Global Convergence Contest Research Center, Holds the Virtual 2021 International Conference 

The Global Convergence Contest Research Center (GCCRC)and the SKKU Convergence Institute for Culture, Arts, and Media will hold a Virtual International Conference on May 7 (Friday) under the theme of New MediaTechnologies and Social Impact: Creative Solutions for Community Well-being and Values. 

There will be presentations of renowned professors from a total of 10 external institutions in eight countries around the world and a separate session for graduate students. 

This year’s event will be held online (ZOON) according to the social distancing rules due to the spread of COVID-19. The details of eventand prior registration are available through the link below. Those who want to make a presentation, please do contact us via email. 

International Conference Overview

Date: May 7 (Friday), 2021

Location: ZOON (Participation time and access method will be provided to the applicants individually later) 

Host: Global Convergence Contest Research Center(GCCRC) and the SKKU Convergence Institute for Culture, Arts, and Media

Pre-registration period: Before April 30 (Friday)

Registration fee: Free

How to register: Apply for participation via Google link(https://forms.gle/BoGkN9JERG4XReNZA)

Inquiry: SKKU Convergence Institute for Culture, Arts,and Media 02-740-1777, chungjiy@skku.edu

CONFERENCE THEME

New Media Technologies and Social Impact:
Creative Solutions for Community Well-being and Values

The GCCRC 2021 Conference, theme of which is New Media Technologies and Social Impact: Creative Solutions for Community Well-being and Values, calls for our examination of how new media technologies bring about various societal harms as well as solutions to them. Without doubt, new media technologies have had profound societal impacts; the real question is whether the innovative technologies make society better or worse and what determines the nature of the impacts that various communication technologies could have on the society. Some scholars argue that certain types of technology use cause (rather than solve) more problems while others point out that technologies can help us overcome various challenges if used properly. For example, the AR/VR experiences can elicit more empathy toward minority groups, and AI chatbots can help people manage depression. Topics of conference presentations may include the patterns, causes, or mechanisms of societal harms from media and communication technologies and positive pro-social impact of the technologies on community well-being and values. Conceptual, theoretical, and empirical research can be presented at this conference. This theme invites scholars to consider a wide variety of media technology-related problems, including (but not limited to) the following: 

• Misinformation, opinion polarization, filter bubble
• Community involvement, empathy, trust, isolation issues
• Digital media and public/mental health
• Cyberbullying, online hate
• Excessive media use
• Youth self-perception problems
• Cyber/data security
• Human-technology interaction problems
• Digital divide, the gap between demographics and regions

Opening Remark
Heejo Keum, Professor, Director, Global Convergence Content Research Center,
Vice President, SKKU Convergence Institute for Culture, Arts, and Media
Sungkyunkwan University, South Korea 

Moderators
Hyun Soon Park, Professor, Vice President of International Affairs,
Sungkyunkwan University, South Korea

Mihye Seo, Professor, Dean, Graduate School of Media and Culture,
Sungkyunkwan University, South Korea

Seyoung Lee, Professor, Department Chair, Department of Media and Communication,
Director, Media, Culture and Contents Research Center,
Sungkyunkwan University, South Korea

Speakers

	Homero Gil de Zuniga, Professor, Univ of Salamanca, Spain; Penn State Univ, USA
	Jorg Matthes, Professor, Univ of Vienna, Austria
	Laramie Taylor, Professor, Univ of California, Davis, USA
	Saifuddin Ahmed, Assistant professor, Nanyang Technological Univ, Singapore
	Sebastián Valenzuela, Associate Professor, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile
	Tanikawa Miki, Associate Professor, Graduate School of Global Communication and Language, Akita International University, Japan
	Shaojin Sun, Professor, School of Journalism, Fudan University, China
	Shu-Fang Lin, Professor, College of Communication, National ChengChi University, Taiwan
	Amanda Damiano, Assistant Professor, School of Communication and the Arts, Marist College, USA
	JeongHyun Lee, Young ICTD Fellow, United Nations University, China Macau, SAR Institute on Computing and Society(UNU-CS)