Dr. Nancy Jennings

Dr. Jennings’s research focuses on children’s use of media and technology and how families navigate a digital world. CHaT’s mission connects directly to this work: with each new technology, children are often among the earliest adopters. She has recently been conducting research with children and adolescents on their understanding of and interaction with AI as social agents, and she has used AI to generate experimental stimuli — animations that hold a narrative constant while varying the characters.

Her work has also expanded into creative practice through 360 VR development and the potential of AI to extend digital imagery for VR content. Forest Calls 2.0, a creative transmedia project, has grown her interest in the capacity of technology — including AI — to intersect with art for emotional expression and meaning-making.

Faculty profile: researchdirectory.uc.edu/p/jenninna