Austin van Loon

Austin van Loon is the Class of 1956 Career Development Assistant Professor and an Assistant Professor of Work and Organization Studies at the MIT Sloan School of Management. He is a standing faculty member of the Organization Studies program, a core faculty member of the Economic Sociology program, and a faculty member of the Managerial Communications group. Van Loon's research examines how people make sense of the world around them, and how that process shapes what they do — especially in contexts of disagreement, ambiguity, and conflict. His research includes topics such as the cultural sources of different immigration attitudes, how the design of online platforms shapes political conversation, and how artificial intelligence is changing higher education. He also develops tools and frameworks for using artificial intelligence rigorously in social science research. Van Loon teaches Communication for Leaders, a core MBA course designed to equip students with persuasive strategic communication skills crucial for driving meaningful organizational change.

Austin van Loon is a researcher in computational social science, focusing on identity, culture, and intergroup relations. His work explores how computational methods can enhance understanding of social dynamics, including the role of language, technology, and virtual reality in shaping human behavior. Van Loon's research integrates artificial intelligence and large language models to analyze social phenomena, such as cognitive empathy, dehumanization, and societal change. His publications address the predictability of life outcomes, the impact of social media on political dialogue, and the accuracy of social scientists' forecasts. His studies often emphasize the interplay between technology and human behavior, offering insights into how digital tools can inform social science research.