About Me
I am a social scientist who examines the relationships between social media and the self. My research
program focuses on how people view themselves differently on social media than in offline contexts,
and how cultural background influences this relationship. I incorporate a range of methods in my research, including cross-sectional and
longitudinal designs, self and other reports, and behavioral data collected via logged smartphone use.
My ultimate goal is to bridge ideas across disciplines to promote healthy relationships between
people and technology.
I am an Assistant Professor of Media Psychology in the School of Communication at
Emerson College. I direct the Selves and Media Laboratory and teach courses in communication, media, psychology,
and research methods.
I am committed to open and inclusive scientific practices (see OSFHome ) and am eager to
collaborate. I look forward to connecting with you 😊
Selves and Media Lab
Media (modes of communication beyond face-to-face) complicate our self-narratives. Media can
help, enhance, and expand the self, but also constrain, deter, and limit the self. The Selves and Media
Laboratory examines this duality.
I am passionate about mentoring students. Students with an interest in media, technology, psychology, social
science, statistics, and related fields should consider joining the lab (email:
cameron.bunker@emerson.edu.). Student research assistants will particularly benefit if pursing a
graduate education (e.g., Masters or PhD) or the following career paths:
Academic research (e.g., college or university professor)
Industry research (e.g., data scientist)
Statistician
Clinical psychologist
I actively involve students in my research, as evidenced by co-authorship on publications
and presentations (see my CV). I have mentored over 50 students (including 18 theses/independent projects), many of whom have given presentations at national conferences and have gone
on to do Master's and Ph.D. degrees or positions in technology or business industries.
I especially encourage students from historically underrepresented backgrounds to consider joining the lab. Indeed, media do not influence everyone equally, nor has the influence on people been
equally distributed across groups. I value the impact that diverse mentees have on my research
agenda concerning the self and social behavior in a diverse and digital world and am eager to provide
spaces for their success.
The following publications are representative of the topics we examine in the lab:
Bunker, C. J., & Kwan, V. S. Y. (2024). Similarity between perceived selves on social media and offline and its relationship with psychological well-being in early and late adulthood.
Computers in Human Behavior, 152, 108025. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2023.108025 PDF
Bunker, C. J. & Kwan, V. S. Y. (2023). Deviation from design: Social media use is linked to less connection between the self and others. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, & Social Networking. https://doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2022.0372 PDF
Bunker, C. J., & Varnum, M. E. W. (2021). How strong is the association between social media use and false consensus? Computers in Human Behavior, 125, 106947. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2021.106947 PDF
Bunker, C. J., Saysavanh, S. E.*, & Kwan, V. S. Y. (2021). Are gender differences in the Big Five the same on social media as offline? Computers in Human Behavior Reports, 3, 100085. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chbr.2021.100085 PDF
For more on what we study:
Bunker, C. J., Margraf, J., & Brailovskaia, J. (2025). Social media addiction moderates links between perceptions of freedom and mental health in the United States and Germany.
Psychology of Popular Media. https://doi.org/10.1037/ppm0000618 PDF
Bunker, C. J., Balcerowska, J. M., Precht, L., Margraf, J., & Brailovskaia, J. (2024). Perceiving the self as authentic on social media precedes lesser negative mental health: A longitudinal approach.
Computers in Human Behavior. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2023.108056 PDF
Bunker, C. J. & Kwan, V. S. Y. (2021). Do the offline and social media Big Five have the same dimensional structure, mean levels, and predictive validity of social media outcomes? Cyberpsychology: Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace, 15(4). https://doi.org/10.5817/CP2021-4-8 PDF