University of Michigan School of Information assistant professor Robin Brewer was awarded a prestigious grant from the National Science Foundation, the NSF CAREER award. Brewer will receive $591,076 over five years to fund her research.

Brewer’s research, “Voice Technologies for Helping Older Adults Navigate Uncertain Information in Decision Making,” will examine how to nudge older adults towards better information decisions when using voice technologies. Voice technologies are helpful to those who experience vision, motor or cognitive disabilities, but they can also create difficulties in evaluating a site’s credibility.

Brewer says she was inspired by the experiences her older family members and friends have when interacting with technology. “Older adults are often targets of scams and fraud so the frequency of having to navigate mis/disinformation can be higher than other groups,” she explains. 

Brewer hopes her research will help make voice technologies better for older adults who are accessing information in high-risk contexts such as health issues or the news. “I am super excited to be doing this work with older adults,” she says, noting that the grant will also fund a group of older adults to be research partners and almost like project advisors.  

Although her first research steps will focus on older adults, she says everyone who uses voice technologies can have trouble assessing credibility. “It is also my hope that these findings will be applicable to other populations,” she says.

"This grant is foundational to improved information access to marginalized communities,” says Brewer. “I'm proud to use my skills to make digital access better.”

The National Science Foundation CAREER awards are given in support of early-career faculty who have the potential to serve as academic role models in research and education and to lead advances in the mission of their department or organization. Activities pursued by early-career faculty should build a firm foundation for a lifetime of leadership in integrating education and research.

—Sarah Derouin, UMSI public relations specialist