Christopher Dietzel
Christopher Dietzel, Ph.D. (he/him) is a postdoctoral fellow whose work explores the intersections of technology, safety, health, gender, and sexuality. Dr. Dietzel works with听the iMPACTS Project, the ,听and the , and he is a co-investigator on . Dr. Dietzel's recent projects focus on LGBTQ+ people's experiences with dating apps and social media, and he investigates the barriers, harms, and violence that people face when using these digital platforms.
Dr. Dietzel's work has been published in English, French, Spanish, Japanese, Russian, and Indonesian. Dr. Dietzel est francophone et il sera content de vous parler en fran莽ais.听christopher.dietzel [at] mcgill.ca (subject: Interview%20request) (Click here to contact Dr. Dietzel / cliquez ici pour contacter Dr. Dietzel.)
Research Experience 触听Professional Experience
Media & Interviews | Consultations & Community Work | Workshops & Panels
Academic Publications | Public Reports 触听Editorial Work听触听Scholarly Presentations
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Research Experience
Dr. Dietzel works with听iMPACTS: Collaborations to Address Sexual Violence on Campus, which听aims to address sexual violence on university campuses across Canada and internationally. Dr. Dietzel is part of听the , which explores how digital media, digital technologies, and digital cultures are shaping intimate relationships, gender, and sexuality.听Dr. Dietzel also conducts research with the听, which examines health issues among people of diverse genders and sexualities.听Dr. Dietzel is a co-investigator on , which investigates young people's experiences with technology-facilitated sexual violence and aims to develop resources that promote digital safety among youth.听
Dr. Dietzel earned his PhD from听好色TV. His dissertation, , investigated听sexual violence that gay and queer men experience via dating apps.听
Dr. Dietzel was selected as the in the at .听In 2020鈥�2021, Dr. Dietzel worked on a collaborative project that investigated听.听In 2019, Dr. Dietzel was awarded听a 听to work as a visiting scholar at 听and conduct听research听on a grant about听.
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Professional Experience
Dr. Dietzel has taught undergraduate and graduate students, including in the 听at Dalhousie University in Canada, the Department of Integrated Studies in Education at 好色TV in Canada, and the 听at l'Universit茅 de Montpellier in France.
Dr. Dietzel also worked in student affairs/student services, including听at 好色TV's听Campus Life & Engagement (CL&E)听and in the 听at the University of Michigan. While in Singapore, Dr. Dietzel facilitated the听, an international, cross-cultural leadership development program for students from 听and .
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Media & Interviews
Dr. Dietzel's research revolves around technology, safety, and health, and he is an expert in social media and dating apps. Dr. Dietzel's research focuses on LGBTQ+ people and other marginalized populations, and he can speak about a range of topics, including online dating, consent, sexual violence, physical safety, and mental health.
Dr. Dietzel has done live and recorded interviews for TV, radio, and podcasts, and his work has been published in English, French, Spanish, Russian, and Indonesian. Dr. Dietzel est francophone et il sera content de passer une entrevue en fran莽ais.
Here are some news/media organizations that have interviewed Dr. Dietzel:
- The Atlantic
- CBC Radio
- CTV News
- Radio Canada
- CityNews
- Metro World News
- The Canadian Press
- TVA
- Le Devoir
- Future of Good
christopher.dietzel [at] mcgill.ca (subject: Interview%20request) (Click here to contact Dr. Dietzel / cliquez ici pour contacter Dr. Dietzel.)
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Consultations & Community Work
Dr. Dietzel has developed policies and consulted organizations about apps, safety, consent, and other topics. Dr. Dietzel enjoys partnering with businesses and community groups to provide tailored information that fits the needs of local and international populations.
Here are some organizations that Dr. Dietzel has worked with:
- AIDS Community Care Montr茅al (ACCM)
- Centre communautaire LGBTQ+ de Montr茅al
- Meta and Facebook Canada
- Office of Sexual Violence Response, Support and Education at 好色TV
- Public Safety Canada
- R脡ZO, sant茅 et mieux-锚tre des hommes gais et bisexuels, cis et trans
- Sexual Assault Resource Centre at Concordia University
- Toronto Triggerfish Water Polo Club
- United States Consulate General Montreal
christopher.dietzel [at] mcgill.ca (subject: Interview%20request) (Click here to contact Dr. Dietzel / cliquez ici pour contacter Dr. Dietzel.)
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Workshops & Panels
Dr. Dietzel has a background in education, and he enjoys sharing his expertise with diverse populations. Dr. Dietzel has designed curricula and facilitated workshops in both French and English for people of all ages. Dr. Dietzel has also spoken on panels about a variety of topics, including safety, consent, mental health, discrimination, harassment, sexual misconduct, and online dating.
Here are some organizations that Dr. Dietzel has worked with:
- Australian Federation of AIDS Organisations
- Brain Canada
- Centennial College
- Centre PHI
- Club Sexu
- Concordia University
- Halifax Support Group for 2SLGBTQ+ Immigrants
- La Barak : Maison des jeunes de Granby
- Lanark County Interval House
- Les 3 sex*
- 好色TV
- Meridan ACT
- Mohawk College
- New Zealand Classification Office
- Nova Scotia Barristers' Society
- Ontario Digital Literacy and Access Network (ODLAN)
- Pride at Work Canada
- Portail VIH/sida du Qu茅bec
- R脡ZO, sant茅 et mieux-锚tre des hommes gais et bisexuels, cis et trans
- Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP)
- Simon Fraser University
- University of King's College
- University of Ottawa
- Village Montr茅al
- York University
- 2U Inc.
christopher.dietzel [at] mcgill.ca (subject: Interview%20request) (Click here to contact Dr. Dietzel / cliquez ici pour contacter Dr. Dietzel.)
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Select Publications
Dietzel, C., Blair, C., O鈥橲hea, B., Bello, B., & Numer, M. (2025). Digital platforms as equivocal health promotion: Examining the mental health of 2SLGBTQ+ people related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Homosexuality, 1鈥�28.
Kalwani, N., Dietzel, C., & Dunn, S. (2025). Systems-level problems require systems-level responses: An intersectional analysis of Canadian secondary schools鈥� responses to technology-facilitated sexual violence. Canadian Journal of Communication, 50(2), 178鈥�194.
Webber, V., O鈥橲hea, B., Yurkovich, C., Oswald, A., Dietzel, C., Feicht, B., Furlotte, K., Holmes, D., & Numer, M. (2025). Digitally facilitated sex work: A scoping review articulating men鈥檚 labor experiences. The Journal of Sex Research, 1鈥�13.
Dietzel, C., Bello, B., O鈥橲hea, B., Cullum, J., & Numer, M. (2025). Old bonds never break: A scoping review of older LGBTQ+ adults鈥� use of online technologies for social connections during the COVID-19 pandemic. International Journal of Health, Wellness, and Society, 15(2), 63鈥�89.
Myles, D., & Dietzel, C. (2024). Beyond rainbows and unicorns: Revisiting the promises and challenges of digital media for LGBTQ+ communities. Canadian Journal of Communication, 49(3), 363鈥�369.
Dietzel, C. (2024). Les applications de rencontres et leurs affordances : Comment la violence sexuelle facilit茅e par la technologie est att茅nu茅e et perp茅tu茅e chez les hommes ayant des relations sexuelles avec des hommes. Canadian Journal of Communication, 49(3), 428鈥�455.
Webber, V., McCready, S., Yurkovich, C., Dietzel, C., Feicht, B., Joy, P., Holmes, D., & Numer, M. (2024). Are queer men queering consent? A scoping review of sexual consent literature among gay, bisexual, trans, and queer men. International Journal of Sexual Health, 36(3), 359鈥�383.
O鈥橲hea, B., Dietzel, C., & Numer, M. (2024). Making progress? An examination into the development of undergraduate students鈥� consent beliefs in the United States and Canada. The International Journal of Interdisciplinary Educational Studies, 20(2), 110鈥�128.
Dietzel, C. (2024). Clickable consent: How men who have sex with men understand and practice sexual consent on dating apps and in person. The Journal of Sex Research, 61(3), 481鈥�494.
Duguay, S., Dietzel, C., & Myles, D. (2024). The year of the 鈥渧irtual date鈥�: Reimagining dating app affordances during the COVID-19 pandemic. New Media & Society, 26(3), 1384鈥�1402.
Dietzel, C., Bello, B., O鈥橲hea, B., Cullum, J., & Numer, M. (2024). Mental health of LGBTQ+ people during the COVID-19 pandemic: A scoping review. Advances in Mental Health, 22(2), 122鈥�152.
Sanabria, S., & Dietzel, C. (2023). 鈥淚 can be sued for that?鈥�: When university community members are sued for defamation in response to allegations of sexual violence. Education & Law Journal, 32(2), 151鈥�184.
Dietzel, C. (2023). Exploring connections between sexual violence and dating apps: A focus on the experiences of men who have sex with men. In S. Shariff & C. Dietzel (Eds.), Interrupting sexual violence: The power of law, education, and media (pp. 219鈥�239). Peter Lang.
Shariff, S., Dietzel, C., Macaulay, K., & Sanabria, S. (2023). Misogyny in the metaverse: Leveraging policy and education to address technology-facilitated violence. In H. Cowie & C. A. Myers (Eds.), Cyberbullying and online harms: Preventions and interventions from community to campus (pp. 103鈥�116). Routledge.
Dietzel, C.听(2022). 鈥淚'm not your fantasy鈥�: Sexual racism, racial fetishization, and the exploitation of racialized men who have sex with men. In J. J. Fellows & L. Smith (Eds.), Gender, sex, and tech! An intersectional feminist guide (pp. 101鈥�120). Canadian Scholars/Women鈥檚 Press.
Dietzel, C. (2022). The three dimensions of unsolicited dick pics: Sexual minority men鈥檚 experiences of sending and receiving unsolicited dick pics on dating apps. Sexuality & Culture, 26, 834鈥�852.
Myles, D., Duguay, S., & Dietzel, C. (2021). #DatingWhileDistancing: Dating apps as digital health technologies during the COVID-19 pandemic. In D. Lupton & K. Willis (Eds.), The COVID-19 crisis: Social perspectives听(pp. 79-89). Routledge.
Dietzel, C. (2021). 鈥淭hat鈥檚 straight-up rape culture鈥�: Manifestations of rape culture on Grindr. In J. Bailey, A. Flynn, & N. Henry (Eds.), The Emerald international handbook of technology-facilitated violence and abuse (pp. 351-368). Emerald.
Albury, K., Dietzel, C., Pym, T., Vivienne, S., & Cook, T. (2021). Not your unicorn: Trans dating app users鈥� negotiations of personal safety and sexual health. Health Sociology Review, 30(1), 72鈥�86.
Namaste, V., Gaspar, M., Lavoie, S., McClelland, A., Sims, E., Tigchelaar, A., Dietzel, C., & Drummond, J. D. (2021). Willed ambiguity: An exploratory study of sexual misconduct affecting sexual minority male university students in Canada. Sexualities, 24(8), 1041鈥�1060.
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Select Public Reports
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Select Editorial Work
Myles, D., & Dietzel, C. (Eds.). (2024). Au-del脿 des arcs-en-ciel et des licornes: Revisiter les promesses et les d茅fis des m茅dias num茅riques pour les communaut茅s LGBTQ+ / Beyond rainbows and unicorns: Revisiting the promises and the challenges of digital media for LGBTQ+ communities [Special issue]. Canadian Journal of Communication, 49(3).
Dietzel, C., & Towfigh, K. (Eds.) (2024). Pandemic injustice: Navigating legal and policy lines during the COVID-19 pandemic. Peter Lang.
Shariff, S. & Dietzel, C. (Eds.) (2023). Interrupting sexual violence: The power of law, education, and media. Peter Lang.
Shariff, S., Dietzel, C., & Towfigh, K. (Eds.). (2020). Sexual violence: Impacts on and implications for the intersections of law and education. [Special Issue.] Education & Law Journal, 29(2).
Shariff, S., Dietzel, C., & Jaswal, N. (Eds.). (2017). Navigating the minefield: Responding to legal and educational dilemmas in addressing sexual violence in universities. [Special Issue.] Education & Law Journal, 27(1).
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Select Presentations
Duguay, S., Dietzel, C., Filice, E., Parry, D. C., & Johnson, C. W. (2024, 30 October 鈥� 2 November). 鈥淧rove to other users that you鈥檙e a real person鈥�: Tracing dating apps鈥� carceral logics. Association of Internet Researchers (AoIR), Sheffield, United Kingdom.
Dietzel, C., & Mendes, K. (2024, June 30鈥揓uly 4). 鈥淚鈥檝e seen animals get hit by cars and fly鈥�: Technology-facilitated violence and algorithms. International Association for Media and Communication Research (IAMCR), Christchurch, New Zealand.
Nau, C., Dietzel, C., Dodge, A., Dunn, S., & Mendes, K. (2024, June 20鈥�24). Technology-facilitated sexual violence: The struggle to define. International Communication Association (ICA), Gold Coast, QLD, Australia.
Dietzel, C., Duguay, S., Filice, E., Parry, D., & Johnson, C. (2024, June 18鈥�21). Beyond the swipe: Interrogating dating app approaches for sustaining user safety. Canadian Communication Association (CCA), Montreal, QC, Canada.
Dietzel, C., Samardzic, T., Mendes, K., Dodge, A., & Dunn, S. (2023, May 29鈥揓une 2). Technology-facilitated sexual violence: Education and policy responses from Canada鈥檚 provinces and territories. Canadian Sociological Association (CSA) Conference, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Mendes, K., Dietzel, C., Dodge, A., & Dunn, S. (2023, May 29鈥揓une 2). DIY - Digital Safety: Supporting young people in schools, social relationships and on social media. Canadian Sociological Association (CSA) Conference, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Dietzel, C., & Numer, M. (2023, May 28). Coping with COVID: The mental health of LGBTQ+ people during the pandemic. International Communication Association (ICA) Conference, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Yurkovich, C., Matchett, B., Webber, V., Dietzel, C., & Numer, M. (2023, May 17). 404 Not Found: The health and safety of men/transmasc folks doing Internet-mediated sex work. Sexy Messy: A Digital Sexual Cultures Virtual Symposium, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.
Dietzel, C. (2023, May 8). Les m茅thodes num茅riques et participatives : Comment impliquer les parties prenantes dans les processus de la recherche. Le Congr猫s de l鈥橝CFAS, Montr茅al, QC, Canada.
Dietzel, C., Bamidele, B., Matchett, B., Cullum, J., & Numer, M. (2023, March 10鈥�11). Queering digital connections: Exploring the impacts of technology and the COVID-19 pandemic on older 2SLBGTQ+ adults. Crossroads Interdisciplinary Health Research Conference, Halifax, NS, Canada.
Numer, M., & Dietzel, C. (2022, May 31 鈥� June 1). Dating/hookup apps as digital health technologies: Tensions around gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men鈥檚 health and safety. Digital Health Communication: Issues and Perspectives (ICA Post-Conference), Dijon, France.
Numer, M., & Dietzel, C. (2022, May 26鈥�30). Sex, drugs, and the internet: An investigation into how health promotion service providers frame wired sex assemblages among men who have sex with men. International Communication Association (ICA) Annual Conference, Paris, France.
Dietzel, C. (2022, May 16鈥�20). 鈥淏e Fit. Be White. Be鈥︹��: Sexual racism and issues of consent among queer men dating app users. Canadian Sociological Association, online conference.
Dietzel, C. (2021, November 18鈥�21). The three dimensions of unsolicited dick pics: The experiences of men who have sex with men on dating apps. The Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality (SSSS) Annual Conference, hybrid conference, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Dietzel, C., Numer, M., & Joy, P. (2021, October 28鈥�29). The practices and perils of sex, drugs, and online technologies: Exploring the experiences of gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men. Community-Based Research Centre (CBRC) Summit 2021, online.
Dietzel, C. & Numer, M. (2021, September 2-3). How to keep LGBTQ+ people safe on dating apps. Eleventh International Conference on Health, Wellness & Society, Sorbonne Universit茅/online, Paris, France.
Dietzel, C. & Duguay, S. (2020, December 2). Dating and hook-up apps, digital publics, and the COVID-19 pandemic: Participatory engagement with app materials and affect. Digital Intimacies 6.0, online/in-person conference, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
McCosker, A., Albury, K., Maddox, A., Barrett, M., & Dietzel, C. (2020, October 27-31). Digital cultures of care, safety and wellbeing. Association of Internet Researchers (AoIR), online.
Dietzel, C., Myles, D., & Duguay, S. (2020, September 30-October 2). United in queerantine: Sex, safety, and solidarities on queer dating hookup during the COVID-19 pandemic. Futures of Feminist and Queer Solidarities, online.
Dietzel, C. (2019, December 9-11). Transgender and gender non-binary people鈥檚 experiences with intimacy while dating. Digital Intimacies 5.0, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.
Dietzel, C. (2019, September 1-4). Rape culture on dating apps designed for men who have sex with men. European Conference on Domestic Violence, Oslo, Norway.
Dietzel, C. (2019, February 7-9). Non-consensual sexual conduct on queer dating apps: Examining tensions experienced by men who have sex with men. Sites Queer, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Dietzel, C. (2018, August 9-10). Sexual violence in LGBTQ+ communities and rape culture on dating apps. American Sociological Association (ASA) Sexualities Pre-Conference, Philadelphia, PA, United States.
Dietzel, C. (2018, January 24-26). Safer social connections among dating app users. iDate Online Dating and Dating Industry Conference, Miami, FL, United States.
Dietzel, C. (2018, January 21). Insta-Gratification: What does a healthy relationship with social media look like?听Students in Mind: Mental Health Conference, Montreal, QC, Canada.
Dietzel, C. (2017, August 15-17). An overview of LGBTQ rape culture and sexual violence among gay-identified males. National Conference on LGBTTIQ2AS Human Rights, Montreal, QC, Canada.
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