About me
Hi, I am Ashlee (Ash) Milton!
As a Ph.D. candidate in Computer Science at the University of Minnesota’s GroupLens lab, advised by Dr. Stevie Chancellor, I study users with mental health conditions’ experiences and interactions with information systems, like search engines and social media. The design of many sociotechnical systems does not consider such users, and I want to change that.
In my work, I strive to understand the experiences and needs of technologically marginalized users like children, people with LGBTQIA+ identities, and people with mental health disorders or neurodivergence. These users have important and diverse needs that are often not supported by current technology designs. I leverage qualitative and quantitative methods to explore maragnlized users’ needs. As people with the most insight into their own needs, I believe in centering users in my research to inform the design of systems to support their daily and digital lives.
Some of my work on TikTok that reveals how the FYP can both support and harm users with mental health conditions, mental well-being, has been featured in national media coverage and an international report on youth mental health. I want to continue doing work that allows me to keep asking and investigating important questions, in hopes of moving towards a future where technology can support everyone.