social · 25/03/2026
Hiring! 🙌 Communications and Operations Coordinator to help share mu team's research and support a fast-moving, high-impact group. Major rebrand ahead + real chance to build things from scratch in an area where there is high media interest ⬇️. Closes 14 April. www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/communi...
bbc.co.uk
UK teenagers to trial social media bans and digital curfews
The government will interview the young people and their parents before and after they try the limits to assess their impact.
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Hetan Shah @hetanshah.bsky.social · 25/03/2026
Glad to see this study is being conducted by @orbenamy.bsky.social to try and get more evidence for policy in this area www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
UK teenagers to trial social media bans and digital curfews
The government will interview the young people and their parents before and after they try the limits to assess their impact.
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Digital Mental Health Group, Cambridge @dmh-group.bsky.social · 10/03/2026
🎉 Congratulations to Georgia Turner on successfully passing her PhD viva! Her work brought together cognitive neuroscience and social media research using reinforcement learning, network modelling and ML. We’re delighted she’s staying with the Digital Mental Health Group as a Research Associate. 👏
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Amy Orben @orbenamy.bsky.social · 05/03/2026
🎉 Congratulations to @georgiaturner.bsky.social for passing her PhD with flying colours today! A meticulous and truly interdisciplinary piece of work. Thank you also to @lorenzspreen.eurosky.social and Paul Fletcher for acting as examiners 🙌
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Georgia Turner @georgiaturner.bsky.social · 24/02/2026
🚨New pre-print🚨 osf.io/preprints/ps... What if the relationship between smartphone use and mental health depends not just on specific harmful or beneficial activities, but also on how users transition between activities?
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Amy Orben @orbenamy.bsky.social · 31/01/2026
Was lovely having you here Stefano!
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J. Nathan Matias @natematias.bsky.social · 29/01/2026
Last year after @orbenamy.bsky.social & I wrote about traffic jams in the science of tech safety, Alan reached out because he'd been seeing something similar. You might know Alan for his role on the team that exposed Instacart price discrimination in Dec www.consumerreports.org/money/questi...
consumerreports.org
Instacart’s AI-Enabled Pricing Experiments May Be Inflating Your Grocery Bill, CR and Groundwork Collaborative Investigation Finds - Consumer Reports
Exclusive: Instacart’s AI pricing may be inflating your grocery bill.
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University of Cambridge @cam.ac.uk · 20/01/2026
Professor @orbenamy.bsky.social from @mrccbu.bsky.social will co-lead the world’s first major trial to test whether reducing social media use can improve teen mental health. Find out more about the IRL Trial: bit.ly/4a2FZmB #socialmedia #research
bit.ly
Thousands of UK schoolchildren to take part in major study of social media use and teen mental health
A trial that will put a daily limit on the social media use of thousands of Bradford teenagers is set to begin this year. It will be the largest study yet to investigate whether use of these online pl...
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Jay Van Bavel, PhD @jayvanbavel.bsky.social · 16/01/2026
A new article provides evidence that Miles Hewstone was engaging in sexual harassment/assault at Oxford and other universities for 30 years. More women have bravely come forward to describe his behavior. This is the tip of the iceberg since I know other women. www.thetimes.com/uk/education...
thetimes.com
Oxford University ‘withheld information about harassment claims’
Miles Hewstone, who quit in 2019 but retained his emeritus titles for years, is accused of making unwanted advances towards students and researchers
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Mark Rubin @markrubin.bsky.social · 16/01/2026
“We requested information about the case to at least protect attendees of our future events and potentially act against Hewstone, however, Oxford University never provided any information.” Open Access: archive.is/ue5k8#select... Paywall: www.thetimes.com/uk/education... #SocialPsyc #AcademicSky
thetimes.com
Oxford University ‘withheld information about harassment claims’
Miles Hewstone, who quit in 2019 but retained his emeritus titles for years, is accused of making unwanted advances towards students and researchers
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M.J. Crockett @mjcrockett.bsky.social · 18/12/2025
Very important piece. "Whether or not OpenAI leaders intend to muddy the waters of science, grantwashing hinders technology safety ... It adds uncertainty and debate in areas where companies want to avoid liability and that uncertainty gives the appearance of science."
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Georgia Turner @georgiaturner.bsky.social · 11/12/2025
In the 2020 Election Project, Meta collaborated w/ academics to study how FB impacts elections. ⬇️ @aanixel.bsky.social, @fassiluisa.bsky.social & I argue that such research collaborations, w/ clear conflicts of interest, should be regulated. Would love to hear thoughts!💬 www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
pnas.org
We need transparency standards for social media research that involves companies | PNAS
We need transparency standards for social media research that involves companies
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Garvin Brod @garvinbrod.bsky.social · 12/12/2025
Curious about how smartphones shape children’s development? We’re recruiting a Postdoctoral Researcher for 3(+2) years for a cutting-edge randomized controlled trial conducted in collaboration with @orbenamy.bsky.social and her team. iwm-tuebingen.de/en/career/jo...
iwm-tuebingen.de
IWM Tübingen
Post-Doctoral Researcher (m/f/d)
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Ian Hussey @ianhussey.mmmdata.io · 08/12/2025
Social media ~ mental health meta-analysis: - Cited 7 times - The 45 included studies appear not to exist - The authors’ institution appears not to exist - The journal editors won’t respond
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Amy Orben @orbenamy.bsky.social · 03/12/2025
🥂 Congratulations @fassiluisa.bsky.social for passing her viva! Luisa has been a hugely respected and influential team member. Her dedication to rigorous and careful research has been evident throughout the four years I have had the privilege of supervising her with @tamsinford.bsky.social.
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Linda Tropp @lindatropp.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
knowing many directly affected, I personally asked some senior male colleagues to speak out about this during my earlier years as a professor, as i felt too vulnerable due to my stage of career.. it was shocking how much this was 'common knowledge' among women and how few male colleagues knew 😔
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21 Group @21group.bsky.social · 19/11/2025
Horror stories of sexual harassment from Oxford University 'Prof Hewstone turned up unannounced & dropped his trousers ... touched women inappropriately ... made comments about relationships with students' Oxford will do nothing, betcha Brutal from Bloomberg www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
bloomberg.com
Oxford University Has Failed Women Over Harassment Concerns, Staff Say
The university has repeatedly been slow to act against male academics accused of sexual misconduct and inappropriate behavior, a Bloomberg investigation found.
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Amy Orben @orbenamy.bsky.social · 19/11/2025
Completely agree Nils; and also extend my thanks to Katherine Griffiths who did such important and careful journalistic work on this issue.
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Amy Orben @orbenamy.bsky.social · 14/11/2025
📣 Digital Research Community! The new UK Adolescent Health Study will follow 100k young people (8–18yrs) for 10+ years. Please share what digital technology measures you think it should include. Please complete this survey (by 24th November 2025 @ 9AM): cambridge.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_...
cambridge.eu.qualtrics.com
Adolescent Health Survey - Digital Media
Expert guidance shaping digital media questions in upcoming Adolescent Health Study.
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Tanay Katiyar @adigitaltanay.bsky.social · 04/11/2025
My first paper, out in PsychReview!! Along with @orbenamy.bsky.social, Nik & @jaeggiadrian.bsky.social, @realadamhunt.bsky.social & I revisit an old theoretical question using concepts from evo psychiatry and anthro: Why do mixed associations exist b/w social media & mental health? A 🧵
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Rachel Coldicutt @rachelcoldicutt.bsky.social · 23/10/2025
This isn't just a national issue either; it is the single biggest soft power asset we have in a globally degrading information economy.
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Lukas Gunschera @lukasgunschera.com · 17/10/2025
🚨 New Preprint 🚨 Some people are at greater risk of experiencing negative mental health outcomes of social media use than others, but why? 🧵 We examined whether individual differences in cognitive processes shape risk and resilience to mental health effects on social media: osf.io/preprints/ps...
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Jay Van Bavel, PhD @jayvanbavel.bsky.social · 16/09/2025
Our need to belong increases our dependence on social media feedback.
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Stefano Palminteri @stepalminteri.bsky.social · 16/09/2025
Check out @bcdavidson.bsky.social's preprint (w/ @georgiaturner.bsky.social @orbenamy.bsky.social @livia-tomova.bsky.social and co.) about the (computational) consequences of social isolation in social media use during covid!
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Amy Orben @orbenamy.bsky.social · 16/09/2025
So excited this is now out!
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ReproducibiliTea @reproducibilitea.org · 28/08/2025
Are you a potential, current, or past ReproducibiliTea organizer? ✨ Join our upcoming networking event! 📅 October 2, 2025 (16:00 CEST) on Zoom 👉 Register for the Zoom link: forms.gle/iH6sHt3dB4Wf... Everyone is welcome!
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Amy Orben @orbenamy.bsky.social · 27/08/2025
Great time in London watching intern @sineadcleary.bsky.social and research assistant Brandon Davidson give a fantastic presentation to the UK Department for Science, Innovation and Technology - what superstars I get to work with!
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