An Overview . . .

I split my time between Stanford University and industry innovation, working mostly in Silicon Valley.

At my Stanford lab, the Persuasive Technology Lab, we're focused on tech for creating health habits, automating behavior change, persuading people via mobile phones (mobile persuasion), and the psychology of Facebook. The next conference I’m organizing is Mobile Health 2010. See my Stanford page for more info.

(Should you follow me on Twitter? Maybe. I tweet about once a day.)

In industry I help good organizations use tech and new media to influence people. In general, I leverage what I learn at Stanford to achieve client goals in industry. It's a great time to be a psychologist who investigates how tech persuades people. You can see my innovation page for topics of expertise. I like to speak and teach on these topics.

Fortune Magazine recently listed me as one of “10 New Gurus You Should Know.” (Yes, that’s me in lotus position.) I’m sure many people deserve guru status more than I do, but I appreciate the nod . . . so thanks, Fortune.

If you're interested in captology, check out my book: Persuasive Technology: Using Computers to Change What We Think and Do. But that's not all. We put together an unusual book: Mobile Persuasion: 20 Perspectives on the Future of Behavior Change. Summary: Mobile phones will become the #1 platform for persuasion. The book explains why. If you’re into health promotion, you might be interested in this

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As you read more of my work, you’ll see that I'm deep into investigating the psychology of Facebook. In Fall 2007 I taught an unusual Facebook course with Dave McClure. During the 10-week quarter, our students' projects persuaded more than 16 million people to install the apps they created. The secret? Psychology and metrics (and some really amazing students, of course). I recently taught another new course on what makes Facebook so persuasive. From that course we’re creating a new book: The Psychology of Facebook. My investigations into Facebook build on my lab’s previous research into how Web 2.0 companies motivate and persuade people.

Last year I also taught an experimental class of sorts: “Facebook for Parents.” Some people question the need for (and wisdom of) such a class. The parents who are enrolled are very appreciative. My sister and I will teach this class again. In the meantime, if you want more info, check out our new book on Amazon.



Perhaps the most unusual work I'm doing these days is Peace Innovation. In a big step forward, my lab has spun out the Peace Innovation Lab at Stanford. The vision is to inspire people to use the power of innovation to create a substantially more peaceful world. The timeframe: 30 years. This is an ambitious vision, but I believe it is entirely possible. But it’s not just us working alone. Achieving this goal will require thousands of innovations from around the world. The good news: Today’s new technologies can create peace in ways never before possible.

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My lab team and I keep a blog (sometimes): Captology Notebook.

The other pages here explain more about my work. You’ll also get insight into my work by viewing this (outdated) list of resources I’ve created.

The fact is my website might not always be fully up to date. But I hope the content here gives you a sense of me and my work.

BJ Fogg