Topics
In general, more than one thesis is always possible on the same topic, and the topic can also be worked on by Bachelor’s and Master’s students to different extents or with different approaches, depending on the information provided.
| Topic | Description | Implementation/method(s) | Bachelor-/Master-Thesis |
| Creativity powered by AI? | MUSE is an AI-based assistant that helps people be more creative in conversations (both 1:1 and in group chats), particularly by fostering divergent thinking. MUSE achieves this by, among other things, asking quirky questions, providing exciting inspirations, or guiding users back from the solution space to the problem space to better understand customer needs. The goal of theses on this topic is to evaluate the effectiveness of MUSE using an experimental design. | Experiment | MA |
| Informal communication in the virtual workplace |
Informal communication is essential for building and maintaining interpersonal relationships and for the effective exchange of information within organizations. In the virtual environment, however, individuals face particular challenges because the familiar ways of spontaneous and informal interaction that occur naturally in physical work environments are more difficult to replicate. Theses on this topic can address a variety of issues, such as the development of an experimental paradigm for studying informal virtual communication (possibly through the integration of an online game), or the content or interaction analysis of informal communication in online chats. |
(Laboratory) experiment or secondary data analysis (content or interaction analysis); for bachelor theses: Literature review or content analysis |
BA/MA |
| Interaction analysis of virtual meetings | With increasing digitalization and challenges such as the Covid-19 pandemic, meetings have increasingly moved into the virtual space. At the same time, virtual meetings are often perceived as ineffective and exhausting. By analyzing specific interaction patterns, the aim is to investigate ways of optimizing virtual meetings. |
Secondary data analysis, with the possibility of own data collection in the field with corresponding practice partner, if necessary. | MA |
| Shared mental models in virtual collaboration |
Shared mental models are crucial for effective coordination and collaboration in teams, as they enable a common understanding of work processes, goals and role assignments. However, in virtual work environments, the construction of such shared mental models is particularly challenging, which can impair coordination and information sharing. The aim of this project is to investigate how best to capture and measure shared mental models in virtual teams. |
(Laboratory) experiment; for bachelor theses: Literature review |
BA/MA |
| Feedback as a tool to improve virtual meetings |
Feedback is an effective tool for improving virtual collaboration, especially when it is related to specific behavior. Questions on this topic should address the implementation and evaluation of feedback in virtual meetings.
|
Experiment (laboratory or field) | MA |
| Automated evaluation of virtual meetings | The increasing prevalence of virtual meetings in today’s working world poses new challenges for the analysis and improvement of communication in such meetings. In this context, this thesis investigates the automation of interaction analysis in virtual meetings. The aim is to explore more efficient and effective ways of evaluating and optimizing the flow of communication. The automation potential of live meeting coding is explored in analogy to developments in sentiment analysis, in particular through the use of a) lexicon-based algorithms, b) supervised and unsupervised machine learning, and c) Large Language Models (LLMs). |
Secondary data analysis (for BA only focus on lexical analysis) | BA/MA |
| Implementing hybrid work | As the need for flexibility in work organization increases, more and more companies are responding to their employees’ desire to adopt hybrid working models that enable a combination of office and mobile work. Depending on your interests, the thesis may examine effective strategies and tools for planning and coordinating office days in teams and/or for individuals, or changes resulting from the introduction of hybrid work in the company. | Depending on research question: Qualitative and/or mixed methods study; survey; secondary data analysis | BA/MA |