Last updated: 06/25/2025
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Max Erdemandi
Media Psychology & Social Behavior Researcher | Applied Statistician & Quantitative Methodologist
Max Erdemandi
Media Psychology & Social Behavior Researcher | Applied Statistician & Quantitative Methodologist
I am a Ph.D. candidate (ABD) in Communication Science & Social Cognition at the University of Maryland (advised by Dr. Anita Atwell Seate). I also hold an M.S. in Quantitative Methodology, Measurement, and Statistics from UMD, and an M.A. in Liberal Studies from Duke University. I serve on the faculty of the Global Terrorism Studies minor at UMD's National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START).
I am a Ph.D. candidate (ABD) in Communication Science & Social Cognition at the University of Maryland (advised by Dr. Anita Atwell Seate). I also hold an M.S. in Quantitative Methodology, Measurement, and Statistics from UMD, and an M.A. in Liberal Studies from Duke University. I serve on the faculty of the Global Terrorism Studies minor at UMD's National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START).
I study extreme cognitions and behaviors across several domains:
I study extreme cognitions and behaviors across several domains:
🧠 Psychometric measurement and statistical modeling
🧠 Psychometric measurement and statistical modeling
🛸 Dis/misinformation and conspiracy belief systems
🛸 Dis/misinformation and conspiracy belief systems
🗳️ Extremist identity expressions, discourses, and ideologies
🗳️ Extremist identity expressions, discourses, and ideologies
📺 Sociopolitical effects of social and entertainment media
📺 Sociopolitical effects of social and entertainment media
⚡ Risk, disaster, and emergency communication/management
⚡ Risk, disaster, and emergency communication/management
My dissertation, entitled “Strongly (Dis)Agree: Uncovering the Distorting Effects of Extreme Response Style (ERS) in Survey-Based Extremism Research,” is supported by UMD's Ann G. Wylie Dissertation Fellowship, Phi Delta Gamma Graduate Fellowship for excellence in interdisciplinary research, and the NCA's Doctoral Honors Seminar. I am also the 2025 recipient of the Charles Richardson Award, presented to the most outstanding doctoral student in the Department of Communication.
My dissertation, entitled “Strongly (Dis)Agree: Uncovering the Distorting Effects of Extreme Response Style (ERS) in Survey-Based Extremism Research,” is supported by UMD's Ann G. Wylie Dissertation Fellowship, Phi Delta Gamma Graduate Fellowship for excellence in interdisciplinary research, and the NCA's Doctoral Honors Seminar. I am also the 2025 recipient of the Charles Richardson Award, presented to the most outstanding doctoral student in the Department of Communication.
✉️ Email 📄 CV 🔗 LinkedIn 📖 Google Scholar
Research
Working Papers
Working Papers
Fragmented Fields, Shared Foundations: Mapping Social Identity Research on Fake News, Conspiracy Beliefs, and Extremism
✏️ Max Erdemandi
🏅 Top Student Paper, Group Communication Division, The 111th NCA Annual Convention, 2025
📘 In print, Handbook of Misinformation, Disinformation and Fake News, Ed. J. McAlaney
Evaluating Extreme Response Style (ERS) Effects on Model Fit: A Simulation Study on Person- And Item-Centric Approaches in Latent Measurement Models
✏️ Max Erdemandi & Sanford Student
✅ Accepted, Applied Communication Division, The 111th NCA Annual Convention, 2025
Thrills, Tears, and Deep State Fears: Entertainment Media Enjoyment as Predictor of Conspiracy Belief
✏️ Max Erdemandi & Anita Atwell Seate
📘 Under review, Communication Research Reports
💰 Supported by the Faculty Research Grant, Dept. of Communication, University of Maryland
The political effects of fictional narratives: Theory and methods
✏️ Jack Gierzynski, Max Erdemandi, Tom van Laer, & Anita Atwell Seate
✅ Accepted, Political Communication Division, 120th APSA Annual Meeting, 2025
📘 Manuscript being prepared for submission
Mapping Entertainment Media Motivations: Measure Development and Application
✏️ Max Erdemandi & Anita Atwell Seate
💰 Supported by the Faculty Research Grant, Dept. of Communication, University of Maryland
Psycholinguistic Cues of Secondary Traumatization in Close Relationships with Conspiracy Theory Believers
✏️ Max Erdemandi
News
06/15/2025
My paper "Fragmented Fields, Shared Foundations: Mapping Social Identity Research on Fake News, Conspiracy Beliefs, and Extremism" was awarded top student paper in Group Comm at NCA 2025.
05/22/2025
I graduated with my M.S. in Quantitative Methodology, Measurement and Statistics from UMD.
05/12/2025
I was awarded 2025 Charles Richardson Award, recognizing the most outstanding Ph.D. student in the COMM department.
01/15/2025
I was interviewed for SAGE's Media, Communication & Cultural Studies series, discussing my research on entertainment media enjoyment and conspiracy belief
12/30/2023
I was interviewed for NPR's American Homefront Project.
More
Peer-Reviewed Publications
Peer-Reviewed Publications
✏️ Max Erdemandi, Elena Savoia, & Michael Williams
📘 The National Institute of Justice (NIJ) Journal, 2024
✏️ Victoria McDermott, Amy May, A., Leandra H. Hernández, Max Erdemandi, Nick Mararac, Hamilton Bean, William T. Howe, Kurt Braddock, Stevie Munz, Precious Yamaguchi, & Alexa DiCamillo
📘 Journal of Applied Communication Research, 2022
Peer-Reviewed Conference Papers
Peer-Reviewed Conference Papers
How to predict misinformation? Exploring the latent psycholinguistic space
✏️ Max Erdemandi & Katherine Raymond
✅ Accepted, Applied Communication Division, The 109th NCA Annual Convention, 2023
The dark side of entertainment: Exploring the ties between entertainment media enjoyment and conspiracy belief
✏️ Max Erdemandi
✅ Accepted, Mass Communication Division, The 109th NCA Annual Convention, 2023
Masks don’t work: Ideology associations and the geospatial propagation patterns of COVID-19 disinformation on Twitter
✏️ Max Erdemandi
🏅 Top Student Paper, Mass Communication Division, The 107th NCA Annual Convention, 2021
QAnon casualties: A thematic analysis of secondary trauma effects of online extremist behavior on interpersonal relationships.
✏️ Max Erdemandi & Victoria McDermott
✅ Accepted, Mass Communication Division, The 107th NCA Annual Convention, 2021
Expansion of automated event coding for better understanding security analysis
✏️ Max Erdemandi, Rachel Augustine, Ryan Steed, & Lin Zhao
✅ Accepted, Conflict Division, ISA-South Annual Conference, 2017
Teaching
Instructor of Record
Instructor of Record
🔎 BSST338A/COMM398B: Misinformation, Conspiracy Theories, and the Radicalization of Modern Societies (Elective)
🌪️ BSST334: States of Emergency (Core)
💬 COMM107: Oral Communication: Principles and Practices (Gen. Ed.)
Teaching Assistant
Teaching Assistant
🖥 BSST338Y: The New Theater of Terror: Online Terrorism (Elective)
😱 BSST327: Introduction to Terrorism and the Terrorist Threat (Core)
🗃️ COMM250: Introduction to Communication Inquiry (Core)
📺 COMM303: Media Theory (Core)
📚 COMM304: Communication Research Literacy (Core)
💣 BSST630: Motivations and Intents of Terrorists and Terrorist Groups (Core)
Awards & Funded Research
Awards
Awards
🏅 The Charles Richardson Award for the Most Outstanding PhD Student, 2025
Dept. of Communication, University of Maryland
🏅 Top Student Paper in Group Communication Division, 2025
National Communication Association (NCA)
🏅 The Ann G. Wylie Dissertation Fellowship, 2025
The Graduate School, University of Maryland
🏅 The Doctoral Honors Seminar, 2024
National Communication Association (NCA)
🏅 The Jacob K. Goldhaber Travel Grant, 2023
The Graduate School, University of Maryland
🏅 Summer Research Grant, 2022, 2023
College of Arts & Humanities (ARHU), University of Maryland
🏅 Phi Delta Gamma Excellence in Interdisciplinary Research Award, 2021
The Graduate School, University of Maryland
🏅 Top Student Paper in Mass Communication Division, 2021
National Communication Association (NCA)
🏅 Top Panel in Communication and Military Division, 2021
National Communication Association (NCA)
🏅 Tuition scholarship (100%), 2011-2013
The Graduate School, Duke University
Funded Research
Funded Research
Administered by ORA (External)
The Road Less Traveled: Bolstering the Absorptive Capacity of Southern Central American States to Facilitate the Northern Triangle Immigrants [P.I. Dr. Marcus Boyd, UMD]
📝 U.S. Department of Homeland Security
💰 $200,000
📅 March 2020 – March 2021
Divergent Dimensions of Radicalization: Migration & Violent Extremism in Sabah [Co-P.Is. Dr. Barnett Koven, Dr. Amy Pate, UMD]
📝 U.S. Department of State
💰 $250,000
📅 September 2019 – September 2021
Counterterrorism Net Assessment Data Structure/CTNEADS [P.I. Dr. Barnett Koven, UMD]
📝 U.S. Department of Defense
💰 $375,000
📅 January 2019 - January 2020
Measuring Up: Aligning SOF and Interagency CT Efforts Across the Tactical, Operational and Strategic Levels [P.I. Dr. Barnett Koven, UMD]
📝 U.S. Department of Defense
💰 $100,000
📅 July 2019 - July 2020
Bargaining on and off the Battlefield: The Bargaining Model of War and Negotiations with the Afghan Taliban [P.I. Dr. Barnett Koven, UMD]
📝 Joint Special Operations University (JSOU)
💰 $95,000
📅 February 2019 - August 2019
Evaluating the Safe Spaces Community-Led CVE Program [P.I. Dr. Stevan Weine, UIC]
📝 The National Institute for Justice (NIJ), U.S. Department of Justice
💰 $940,000
📅 October 2018 - March 2019 .
Resources & Resilience: A Computational Modeling of Strategic Influence [P.I. Dr. William A. Rivera, Duke University]
📝 Minerva Research Initiative, U.S. Department of Defense
💰 $3,000.000
📅 June 2015 - June 2018
Not administered by ORA (Internal)
Mapping Entertainment Media Motivations: A Two-Part Study on Measure Development and Application [Co-P.Is Max Erdemandi, Dr. Anita Atwell Seate, UMD]
📝 Department of Communication, University of Maryland
💰 $5,000
📅 November 2023
Introduction to Communication Inquiry Assessment and Course Redesign [P.I. Dr. Anita Atwell Seate, UMD]
📝 Department of Communication, University of Maryland
💰 $6,000
📅 June 2023 – September 2023
Essentials of Intercultural Communication Assessment and Course Redesign [P.I. Dr. Nick Joyce, UMD]
📝 Department of Communication, University of Maryland
💰 $8,000
📅 June 2020 – September 2020
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