The research group, research centers and lines of research at FGV ECMI focus on investigating topics, objects and phenomena of Communication in interaction with Social Sciences and Data Science. Our researchers focus on studies with academic and technological approaches.
Democracy, State and Politics on Digital Media:
This research line encompasses studies that examine the many intersections between Democracy, Communication and Politics in digital media. Its grounds are the theoretical-methodological articulation of several areas, such as Communication, Linguistics, Political Science and Data Science. It welcomes researchers interested in topics such as digital democracy, digital government and governance, online political communication, political action and activism in digital media, online campaigning, online deliberation and the public sphere, digital participation and transparency, disinformation and the circulation of political information in digital environments, and regulation and political economy of digital communication.
Technology, Culture and Society:
This research line involves studies focusing on the impact of digital communication means, processes and practices on cultural, political and economic aspects of society. Based on a multidisciplinary approach, research projects in this line seek to investigate how the interactions, processes and structures of digital communication permeate the different dimensions of contemporary sociability. It also focuses on understanding how the digitalization and datafication of life manifests itself in the way citizens, public organizations and the private sector interact.
Research Centers
The Center for Communication, Political Behavior, Discourse and On-line Disinformation (COPO-D) investigates the implications of using technology, digital platforms and media in political attitudes within the public sphere and in the formation (and distortion) of public opinion. The studies carried out by COPO-D focus on the relationships between communicational, discursive and socio-political phenomena established in interactive media. Through an interdisciplinary perspective that encompasses areas such as Social Sciences, Communication and Linguistics with Data Science, the research agenda in this center encompasses topics such as public discussion, electoral campaigns, fake news, political manipulation, populism, digital activism and electoral processes, using mixed methods and a multi-platform perspective.
Pol&Inova analyses the participation of the public and private sectors in the definition, planning and execution of policies related to the impacts of technology in processes of democratic deliberation and in the production and circulation of cultural and informational goods. This center is interested in studies about governments and digital government, open data, transparency, inequality in the access and production of information, communication and culture, and the impacts and effects of artificial intelligence on democracy. The center also focuses on economic and social approaches related to Digital Communication, the creative industry and smart cities in Brazil and in the globalized world. In the context of Political Economics of Communication, the Pol&Inova analyzes the transformations brought the Informational Capitalism, in which the role of communication and information became a central part of economic development in the 21st century. This includes ramifications of this approach, such as studies about surveillance capitalism, data colonialism, algorithmic governance, and internet and labor platforming.
This center focuses on research based on communicative phenomena in order to investigate how the use of digital technology affects the construction of the social imaginaries, the forms of sociability, the interaction between subjects and the production of content. It is also interested in a critical understanding about how digital platforms and technologies work, as well as their materialities and languages. Study topics in this center include internet cultures, interaction and sociability on digital platforms, digital entertainment, human-machine communication, social perceptions based on artificial intelligence, production and circulation of multimedia content, digital humanities and digital methods, and more.
Research Groups
1) The group Communication, Society and Digital Media develops applied research based on an interdisciplinary perspective in the field of Digital Communication together with Social Sciences and Data Science.
Its study objects are communicational processes and complex social phenomena structured around technologies and digital platforms, focusing on the relationships between (dis)informative flow, sociotechnical mediations, digital engagement, and the reconfiguration of today’s public sphere.
2) The group Political Sociology and Digital Transformations investigates the different expressions and processes related to the struggle for power in contemporary societies. Based on the increasing importance of mediated communication for social dynamics, the group is part of an agenda that seeks to update and unveil the old and new mechanisms of social power, an essential topic in Political Sociology.
The main interests include debating the appropriation and strategic use of digital media in the struggle for power between the state, the elite and society, reflecting on the mechanisms of persuasion and control of public opinion, and discussing new forms of contemporary activism and collective mobilization.
3) The Innovation Cube – Laboratory for Research and Production in Immersive Environments investigates the changes digital technology could bring about regarding the forms of interaction, communication and social practices. It comprises studies that propose uses and appropriations of these technologies to develop solutions in different contexts. It also promotes experimentation with digital technologies in the field of communication and practical approaches to product concepts.
There is a focus on experimental, empirical, applied and critical research into the potential of digital technologies from a social innovation perspective.
The Undergraduate Research projects at the School of Communication, Media and Information at Fundação Getulio Vargas seek to promote academic production among undergraduate students, encouraging them to participate in research projects and contribute to developing scientific methodologies. These projects seek to promote learning, creativity and technical skills involved in scientific work.
Institutional Program for Undergraduate Research Scholarships (Programa Institucional de Bolsas de Iniciação Científica – PIBIC)
In 2023/2024, undergraduate students at FGV ECMI will be able to participate in the Institutional Program for Undergraduate Research Scholarships (Programa Institucional de Bolsas de Iniciação Científica – PIBIC). The program receives funding from Fundação Getulio Vargas.
Students will also be able to participate in Voluntary Undergraduate Research, which encourages academic exchange and scientific research.
Modelo de Projeto Inicial
Lista de Potenciais Orientadores por linha de pesquisa e tópicos de interesse
PIBIC public call 2023/2024
