SC Connecticut News

Yale University recently welcomed Yuan Hsiao as an assistant professor in the Department of Sociology. Hsiao's research focuses on how social networks influence behaviors both online and offline. His work delves into the processes behind human connections, examining how these structures affect phenomena such as political participation, religious spread, and health-related behavior.

Hsiao employs a range of methods in his research, utilizing digital data, administrative records, survey experiments, and agent-based simulations. He began his tenure at Yale in July 2024 after previously working at the University of Washington.

In a recent interview for the "Office Hours" series, Hsiao discussed his approach to social science questions using multiple data sources. He explained that significant social science questions require diverse data types to provide comprehensive answers.

Reflecting on his past experiences in Taiwan during internet-based protests for freedom of speech and assembly in 2008, Hsiao noted: "By organizing on the internet — rather than the conventional approaches organizations used to mobilize people during...the civil rights movement in the United States — we were making all sorts of new connections through social media."

One study he conducted explored whether network structures on social media enable or inhibit protest participation. Hsiao found that while digital networks facilitate high-cost political behaviors like strikes or rallies, they limit low-cost actions such as spreading memes or signing petitions.

Currently, Hsiao is investigating how emotions spread through social media networks and their impact on political participation. He aims to understand how quickly spreading emotional content interacts with slower-spreading political behaviors.

Outside academia, Hsiao enjoys statistical modeling and hiking with his family. He also has a penchant for wine tasting.

For further inquiries about Yuan Hsiao's work or other topics related to Yale University’s Department of Sociology, contact Bess Connolly at elizabeth.connolly@yale.edu.