Dr. Giasson is Associate Professor in the Information and Communication Department at Université Laval in Québec CityThierry Giasson, from Université Laval in Québec City, is visiting the New Political Communication Unit (NPCU) from February-April 2014. Dr. Giasson is currently working on two research projects investigating online political campaigns and digital citizenship.

The first project looks at how political parties in Québec and France campaigned online during their last legislative and presidential elections (respectively) in 2012. During his stay at the NPCU, Dr. Giasson will be working on an article addressing strategic objectives of online campaigns. He will give a lecture on this research in the Department of Politics and International Relations Seminar series on March 18th. This comparative project will end next year with the production of a book dedicated to these two campaigns.

Dr. Giasson’s second project investigates online citizenship in Canada. In the vein of other national large scale studies such as those carried by the Pew’s Center Internet and American Life Project, this SSRHC funded research will address how Canadians use online technologies to engage politically and experience their citizenship. The study will be carried over the next 4 years (2013-2017). Initial results from the first wave survey currently in the field will be analyzed in April. A paper highlighting the data (the first of its kind produced in Canada) will be also be presented at next year’s IPSA conference in Montréal.

Over the course of his stay at Royal Holloway College, Dr. Giasson will also be giving guest lectures at Bournemouth University, the Oxford Internet Institute, Lund University and the Université de Paris-Est.

Thierry Giasson is Principal Investigator for the Groupe de recherche en communication politique and Member of the Center for the Study of Democratic Citizenship