Mikayla Novak is a doctoral student in the School of Sociology at The Australian National University. Her thesis will focus on the characteristics and implications of social media activity upon social change. A key mechanism for further investigation is the selection and diffusion of ideas through dynamic online microblog networks, allowing for empirical testing of the relative strength of social selection and influence effects amongst individuals and groups.

An economist by academic and professional background, Mikayla Novak’s research has appeared in peer-review journals such as Research Policy, Asia & The Pacific Policy Studies, Constitutional Political Economy, Journal of Public Finance and Public Choice, Journal des Economistes et Etudes Humaines, and Journal of Entrepreneurship and Public Policy. Her first book, Inequality: An Entangled Political Economy Perspective, was published by Palgrave Macmillan in 2018. Mikayla has edited journal series, contributed multiple chapters to edited academic books, prepared book reviews, and produced policy briefing papers.