Research Leadership · Trust & Decision-Making

Julie A. Vera, Ph.D.

Research leader studying trust, credibility, and decision-making in high-stakes digital information environments.

I build research programs that help teams understand how people evaluate information, form trust, and make consequential decisions across AI-generated content, marketplaces, platformed media, and severe weather information systems.

Julie Vera
Oct 2026 · "Making Sense of the Weather, Together" publishes at CSCW Jun 2026 · Invited talk, SAP UA Futures Group Nov 2025 · HAI '25 publication on social AI chatbots Apr 2025 · CHI '25 publication on TikTok content control
12+ yrsResearch & analytics experience
Ph.D.Human Centered Design & Engineering, University of Washington
0→1Research functions built at Monster and AutoNation
CHI · CSCW · ISCRAMPeer-reviewed HCI publications

Research that shapes product and organizational strategy

Research strategy & roadmap ownership

Setting the research agenda that informs what gets built and why.

0→1 research function building

Standing up research infrastructure, method, and vocabulary where none existed.

Trust, credibility & decision-making research

Studying how people decide what to believe under uncertainty and risk.

AI-generated content & synthetic media perception

Where AI-authored content earns trust, and where it doesn't.

Crisis information & platformed expertise

Public sensemaking during severe weather and other high-stakes events.

Marketplace search & decision support

Consumer trust and discovery in two-sided marketplaces.

Research Territory

The through-line

How do people decide what to trust when information is fast-moving, consequential, uncertain, and mediated by platforms or AI systems?

Severe weather livestreams & weatherfluencers Platform-mediated expertise under real-time risk.
AI-generated product content & synthetic media Where AI-authored content earns trust, and where it doesn't.
Trust & safety, misinformation, platform governance How platforms shape collective sensemaking.
Marketplace decision-making & credibility signals Trust as a driver of consumer and job-seeker behavior.
Human-centered research for high-stakes environments Research infrastructure for decisions that matter.

Writing & talks

All writing, talks & media →

Let's talk

For research leadership roles, collaborations, talks, writing, or strange high-stakes information problems, get in touch.

Contact