Noshir Contractor will be delivering an inaugural address at the ICA India Chapter’s 1st Anniversary Celebration Symposium on April 22, 2025.

The event, hosted by the University Department of Extension & Communication at SNDT Women’s University (Juhu Campus, Mumbai), will also feature inaugural remarks from Prof. Ujwala Chakradeo, Hon’ble Vice Chancellor of SNDT Women’s University, and Dr. B.P. Sanjay, Chair (working) of the ICA India Chapter and core member of the ICA Regional Hub in Manipal.

📅 Date: April 22, 2025
🕤 Time: 9:30 AM IST
🔗 Join virtually

The SONIC Lab at Northwestern University is excited to announce the publication of our latest paper: “Modeling the ‘who’ and ‘how’ of social influence in the adoption of health practices” , now out in Social Networks!

Co-authored by Neelam Modi, Johan Koskinen, Leslie DeChurch, and Noshir Contractor

Using rich social network and behavioral data from two Kenyan communities, this study finds that mere exposure to adopters isn’t enough. What really matters is who talks about a practice and how they talk about it. Persuasive conversations, especially among close friends and family, significantly increase uptake. Interestingly, the most commonly used messages aren’t always the most effective.

🔗 Read the paper

We’re thrilled to share that Journal of Applied Communication Research (JACR) Volume 53, Issue 1 (2025) is live! This edition explores resilience in the context of media, caregiving, and scholarly collaboration across the globe.

A special shoutout to Noshir Contractor and Leslie DeChurch for their featured Forum article: “We Are a go for launch! working with NASA to forecast and improve team dynamics in space missions”

Their piece highlights groundbreaking work with NASA, forecasting and enhancing team dynamics in space missions—a perfect example of translating communication research into high-stakes, real-world impact.

Read the full issue here!

Noshir Contractor has been selected for the 2025-26 Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University (CASBS) Fellows Class, a lineup of interdisciplinary scholars pushing boundaries in the behavioral and social sciences!  The class is comprised of 33 scholars and practitioners representing 18 U.S. institutions and 12 international institutions and programs. Meet the 2025-26 fellows here: https://bit.ly/4lmkiS2

Noshir Contractor participated in the “Balancing AI across Regulation, Innovation & Safety” panel at the UK – India AI Conference 2025 today. He joined leading experts in two panel discussions, exploring the vital intersections of AI development concerning regulation, innovation, and safety. He started at the “Automation vs. Augmentation: Finding the Right Balance for the Future of Work” panel discussing theintersection of AI with workforce dynamics. He then contributed to “Balancing AI across Regulation, Innovation & Safety” panel.

The paper “The Differential Impacts of Team Diversity as Variability Versus Atypicality on Team Effectiveness,” published in Scientific Reports, examines how two types of team diversity—variability and atypicality—affect team performance. Authored by Neelam Modi, Alina Lungeanu, Leslie DeChurch, and Noshir Contractor, this research explores whether teams with varied backgrounds or those with members who all share an underrepresented status work better and why. This study provides important insights for organizations looking to improve their team strategies.

🔗  Access the full study here: Read it now!

SONIC Lab had a productive week at the NASA Human Research Program Investigators’ Workshop in Galveston, TX from Jan 28-31, 2025! Here are some highlights from our presentations:

Oral Presentations:

1. “Teams that SIRIUSly Go the Distance: Effect of Isolation and Confinement on Team Performance” – DeChurch, Chan, Lungeanu, Contractor
2. “TEAMSTaR: Supporting Resilient Teams to Go the Distance” – Contractor, Chan, Lungeanu, DeChurch, Bell

Poster Presentations:

1. “PRISM: Performance Reimagined in Spaceflight Multiteam Systems” – Chan, DeChurch, Contractor
2. “Paired for Success: Operationally Building Crew Communication” – Chan, Sudarsan, DeChurch, Lungeanu, Bell, Contractor
3. “Improving Space Mission Success Through Team State-Building Activities” – Qian, Chan, Lungeanu, DeChurch, Bell, Contractor

We also presented “Collective Attention in Spaceflight Multiteam Systems: Mitigating the Negative Impact of Communication Delays” at the workshop.

Professor Contractor, a distinguished researcher from Northwestern University, discussed innovative strategies in digital education that are shaping the future of learning. The session provided valuable insights into the integration of technology in educational settings, highlighting both current achievements and future potentials in digital learning.

Thank you for joining us at the International Conference on “Elevating Academic Standards and Practices in Higher Education”!

SONIC Director Noshir Contractor joined the Center for Culture-Centered Approach to Research and Evaluation (CARE) to speak about network science and how it can support applied communication scholarship. Professor Contractor spoke as part of the second lecture in the Future Directions of Applied Communication Research Lecture Series (https://youtu.be/6WvVHpYpRkc). Read more here.

On July 15th, SONIC Director Noshir Contractor participated as a panelist at an event celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Internet, held at the Royal Society in London. Fellow panelists include Sir Nigel Shadbolt from Oxford, Dame Wendy Hall from Southampton, Vicki Nash from Oxford Internet Institute, and Hannes Werthner from Technical University of Vienna. Panelists were joined by respondent Vincent “Vint” Nerf, the co-inventor of Internet. Read more about the event here.