Jessica A. F. Thompson

I study learning in humans and machines, in individuals and in groups.

I’m interested in how people learn, teach, communicate, and work together to solve problems. So far I have approached these questions mainly by building neural network models of individual learning, studying large language models from a cognitive science perspective, and developing AI tools to support human learning. In my new lab, I’ll extend this work to learning in groups.

I am currently a postdoctoral researcher in Chris Summerfield’s group at the University of Oxford. In December 2026 I will join the School of Psychology and Neuroscience at the University of Glasgow as a Lecturer. I did my PhD at the University of Montreal, at the International Laboratory for Brain, Music & Sound Research (BRAMS) and Mila (the Quebec AI Institute), where I compared representations in artificial neural networks and the human auditory system.

Where I’m heading

Cognitive science has traditionally studied the abilities of individuals in isolation. But in real life, we rarely do anything truly alone: we are always learning and working together. Humanity’s greatest achievements come from our capacity to learn from and with each other and to organize ourselves around shared goals, and many of the defining crises of our time reflect our failure to do so.

At Glasgow, I will continue to study the computational principles of human learning while centering the fact that all human learning is socially embedded. When people learn together, a group can become wiser than any of its members, or it can amplify its members’ errors and biases. I want to know what separates the wisdom of crowds from the madness of mobs.

These questions matter well beyond the lab. Many of the problems we now face can only be solved by large groups acting together, and that is exactly where coordination is hardest. As Nick Chater and George Loewenstein write in It’s On You, paraphrasing Mancur Olson, “the concentrated interests of the few are so powerful because they can most easily be aligned and coordinated to carry through a coherent plan of action. But coordinated action by the many, once achieved, is unstoppable.” In a hyperconnected, globalized world, our actions have far-reaching effects that are difficult to anticipate, and we did not evolve to reason in such a world. I want to do research that supports the collective intelligence and coordinated action of the many, perhaps with the help of new technologies.

Interested in working with me? I’m looking for students and collaborators. See join.