Research

New technologies rarely enter public life as neutral tools. They arrive through platforms, institutions, and relationships that shape who is trusted, whose concerns are taken seriously, and who is expected to bear the risks when systems fail.

My research examines these dynamics in contexts ranging from artificial intelligence and digital health information to public engagement with science. I am especially interested in the gap between how technologies are designed and governed and how people actually experience them in everyday life.

By studying public attitudes, online discourse, and community perspectives, I aim to identify the social values and power structures embedded in emerging technologies and to show how communication can contribute to more responsive and accountable forms of governance.

Publications:

• Eom, D., Zhu, E., Mackey, C., Evans, J., Newman, T., Scheufele, D.A., & Brossard, D. (in press). Segmenting support for artificial intelligence: Exploring socio-epistemic orientations. Computers in Human Behavior Reports.

• Eom, D., Wiech, K., Weeden, S., Eberle, P., & Shaw, B. (in press). Engaging Students to Develop Culturally Responsive Extension Programming to Support Hmong Farmers. The Journal of Extension.

• Eom, D., Renner, J., Zhu, E., Shao, A., Choi, S., Newman, T.P., Brossard, D., & Scheufele, D.A. (2026). Augmentation or Autonomy? Public Concerns and Regulatory Intentions Across AI Contexts.Technology in Society.

• Eom, D., Chinn, S., & Renner, J. (2026). Who Shapes Health Narratives on TikTok? Evaluating Content Sources and Discourse Quality in Comments on Reproductive Health Videos.International Journal of Sexual Health.

• Eom, D., Middleton, L., Luo, S., Li, N., & Brossard, D. (2025). Familiarity matters: Examining the effects of AI-generated images on science information credibility. Science Communication.

• Eom, D., Molder, A., Tosteson, H.A., Howell, E.L., DeSalazar, M., Kirschner, E., Goodwin, S.S., & Scheufele, D.A. (2025). Race and Gender Biases Persist in Public Perceptions of Scientists’ Credibility. Scientific Reports.

• Villanueva, I.I., Eom, D., Cate, A.R., Krause, N. M., Scheufele, D.A., & Brossard, D. (2025). Emerging Debates About Breakthrough Science: Understanding the Interplay of Values and Cognition in Shaping Attitudes on Human Brain Organoids. Science Communication.

• Eom, D., Newman, T., Brossard, D., & Scheufele, D. A. (2024). Societal guardrails for AI? Perspectives on what we know about public opinion on artificial intelligence. Science and Public Policy.

Manuscripts Under Review:

• Eom, D., & Renner, J. Intimacy as service, harm as externality: Critical perspectives on AI companion platform accountability. Under R&R at New Media & Society.

• Eom, D., Jeong, T. S., & Chinn, S. Digital boundaries: Family rules, device access, and adolescent mental health. Submitted to Journal of Child and Family Studies.

• Eom, D., Middleton, L., Scheufele, D., & Brossard, D. Do no harm or do more good? Ethical moderators of the perceived naturalness of AI and algorithm aversion. Submitted to AI and Ethics.

• Williamson, L., Eom, D., & Finke-Klachko, S. Exploring acknowledgment of medical racism: An experimental test of intergroup apologies. Submitted to Health Communication.

• Eom, D., & Renner, J. Intimate strangers by design: A uses and gratifications analysis of AI companionship. Submitted to Social Media + Society.

• Wellman, M., Chinn, S., Renner, J., Lopez, A. I., Eom, D., Rose, V., Hiaeshutter-Rice, D., & Hasell, A. “Take what you need and leave the rest”: Navigating the intersections of wellness behaviors and political affiliations. Submitted to Health Communication.