Michael Carter

Dr. Michael Carter received his Ph.D. in Communication from University of California, Davis, where his research has focused on the intersection of media and mental health among young adults and adolescents. Most recently, his work has begun to advocate for a shift in social media effects research towards studying social media within the bounds of a personal social media use framework (i.e., Personal Social Media Ecosystem Framework [PSMEF]). The account argues that the increasing diversification and personalization seen across the commercial social media landscape provides novel opportunities to uncover how social media design may affect kids’ and teens’ health by targeting cross-platform design patterns. Dr. Carter’s recent publications focused on advancing the PSMEF to help systematize social media effects research by centering user-centric environments, cross-platform design spaces, and future-orientated theorizing as a basis for studying social media as an evolving, socio-technical phenomenon.