This article develops an updated version of formality as an analytical framework in the comparative study of communicative situations, and especially of meetings. The discussion remakes Judith Irvine’s formality framework by adding to it the explanatory principle of practical rationality as used within Weber’s Interpretive Sociology. This conceptual move provides an efficient and accurate means by

A substantial body of research has investigated consumer perceptions of a product based on the country where it originated (CoO). Such judgments have been shown to fluctuate due to a number of factors, among them changes in political conditions. The current research shows that a key factor in CoO-based evaluations of products is the image of respective national leaders. In two experimental studies

In our research examining how people think and talk about immigration, we consistently find that people want to have a reasonable conversation about politics, but they often decide that productive conversations are not possible because other people are uninformed, irrational, close-minded, and uncivil. We argue that self-serving biases and phenomenological experiences lead to the biased perception

Algorithms are a ubiquitous part of organizations as they enable, guide, and restrict organizing at the level of everyday interactions. This essay focuses on algorithms and organizing by reviewing the literature on algorithms in organizations, examining the viewpoint of relationality and relational agency on algorithms and organizing, exploring the properties of algorithms, and concluding what these

Social bots, or algorithmic agents that amplify certain viewpoints and interact with selected actors on social media, may influence online discussion, news attention, or even public opinion through coordinated action. Previous research has documented the presence of bot activities and developed detection algorithms. Yet, how social bots influence attention dynamics of the hybrid media system remains

People are more likely to seek out romantic partners who are politically similar to themselves. Nonetheless, romantic partners who disagree politically do exist. This study examines the influence of political (dis)similarity in romantic relationships on both political participation and relationship satisfaction. We found that (1) people in politically similar romantic relationships are more satisfied

Three experiments tested if the machine and bandwagon heuristics moderate beliefs in fact-checked claims under different conditions of human/machine (dis)agreement and of transparency of the fact-checking system. Across experiments, people were more likely to align their belief in the claim when artificial intelligence (AI) and crowdsourcing agents’ fact-checks were congruent rather than incongruent

Artificially intelligent communication technologies (AICTs) that operate autonomously with high degrees of conversational fluency can make communication decisions on behalf of their principal users and communicate with those principals’ audiences on their behalf. In this study, we explore how the involvement of AICTs in communication activities shapes how principals engage in impression management

In orienting themselves to the future, people form expectations not only on what will happen but also on how they will feel about possible future occurrences. So far, such affective forecasting—the prediction of future feelings—has been studied mainly from a psychological perspective. This study aims to show the importance of a socio-communicative perspective for understanding the predictors, manifestations

Use of conversational artificial intelligence (AI), such as humanlike social chatbots, is increasing. While a growing number of people is expected to engage in intimate relationships with social chatbots, theories and knowledge of human–AI friendship remain limited. As friendships with AI may alter our understanding of friendship itself, this study aims to explore the meaning of human–AI friendship

Artificial intelligence (AI) has profound implications for both communication and persuasion. We consider how AI complicates and promotes rethinking of persuasion theory and research. We define AI-based persuasion as a symbolic process in which a communicative-AI entity generates, augments, or modifies a message—designed to convince people to shape, reinforce, or change their responses—that is transmitted

People’s news diets are shaped by a diverse set of selection biases that may be unconscious in nature. This study investigates whether providing individuals with information about such unconscious biases attenuates selective exposure. More specifically, in two selective-exposure experiments among Dutch ingroup members focusing on ethnic (N = 286) and religious (N = 277) minorities, we expose individuals

No journal can be better than its reviewers. On behalf of Human Communication Research, we wish to thank all the reviewers and editorial board members who have provided invaluable assistance in ensuring a fair and rigorous review process in 2021. Your dedication and support are indispensable to maintaining the high standards of our journal and we greatly appreciate your continued service to the field

During violent conflict, the evaluation of information sources often presents a complex challenge. Social interactions play a critical role for mediating audiences’ trust as they negotiate contested information spreading across the media and social networks. This study uses focus groups and individual interviews, conducted in the propaganda-saturated environment of the Russian–Ukrainian conflict, to

Over 130 studies have examined the relationship between interpersonal political discussion and political knowledge, generally finding that discussion can increase people’s level of political knowledge (Amsalem & Nir, 2019). However, two important questions remain unanswered: (a) Do some types of political discussions facilitate greater levels of political knowledge than others? (b) Do people retain

Self-transcendent media experiences can instill a sense of connectedness, the sense of being part of a bigger whole. Proposing that this experience is relevant for people who have lost a loved one, the present research examined processing and effects of transcendent narratives of loss among the bereaved. Study 1 (N = 1,012) examined if personal experience with loss (grief severity, loss acceptance)

Using the theory of resilience and relational load as a framework, this study examined whether a stress reduction or a stress-buffering model best explained risk and resilience in interracial–interethnic relationships in the United States when managing stigma from one’s social network. Eight hundred and sixteen Black and Latinx individuals in heterosexual relationships with a White, non-Latinx partner

A great deal of experimental research has focused on how political incivility affects ordinary citizens. A common finding is that incivility reduces political trust. Effects on political participation have also been investigated, but seem less consistent across studies. The results of a systematic review and meta-analysis, including a total of 24 manuscripts containing 35 studies, revealed that the

The transition to cohabitation is a major developmental milestone for romantic couples, yet it is linked to myriad negative outcomes. This study extends the communication interdependence perspective (CIP) to understand the role of technology use in relationship transitions (i.e., the transition to cohabitation). Couples (N = 258 individuals) completed an online survey before and after transitioning

Calls to “break up” radical echo chambers by injecting them with alternative viewpoints are common. Yet, thus far there is little evidence about the impact of such counter-messaging. To what extent and how do individuals who inhabit a radical echo chamber engage with messages that challenge their core beliefs? Drawing on data from the radical right forum Stormfront we address this question with a large-scale

Because political incivility is so consequential and those consequences depend on observers’ perceptions, we must know what Americans perceive as uncivil. Stryker, Conway, and Danielson (2016) conducted one of the first studies addressing this using confirmatory factor analysis on 23 types of potential incivility, but the authors used a local sample representing undergraduates at one southwestern university

Across two randomized experiments, we examine how communication about discriminatory acts can influence judgments of blame and condemnation. Specifically, we consider whether attributing discrimination to implicit or explicit bias affects how people evaluate online reports of discrimination. In Study 1 (N = 947), we explore this question in the context of an online news environment, and in Study 2

Evidence published nearly 20 years ago suggested people tell more lies per social interaction via synchronous, distributed, and recordless media (the phone) versus relatively richer (face-to-face communication) and leaner media (email, instant messaging). With nontrivial changes to the size and variety of our media landscape, it is worth re-examining the relationship between deception and technology

As U.S. higher education institutions closed their campuses and transitioned to online education due to the high risk for COVID-19 transmission, first-generation college students (FGS) were particularly susceptible to multiple stressors. Findings from a sample of 44 participants reveal seven resilience triggers, four resilience processes, and three relationships between resilience processes and triggers

We examine how individuals’ interactions with the shifting contemporary communication ecology—either by seeking information selectively from partisan sources or immersing themselves in a broad range of partisan communications — relate to shifting levels of social trust and online engagement. Using national panel surveys of young adults (i.e., millennials age 18–34) collected over the 2016 U.S. presidential

Embodied cognition research documents the interplay between physical sensations and corresponding psychological experiences within the individual. Accordingly, physical warmth leads to a sense of social inclusion, and being socially rejected leads to physical coldness. In the current research, we demonstrate that these embodied cognition relationships also apply to a media consumer and a media character

There is much need to verify the robustness of published findings in the field of communication—particularly regarding the effects of persuasive emotional appeals about social issues. To this end, we present the results from a preregistered, direct replication of C. Skurka, J. Niederdeppe, R. Romero-Canyas, and D. Acup (2018). The original study found that a threat appeal about climate change can increase

We are proud to serve as new co-editors of Human Communication Research (HCR). As a flagship ICA journal, HCR aims to publish high-quality empirical work in any area of the communication discipline—work that develops, extends, and critiques theory. From its founding editor (Gerald R. Miller, 1974–1976) to the most recent (Eun-Ju Lee, 2017–2020), HCR has promoted theoretical development and methodological

Despite early promise, scholarship has shown little empirical evidence of learning from the news on social media. At the same time, scholars have documented the problem of information ‘snacking’ and information quality on these platforms. These parallel trends in the literature challenge long-held assumptions about the pro-social effects of news consumption and political participation. We argue that

In two pre-registered studies, we leveraged recent advances to disposition theory to examine whether character judgments are relative. We used a Pilot Study to develop a moral continuum of behaviors for a hypothetical television series. We referenced our established moral continuum to create behavioral sequences that represented two characters descending into immorality. We manipulated whether one

Although experts agree that the Russian Internet Research Agency deployed trolls on Twitter to disrupt the 2016 U.S. presidential election, questions remain about the nuances of their efforts. We examined almost 350,000 original tweets made during the two-year electoral cycle to investigate the emphasis, timing, content, and partisanship of the trolls’ efforts targeting leading candidates. Despite

Cooperative game play has been associated with a growing list of prosocial benefits. However, less research has examined its constituent parts to determine their contribution to subsequent positive outcomes. The current study examined partners’ communication as a common and even imperative aspect of cooperative play that may largely account for its positive effects on cooperative behaviors and effective

Although social media influencers have become popular brand endorsers, previous research on this new form of advertising has neglected to analyze how the followers of these influencers are persuaded. Based on a key mechanism proposed by the entertainment overcoming resistance model, long-term parasocial relationships (PSRs) should reduce the amount of persuasive resistance in the forms of reactance

Awe is a widely researched, self-transcendent emotion with a robust ability to prompt prosocial behavior. Within the communication and media disciplines, however, the effects of awe have received only limited empirical attention. Moreover, extant research has ignored the role that media affordances may play in engendering awe and prosocial outcomes. This article presents two studies that explore the

The COVID-19 pandemic created a historic opportunity to study the link between identity threat and individuals’ temporary expansion of the boundaries of the self (TEBOTS) through stories. Concurrently, the relationship between eudaimonic entertainment processes and self-expansion, particularly feeling moved and self-awareness, was examined. A quasi-experiment was conducted with an online sample (N

We examined how the experience of high-quality listening (attentive, empathic, and nonjudgmental) impacts speakers’ basic psychological needs and state self-esteem when discussing the difficult topic of a prejudiced attitude. Specifically, we hypothesized that when speakers discuss a prejudiced attitude with high-quality listeners, they experience higher autonomy, relatedness, and self-esteem than

Research has shown that television viewing cultivates a materialistic worldview in children. However, other socialization factors may also influence children’s materialism. The current research tests two socialization pathways of parental influence: (a) an indirect path in which parents pass on their own materialism to their children, and the parent’s materialism is at least partly the result of a

According to expectancy violations theory, displays of behavior considered “unusual” during an interaction will trigger scrutiny of an individual. Such scrutiny may be detrimental in forensic contexts, where deception detection is emphasized. Autistic individuals, in particular, may be scrutinized unfavorably given unusual nonverbal behavior associated with the condition. Across two experiments using

Research finding that pornography use is associated with lower sexual satisfaction is common; evaluation of the mechanisms hypothesized as underlying the association is not. Informed by multiple theoretical perspectives, the present study tested a conceptual model positing that (a) regularly consuming pornography conditions the user’s arousal template to be particularly responsive to pornographic depictions

AbstractOnline video platforms often present videos together with social information in the form of user comments and likes. This study tested two hypotheses about how this merger of mass and interpersonal communication on online video platforms shapes viewers’ evaluations and enjoyment of online videos. Whereas the judgement effect hypothesis states that social information alters viewers’ video evaluations

AbstractPrevious research has shown that people seldom experience privacy violations while using the Internet, such as unwanted and unknown sharing of personal information, credit card fraud, or identity theft. With this study, we ask whether individuals’ online privacy concerns increase and online information disclosure decreases if they experience such a worst-case scenario. Using representative

AbstractWhile fact-checking has received much attention as a potential tool to combat fake news, whether and how fact-checking information lessens intentions to share fake news on social media remains underexplored. Two experiments uncovered a theoretical mechanism underlying the effect of fact-checking on sharing intentions, and identified an important contextual cue (i.e., social media metrics) that

AbstractThis study examined the influences of ecological factors on the dissolution of affiliation ties in the International Communication Association (ICA). The affiliation network in this study represented the connections between ICA members and ICA divisions and interest groups. Guided by insights from organizational ecology and network theory, this research used a multilevel discrete-time event

This experiment examines state shame and guilt responses to esteem support messages, testing predictions derived from the cognitive-emotional theory of esteem support messages (CETESM). Participants (N = 852) chose one of eight hypothetical scenarios designed to induce shame and/or guilt. Next, participants were directed to a randomization of emotion-focused (EF) and problem-focused (PF) esteem support

AbstractConcerns have been expressed that permanent online connectedness might negatively affect media user’s stress levels. Most research has focused on negative effects of specific media usage patterns, such as media multitasking or communication load. In contrast, users’ cognitive orientation toward online content and communication has rarely been investigated. Against this backdrop, we examined

AbstractDespite a great deal of research, much about the effects of political comedy programming on its viewers remains uncertain. One promising line of work has focused on increased internal political efficacy—the sense that one is competent to engage with politics—as an outcome of exposure to political comedy programs. This may explain results showing that viewers are more likely to participate in

AbstractThe present study contributes to a growing line of research exploring the associations between physiology and communication behavior. Specifically, this study investigated the influence of testosterone (T) on perceptions of partners' accommodative and nonaccommodative behaviors during a conversation about a relational stressor, and their subsequent association with satisfaction with the conversation

AbstractThe ways in which teams coordinate are critical to navigating today’s turbulent environment. Communication networks have been theorized to be a key factor for accomplishing team coordination. However, empirical research has largely taken a static approach by viewing communication networks as material, structural arrangements, which we call structural communication networks (SCNs). Informed

AbstractRecently, substantial attention has been paid to the spread of highly partisan and often factually incorrect information (i.e., so-called “fake news”) on social media. In this study, we attempt to extend current knowledge on this topic by exploring the degree to which individual levels of ideological extremity, social trust, and trust in the news media are associated with the dissemination

Abstract The presentation of single cases as examples for larger phenomena has a long-standing tradition in journalism. However, their usage has been viewed rather critically within the scientific community, because they are employed in a highly selective manner. Consequently, over the course of the last three decades, communication scholars from different research traditions have concerned themselves

Abstract Social norm appeals attempt to change behavior by modifying the prevailing view that a particular, usually harmful, behavior is less prevalent or less approved of in certain social contexts. These messages have been widely used, such as in safe-drinking campaigns targeted towards college students, but reviews of such efforts have been mixed. The present review used meta-analytic techniques

Abstract This paper presents meta-analytic findings on the association between pornography consumption and condomless sex. Results were based on 45 reports spanning two decades. Data from 18 countries, with a participant total of over 35,000, were located. Higher levels of pornography consumption were associated with an elevated likelihood of engaging in condomless sex. A model-based meta-analysis

Abstract A series of 27 meta-analyses was conducted to synthesize theoretical predictions, to date, of the relational turbulence model (RTM), which has informed relational turbulence theory (RTT). In line with theorized predictions, 12 random-effects meta-analyses (k = 9–15; n = 1,395–5,493) confirmed that RTM variables (i.e., self uncertainty, partner uncertainty, relationship uncertainty, and partner

Abstract This paper presents a meta-analysis of 79 cases (N = 21,857) testing the effectiveness of mediated intergroup contact on prejudice. Positive mediated contact decreased (r = −.23; 95% CI, −.29 to −.17), whereas negative mediated contact increased prejudicial attitudes (r = .31; 95% CI, .24 to .38) and intergroup anxiety and empathy were both significant mediators of these relationships. Furthermore

Abstract An assumption of meta-analyses is made with regard to the quality of the primary studies included for analysis. Specifically, the process assumes each study is a valid estimation of a hypothesized relationship of interest. In instances when a primary study's quality is below an acceptable standard, one option is for the study be excluded from further analyses. Alternatively, studies of acceptable

Abstract We examined the interplay between how communication researchers use meta-analyses to make claims and the prevalence, causes, and implications of unresolved heterogeneous findings. Heterogeneous findings can result from substantive moderators, methodological artifacts, and combined construct invalidity. An informal content analysis of meta-analyses published in four elite communication journals

Abstract Publication bias has been recognized as a threat to the validity of meta-analytic findings and scientific knowledge in general. Given the recent rise in meta-analytic research in communication, how well publication bias concerns are addressed by communication meta-analysts merits attention. In this essay, after a brief overview of publication bias and some major methods of assessment, we provide

Pictorial warnings on cigarette packs motivate smokers to quit, and yet the warnings' theoretical mechanisms are not clearly understood. To clarify the role that risk appraisals play in pictorial warnings' impacts, we conducted a meta-analysis of the experimental literature. We meta-analyzed 57 studies, conducted in 13 countries, with a cumulative N of 42,854. Pictorial warnings elicited greater cognitive

AbstractTo understand the mechanisms underlying narrative persuasion, a growing body of theoretical and empirical work suggests that narratives reduce audience resistance, possibly via narrative engagement. To synthesize this research, we performed a two-part meta-analysis using three-level random-effects models. Part I focused on experimental studies that directly compared narratives and non-narratives