About us
Our workgroup (Interdisciplinary Research Team on Internet and Society – IRTIS) carries out research related to the social-psychological developmental, sociological and political implications of the use of information and communication technologies. Members of our research group are employees and Ph.D. students at the Faculty of Social Studies, Masaryk University, Brno, whose areas of interest are connected to online behavior, online social and political agency and the consequences of ICT use (such as Internet, mobile phones or computer games) for individuals and society. IRTIS is part of the Institute for Research on Children, Youth and Family (Faculty of Social Studies, Masaryk University). Thus, our main focus is on children, adolescents and families, but it includes a number of diverse themes, including the study of:
- New media uses of 0–8 year-old children and socialisation (David Šmahel, Martina Černíková, Hana Macháčková)
- Problematic online experiences (online risks) of children (David Šmahel, Anna Ševčíková, Monica Barbovschi, Martina Černíková, Hana Macháčková, Lenka Dědková)
- Cyberbullying and online harassment (Hana Macháčková, Lenka Dědková, Anna Ševčíková, David Šmahel)
- Online identity and self-presentation (David Šmahel, Pascaline Lorentz, Monica Barbovschi)
- Online relationships, online communication and interactions (Lenka Dědková, Hana Macháčková, Monica Barbovschi)
- Mobile media & communication (Monica Barbovschi, Kjartan Ólafsson)
- Digital inclusion and engagement (Monica Barbovschi, Kjartan Ólafsson)
- Behavioral addictions and excessive internet use (David Šmahel)
- Online gaming (Pascaline Lorentz)
- Internet and health (Anna Ševčíková, David Šmahel)
- Sexuality and digital media (Anna Ševčíková, Kristian Daneback)
- Research methods for studying children’s internet use and online experiences (David Šmahel, Kristian Daneback, Monica Barbovschi, Lenka Dědková, Hana Macháčková, Martina Černíková)
- Online security and privacy (David Šmahel, Lenka Dědková, Hana Macháčková)
- New media and transformation of media audiences (Jakub Macek)
- New media and public and political participation (Monika Metyková, Alena Macková, Daniela Vajbarová)
- Local media development; local media community integration function (Lenka Waschková Císařová)
To study these issues, we conduct our own research and also participate in national and international research projects, i.e.:
- THINLINE project – The thin line between disorder and a healthy lifestyle: Investigating the online behavior of today’s youth
- New behavioral addictions: Games and sexuality online
- Revealing Factors of Excessive Online Gaming and its Development over Time
- EU Kids Online III
- Risks of Internet Use for Children and Adolescents
- Coping Strategies with Cyberbullying among Adolescents (COST)
- New and old media in everyday life: media audiences at the time of transforming media uses
- The experimental research on online behavior of ICT users, using the perspectives od social sciences, law and informatics
Our other activities include the publication of the online journal Cyberpsychology: Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace and participating in the organization of the Cyberspace conference. We also teach courses in the psychological and social implications of Internet use, and supervise students at Masaryk University with thematically corresponding research.
You can find more information about IRTIS researchers and their publications at their profiles or browse our projects and IRTIS publications in the menu on the left.
