Dr. Franziska Laaber, BA BSc MSc

Applied Social Psychology and Consumer Research

Department of Psychology
University of Vienna
Universitätsstraße 7
A-1010 Vienna

Office: C0715 (NIG)

Email: franziska.laaber@univie.ac.at

Appointments only by arrangement.

I have been a postdoctoral research assistant at the SoKo lab since February 2026. My research involves applying theories from social psychology to the digital environment to gather evidence-based knowledge concerning the impact of digital technologies on individuals and society. I am particularly interested in understanding how digital transformations influence people’s well-being and decision-making processes, and how these influences can be mitigated. My focus is on understanding the mechanisms that shape how people are affected by digital challenges, with the aim of expanding knowledge on protective factors such as digital maturity. I contribute to research projects funded by the EU, including DIGYMATEX and DIAMOND.  

I completed my doctorate in the Department of Applied Social Psychology and Consumer Research at the University of Vienna, and was enrolled on the Vienna Doctoral School in Cognition, Behavior and Neuroscience (CoBeNe). I am currently training to be a psychotherapist specialising in behavioural therapy ("Verhaltenstherapie"; currently in training under supervision) at the Austrian Society for Behavioral Therapy (ÖGVT). Prior to this, I gained industry experience in international human resources.

Current Position

Postdoctoral researcher (EU project), University of Vienna, Austria 

Education  

2022 – present 
Behavioral psychotherapy training (Fachspezifikum), Österreichische Gesellschaft für Verhaltenstherapie (ÖGVT), Vienna, Austria 

2020 – 2024 
Doctoral Studies, Doctorate School CoBeNe, Psychology, University of Vienna, Austria 

2014 – 2016 
Master of Science, Applied Psychology, University of Vienna, Austria 

2010 – 2014 
Bachelor of Science, Psychology, Unviersity of Vienna, Austria 

2008 – 2012 
Bachelor of Arts, Education Science (Bildungswissenschaft), University of Vienna 

Selected publications

  • Koch, T., Laaber, F., Arenas, A., & Florack, A. (2025). Socially (disconnected) in a connceted world: The role of young people's digital maturity. Computers in Human Behavior, 163, 108473, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2024.108473
  • Koch, T., Laaber, F., & Florack, A. (2024). Socioeconomic status and young people's digital maturity: The role of parental mediation. Computers in Human Behavior, 154, 108157. doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2024.108157
  • Laaber, F., Koch, T., Hubert, M., & Florack, A. (2024). Young people's digital maturity relates to different forms of well-being through basic psychological need satisfaction and frustration. Computers in Human Behavior, 152, 108077. doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2023.108077
  • Laaber, F., Florack, A., Koch, T., & Hubert, M. (2023). Digital maturity: Development and validation of the Digital Maturity Inventory (DIMI). Computers in Human Behavior, 143, Article 107709. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2023.107709

Selected conferences

  • Laaber, F., Florack, A., Koch, T., & Hubert, M. (2023, July 4). Young people’s digital maturity: Development and initial validation of the Digital Maturity Inventory (DIMI) [poster presentation]. 19th General Meeting of the European Association of Social Psychology (EASP), Kraków, Poland.
  • Laaber, F., Florack, A., Koch, T., & Hubert, M. (2022, September 12). Digital maturity: Developing a comprehensive understanding and multi-dimensional digital maturity scale for adolescents [poster presentation]. 52nd DGPs Congress 2022, Hildesheim, Germany.