Philippe Sloksnath
Research & Teaching Assistant
Department of Communication and Media Research, University of Zurich
I am a Research and Teaching Assistant at the Department of Communication and Media Research, supervised by Tobias Dienlin at University of Zurich. Previously, I studied psychology at the University of Zurich. My research is situated in Communication Science, Psychology and Human–Computer Interaction. I care about statistical inference and transparent, reproducible research practices.
Feel free to reach out — I’m always happy to chat about research, collaboration, or anything else. Email: p.sloksnath[at]ikmz.uzh.ch.
I am an Editor for DOCA - Database of Variables for Content Analysis. The open access database compiles, systematizes, and evaluates relevant content-analytical variables of communication and political science research areas and topics. It serves as a foundation for answering questions about research designs and operationalizations resorting to content analysis and helps standardize and compare studies. Here is the link for our Call for Submissions.
I am interested in understanding how AI systems influence human beliefs, attitudes and behavior, how this may impact our society and how AI-based persuasion relates to perceived autonomy. In particular, my research interests include:
AI-based persuasion: I study how AI-generated content shapes attitudes and beliefs, and what makes AI-produced messages more or less persuasive than human-authored ones.
Misinformation: I examine how we can improve people’s detection of false or misleading information, and how it affects people’s beliefs and decisions.
Human–computer interaction: I explore how people engage with and form mental models of AI systems, including the social and psychological consequences of interacting with AI in everyday contexts.
Open science: I value scientific integrity and strive to make my research as reliable, transparent, and reproducible as possible. Please reach out if anything is unclear, insufficiently reported, or not reproducible.
Publications
Coming soon.
Preprints
Krämer, M. D., Sloksnath, P., Andrae, R., Hungerbuehler, L., Hopwood, C. J., Haehner, P., & Bleidorn, W. (2026, April 18). A systematic review and meta-analysis of personal and contextual characteristics related to time spent in solitude. Link
Ruggeri, K., Valenzuela-Catarí, G., Polemiti, E., … Sloksnath, P., … Macchia, L., Ashcroft-Jones, S., Pelica, S. (2025, November 9). Global well-being in 2025: A multidimensional analysis of mental, financial, and social health in 92 countries. Link
Sloksnath, P. (2025). Delegating Moral Decisions to AI Systems. Master’s thesis, University of Zurich. Link
Stock, F., Pelica, S., Ashcroft-Jones, S., Stablum, F., … Sloksnath, P., … Ruggeri, K., Hertwig, R., Lorenz-Spreen, P. (2024, December 16). People in 26 countries prefer individual control to commercial or governmental control over online choice architectures. Link
Career
Division of Media Psychology and Methods, Department of Communication and Media Research, University of Zurich
PhD Project: Examining media effects of AI-generated information, with a focus on influencing factors related to trustworthiness and persuasion
IDea_LAB, University of Graz
Statistical data analysis of pilot studies and experiments and visualizations with Prof. Dr. Markus Kneer
Policy Research Group, University of Cambridge
Visiting Research Student
Division of Individual Differences and Assessment, Department of Psychology, University of Zurich
Student Assistant / Tutor — Data curation and preparation, topic modelling, language processing, and meta-analysis on the topic of solitude with Dr. Michael D. Krämer. Tutor for the lecture on Test Theory with Dr. Lisa Wagner.
Conaptis GmbH, Switzerland — Project Assistant (40%)
Support in projects concerning the implementation of occupational health management, workshops, and lectures, as well as administrative tasks
Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen SRF, Switzerland — Staff Archive (40%)
Revision of formal metadata in the archive database