Welcome Aria Kalforian

Aria holds a BSc in Computer Science (with a minor in Philosophy) from the Lebanese American University and an MSc in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) from the University of Trento. Her path into HCI grew from a realization that she was less interested in how technology is built and more fascinated by how people actually experience and are shaped by it. Before joining TU Dortmund, she was a graduate researcher at Fondazione Bruno Kessler (FBK) in Italy. Building on her Master’s research, she conducted empirical studies examining how conversational AI design shapes emotional and behavioral outcomes. Her work showed that subtle shifts in an AI’s persona can meaningfully influence users’ confidence, engagement, and emotional well-being.

Aria describes herself as a researcher of the "human side" of AI. She is primarily interested in how AI-driven technology influences human behavior, emotions, and identity. Particularly, how social media algorithms and Large Language Models (LLMs) shape users and society. At the Chair of Human–AI Interaction, she aims to investigate the psychological and social friction that can arise when people turn to digital systems for social and emotional support, including dynamics such as miscalibrated trust, over-reliance, and dependency. Using human-centered methods, she seeks to design and evaluate interventions, such as transparency cues, ethical choice architectures, and interaction guardrails, to reduce harm while preserving human agency and well-being in AI-mediated environments.