Welcome

Hello, I’m Kristen Bowen, Ph.D.

I recently completed a contract UX researcher position in product research at Reddit. I am on the job market, seeking full-time employment opportunities in industry conducting user/ux research. I have strong expertise in Social Media connected research with a focus on inclusive design.

My research experience spans six years, with a background in providing research services to faculty, staff, and students in various colleges. I engage in a user-centered approach to investigating the social media & technological experiences of various populations. I employ surveys and qualitative research methods to explore topics such as the following: the best practices for integrating remote work into the future to support diversity & inclusion; research into the online information behavior of those who have experienced pregnancy loss; a critical examination of the level of diversity within disability studies; exploring the information behavior of racial minority youth & developing services to support; and determining the information exchange experiences of Black adults, who have had concerns for their mental wellbeing in connection to rape.

I am affiliated with the Center for Critical Race & Digital Studies and the Center for Information Technology & Public Life. Summer of 2021, I completed an internship with Microsoft Research, where I designed and implemented a study on the remote work experiences of Black adults. From my research findings, I developed a guide to be published on Microsoft’s New Future of Work Initiative website, “Research-backed Guide: Basic Tips for Fostering Inclusion of Black American Employees.”

I conducted my dissertation research on the information exchange experiences of Black young adults (18-39) related to their mental well-being regarding sexual violence they have experienced. This study utilized an innovative approach (using written-only focus groups within Discord to preserve anonymity and privacy) to participatory design to envision what this population needs from a space created to support their mental health.

Recent News:

• (06/22) Began a UX Researcher position in Product Research at Reddit.
• (05/22) Graduated from my Information Science Ph.D. program.
• (04/22) Defended my dissertation research, Sexual Violence, Black Survivors, & Moving Beyond Resilience: Developing Mental Health Support Spaces Based on Online Information Behavior.
• (10/21) Co-authored paper, Navigating “Danger Zones”: Social Geographies of Risk and Safety in Teens and Tweens of Color Information Seeking accepted to Information, Community and Society.
• (10/21) Online Information Behavior After Pregnancy Loss: An Interview Study, accepted, with minor revisions, to The Journal of Medical Internet Research: Formative Research.