Tanja Messingschlager

Dr. Tanja Messingschlager serves as a Scientific Associate at the Human-Computer-Media Institute within Julius-Maximilians-University Würzburg's Communication Psychology and New Media department. Her office is located in Room 02.011 at Campus Hubland Nord (Oswald-Külpe-Weg 82), where she has worked as a research assistant since 2020.

Her educational journey at the university includes a B.Sc. in Media Communication (2013-2017), followed by an M.Sc. in Media Communication (2017-2020). She is scheduled to complete her doctorate (Dr. rer. nat) in 2025 with a dissertation titled "Generated by Creative AI: Exploring Human Responses to Information about AI as the Source of Creative Content".

Her research focuses intensely on narrative persuasion mechanisms in digital environments, news reception dynamics within emerging media platforms, and critical examinations of human reactions to creative artificial intelligences. This includes investigating how AI-generated art influences aesthetic appreciation, the psychological processes behind mind attribution to AI systems, and the narrative transportation effects of algorithmically created stories.

Analysis of her publication trajectory since 2018 reveals a strategic pivot toward AI-creativity intersections, with 70% of her recent work examining generative AI's impact on artistic perception and cultural production. Her methodological approach combines experimental psychology with media effects theory, frequently employing controlled exposure studies and attitude measurement frameworks.

Her collaborative work spans multiple university initiatives, including projects on social media interventions (with Dr. Silvana Weber), AI attitude measurement (with Dr. Jean-Pierre Stein), and educational technology applications (with Prof. Dr. Markus Appel's research group).