Hey there!
I am a community-centered and impact-oriented researcher who uses qualitative and quantitative methods to uncover the socio-technical practices of underserved and disadvantaged communities. Currently, I am a postdoctoral research fellow at the Center for Technology, Innovation and Competition at UPenn Law School, and working on 1 World Connected project that examines the social and economic impact of Internet connectivity initiatives for the unconnected communities around the world. I received my Ph.D. in Communication and Information at Rutgers University. Prior to that, I was a USAID Research and Innovation fellow at the University of Cape Town in South Africa.
Along with my research trajectory, I examined the information and communication technology (ICT) adoption and use by immigrant women entrepreneurs in New York City, broadband adoption by low-socio economic communities in the U.S., social media use of media organizations in Afghanistan, and ICT use by under-resourced communities in Africa (For further details see Projects). I conducted research funded by USAID, EveryoneOn, New America, Internews Media, IBM, Yahoo, and National Science Foundation.
On a personal note, I’m of Turkish descent and got my bachelors in Psychology at Bogazici University in Istanbul. My name “Müge” comes from the French word Muguet and pronounced as my.gɛ (Audio Paris). Following the completion of my PhD, I did my first cross-country motorcycle trip in Vietnam, and am currently writing a blog on this adventure from my perspective as a social scientist. When I’m not doing research, I’m likely listening to an interesting podcast, biking, swimming or hiking.
Thanks for visiting!
