Jessica Vitak

@vitak.bsky.social

1.1K followers 260 following 180 posts

She/her. Professor at University of Maryland's iSchool. Director of the HCIL. General Chair for CSCW 2025. Research: privacy, surveillance, data ethics. https://jessicavitak.com

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Jessica Vitak is an American information scientist who is a professor at the University of Maryland. She is faculty in the University of Maryland College of Information (iSchool) and Communication Department. She serves as Director of the University of Maryland Human–Computer Interaction Lab (HCIL) and an Associate Member of the Social Data Science Center (SoDa). .. more

Communication & Media Studies 26%

Sociology 22%

Posts Replies Media Videos

Reposted by Jessica Vitak

ACM CSCW @acm-cscw.bsky.social · 9h

Want to catch up on the latest developments at CSCW? Curious about the budget, rolling deadlines, or volunteering? We've posted a blog with responses to the Q&A at the #cscw2025 town hall session, held during the conference. Read more here: medium.com/@acm-cscw/cs...

CSCW 2025 Town Hall Q&A

During CSCW 2025 in Bergen, we held a town hall session where we heard presentations by new steering committee chair Susan Fussell, as well…

medium.com

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 13h

So I encourage women experiencing symptoms to do some research and talk to their doctors about HRT if they're interested in pursuing this treatment. And everyone, cut us 40/50-somethings some slack. Our bodies really are not being nice to us.

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 13h

Peri-menopause symptoms generally start in people's 30s/40s and are quite unpleasant for many. You've probably heard about hot flashes, but night sweats, mood changes, sleep disturbances, cognitive changes like brain fog, weight gain, vaginal dryness and joint/muscle pain are also common.

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 13h

Women's health has long been neglected and women's symptoms long ignored/minimized, so this is extremely good news for women, especially considering every person with a uterus who lives long enough will experience menopause.

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 13h

I cannot take HRT because my breast cancer was hormone positive for estrogen and progesterone (the two main hormones used in HRT), but I have heard many positive things from other women taking it, with a significant increase in quality of life.

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 13h

The black box warning came 20+ years ago after a poorly designed study found a "statistically non-significant increase in the risk of breast cancer diagnosis." Because of this, many doctors have refused to prescribe it in the years since.

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 13h

For those who don't know, hormone replacement therapy (HRT) provides tremendous benefits to peri-menopausal / menopausal women, reducing the sometimes horrific symptoms of menopause while improving bone density and, for some, reducing cardiovascular risks as well as risks of some cancers.

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 13h

About f*ing time.
wapo.st/4p28Dci

FDA to lift warnings on menopause hormone therapy, potentially boosting access

The FDA is asking drug manufacturers to remove black box warnings on hormone replacement therapy for menopause, which could make it easier for women to access the treatment.

wapo.st

Reposted by Michelle L. Mazurek

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 4d

With the #chi2026 reviews coming out, I am posting my regular reminder to folks who do qualitative research. I have been curating a document with common critiques of qual research and how to respond. Check it out and add your own examples!
docs.google.com/document/d/1...

Reviewer Critiques (Qualitative Methods) and How to Respond to Them

Reviewer Critiques (Qualitative Methods) and How to Respond to Them Author: Jessica Vitak (+ anyone who adds to the document) About This Document (and a disclaimer) Reviewing is a highly subjective pr...

docs.google.com

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 4d

Wait, do most people have fungi friends? Am I missing out because I *don't* have a fungi friend? Where do I find a fungi friend -- should I just wander through the woods until I see someone?

WIRED @wired.com · 4d

For foragers, chefs, and mycologists—these are mushroom gifts every fungi lover will adore. www.wired.com/gallery/spor...

Mushrooms Galore: Best Gifts for Your Fungi Friend

For foragers, chefs, and mycologists—these are mushroom gifts every fungi lover will adore.

www.wired.com

Reposted by Jessica Vitak

WIRED @wired.com · 4d

For foragers, chefs, and mycologists—these are mushroom gifts every fungi lover will adore. www.wired.com/gallery/spor...

Mushrooms Galore: Best Gifts for Your Fungi Friend

For foragers, chefs, and mycologists—these are mushroom gifts every fungi lover will adore.

www.wired.com

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 4d

Yes and yes. :)

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 5d

The last search I chaired, we used an internal (university) system for submitting files that compiled them into a single PDF. I then individually downloaded each PDF for the search committee to evaluate.

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 19d

Gina Neff @ginasue.bsky.social : What the CSCW community is well positioned to do:

*recognize work of negotiating innovation
*prepare people for increased capacity
*map institutional constraints
*co-create social structures that bring people together

#cscw2025

Reposted by Luigina Ciolfi

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 19d

Gina Neff @ginasue.bsky.social : Innovation isn't disruption, it's negotiation.

How do you make room for negotiating innovation? Reconsider team environment and team structure. Add more time and space to figure out what works--and what doesn't.

#cscw2025

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 19d

Gina Neff @ginasue.bsky.social shares her research on the evolution of technology and how it is shaping AI and the future of work. #cscw2025

Reposted by Jessica Vitak

ACM CSCW @acm-cscw.bsky.social · 19d

Not only is General Chair @vitak.bsky.social running #CSCW2025 with Fabiano Pinatti, but she also gave a talk on research about helping incidental users navigate privacy risks in smart environments.

Reposted by Jessica Vitak

Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 19d

Our team presented five papers at the CSCW (computer supported cooperative work and social computing) conference this week in Bergen, Norway. (CSCW is an ACM conference and a “home conference” for my team.) I’m going to share a few highlights in a thread here.

Reposted by Jessica Vitak

ACM CSCW @acm-cscw.bsky.social · 19d

👋🏽 It's the final day of #CSCW2025! Gina Neff, Professor of Responsible AI at Queen Mary University London will be giving the closing keynote: 🎤 "Negotiating Innovation: What Construction's Digital Transformation Can Teach Us About AI and the Future of Work"

🕠 4:30pm
📍Peer Gynt-salen

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 19d

Jill gives background on how the paper and how hard it was to get feminist HCI research published at the time. #cscw2025

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 19d

Michaelanne encourages all of use to use our power to say the hard things. We need more honesty, vulnerability, and collective engagement. #cscw2025

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 19d

Michaelanne talks about joining this project before she even started grad school—she volunteered to get research experience and was immediately drawn to Jill’s research. This is what led her to get a human-centered computing PhD. #cscw2025

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 19d

Amy @asbruckman.bsky.social talks about the importance of partnering with people and orgs in the community of interest, and the need for humility in doing this research. #cscw2025

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 19d

Big congrats to Jill Diamond, Michaelanne Thomas, Daphne LaRose, and @asbruckman.bsky.social for winning the Lasting Impact Award for their 2013 paper Hollaback on the power of narrative.

#cscw2025

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 19d

It's the final day of #cscw2025! I can't believe how quickly the last week has gone by, but I'm feeling very energized by this community, and I'm especially looking forward to Gina Neff (@ginasue.bsky.social) giving the closing keynote this afternoon.

Reposted by Luigina Ciolfi, Jessica Vitak

Michelle O'Keeffe @michelleokeeffe25.bsky.social · 20d

Let’s put CSCW on the map 🗺️ if you’re attending #CSCW2025, be sure to connect with someone new and interact with our Community Art Installation, located in the coffee area on the first floor 😊 A great way to meet someone new and find a CSCW connection from across the globe! 🌍 @acm-cscw.bsky.social

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 20d

Tomorrow at #cscw2025, I'll be briefly taking off my General Chair hat to present a paper led by my student Sunyup Park on smart tech/incidental use/privacy. Read more about the paper here (it's open access!): dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/...

Session: Perspectives on Data Privacy
Wed 14:30, Dovregubben-1

In Search of

Smart devices--including speakers, cameras, TVs, and sensors--are increasingly used to enhance comfort, efficiency, security, and entertainment in and outside the home. These devices collect significant audio, video, and environmental data, and that data ...

dl.acm.org

Reposted by Amy Bruckman, Kate Starbird

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 20d

Amy Bruckman (@asbruckman.bsky.social) is sharing updates on CSCW's shift to rolling deadlines. You can read more about the process and apply to be on the editorial board here: Read more details about rolling and apply to be on the editorial board: medium.com/acm-cscw/csc...

#cscw2025

CSCW Rolling Submissions

CSCW is experimenting with a new format: rolling submissions. You will be able to submit work to CSCW whenever it is ready (no deadlines)…

medium.com

Reposted by Jessica Vitak

Michael Zimmer @michaelzimmer.bsky.social · 21d

@cfiesler.bsky.social, @vitak.bsky.social and I have another column in the @acm-sigchi.bsky.social newsletter on behalf of the SIGCHI Research Ethics Committee: "The Ethics of Consent: Reflecting on the Case of r/ChangeMyView"
sigchi.org/news/newslet...

Newsletters

ACM SIGCHI is the leading international community of students and professionals interested in research, education, and practical applications of Human Computer Interaction.

sigchi.org

Jessica Vitak @vitak.bsky.social · 21d

There are so many sessions in this space that one of the main clusters I created when doing the scheduling was Community Engagement and Activism!

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