Mentor: Dr. Laura Doering
Associate Professor of Strategic Management and Sociology
Project Description
This project examines how long-term thinking is cultivated and sustained within organizations, focusing on the Centre for Effective Altruism (CEA) and the global effective altruism (EA) movement. While many efforts to promote future-oriented behavior rely on short-term nudges, this research asks a deeper question: how do organizations reshape members’ moral priorities so that distant, uncertain futures come to feel urgent and worth acting on?
The research uses a mixed-methods, international design that combines qualitative and quantitative approaches. The RA will receive hands-on training in qualitative data collection, including conducting and helping to analyze semi-structured interviews with EA members and organizational leaders. If physically present in Toronto, the RA may also participate in ethnographic observations at EA events and meetings, learning how to collect and write field notes and analyze in-person interactions.
This is an excellent opportunity for a student interested in mixed-methods research. In addition to qualitative training, the project includes a substantial quantitative component analyzing publicly available data on philanthropic funding and community demographics within EA. Depending on interest and skills, the RA may also become involved in data cleaning, descriptive statistics, and exploratory quantitative analysis, gaining exposure to how qualitative and quantitative evidence are integrated within a single research project. Overall, the RA will develop practical research skills, gain experience working on an international, multi-year study, and contribute to cutting-edge sociological research on time, morality, and organizational decision-making.
Mentorship Statement
Mentoring students is one the great joys of my job. I love supporting students in developing their research skills and helping to launch them on the exciting paths they pursue post-graduation. I have been fortunate to work with a team of excellent research assistants in the past. Many of my RAs have gone on to graduate school or to conduct applied research in organizations. I look forward to working with a student in the SROP program as he or she learns about the research process and considers how it might shape their future.