ABSTRACT This study examined how exposure to terrorism-related news is associated with perceived threat of terrorist attacks and self-protective actions taken in response to terrorism. Data were obtained from a nationwide survey of U.S. residents. Results indicated that more frequent exposure to terrorism news was associated with higher perceived terrorism threat and more intended self-protective actions

ABSTRACT Rates of skin cancer among young women are increasing and most cases are associated with tanning behavior. In health communication, scholars and practitioners use framing as a strategy to design persuasive messages. In this experiment, we advance framing research by testing a serial model of framing theory in the context of outdoor tanning behavior among collegiate women. We designed two message

ABSTRACT This research focuses on developing and providing validation for Empathic Expressions Scale (EES). Three studies were conducted using different samples: (1) a qualitative study that uncovered empathic responses, (2) a quantitative study using exploratory factor analysis to determine subscales for the EES and then test for convergent with empathy quotient and compassionate communication, and

ABSTRACT Rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are on the rise among young women, and a key factor in STI prevention is partner communication about STIs. Because entertainment narratives are shown to positively influence behavior change, the current study examined whether exposure to a romance novel excerpt wherein successful STI communication was modeled (versus one without) was associated

ABSTRACT The grandparent-adult grandchild relationship is integral to the health and preservation of the family. The intergenerational relationship makes several transformations as each party ages and experiences life transitions. This study used actor-partner interdependence model (APIM) to examine affectual and consensual solidarity and topic avoidance in the grandparent-adult grandchild dyad. The

ABSTRACT This study examined the role parasocial contact with a transgender character on an online TV show (Transparent) may play in reducing prejudice toward transgender people. An experiment was conducted with participants randomly assigned to view either a video depicting a transgender character, or a non-transgender character portrayed by the same actor. Results were consistent with predictions

ABSTRACT Human-to-human scripting accounts for a user’s tendency in human-robot interactions (HRI) to utilize scripts just as they would if talking to another person. Can a robot’s emotional verbal expression, however, impact perceptions and further elicit human-to-human scripting? The present study examines the effects of a robot’s emotional expression of joy and sorrow on participant perceptions

ABSTRACT The influence of goals unrelated to accuracy – such as maintaining beliefs and attitudes consistent with one’s political identity – may undermine objective processing, enabling people to construct defenses for their own predispositions. A two-wave study is employed involving undergraduates who experienced gains in scientific reasoning ability to explore the influence of ability on reasoning

ABSTRACT Binge watching has risen in popularity, and thus is receiving increasing scholarly attention. Across the limited range of studies that have been conducted, there is a lack of uniform conceptualization and empirical measurement of binge watching making generalizability and theoretical development across studies challenging. This investigation provides an overview of current binge watching conceptualization

ABSTRACT Despite a growing body of scholarship on Communication Infrastructure Theory (CIT), the applicability of CIT as an ecological approach in rural and suburban areas remains largely unexplored in comparison with its urban counterpart. The current study advances CIT across the geographically dispersed communities (i.e., urban, suburban, and rural) and explores how community storytelling networks

ABSTRACT Increasing political polarization and growing animus toward political outgroup members may strain marriages in which spouses express political differences. For heterosexual married couples, interrelationships among gender, power, and political conflict may be of particular importance. The purpose of this study was to examine heterosexual spouses’ conflicts over political differences as a function

ABSTRACT Research suggests that relational uncertainty corresponds with circumscribed communication, yet prior studies have not investigated the related constructs of falsifying information (deception) and concealing concerns to protect a partner (protective buffering). We grounded our investigation in the logic of relational uncertainty theorizing, which explains how uncertainty about a relationship

ABSTRACT Reduced counterarguing – the generation of questions and arguments in response to a message – has been proposed to be a mechanism of persuasion in a variety of contexts, yet many questions remain unanswered regarding the factors that influence this process. Building upon past theorizing in narrative persuasion, this present work investigates whether signaling of persuasive intent (signaling

ABSTRACT Psychological reactance theory (PRT) has helped explain students’ resistant behavior. Additionally, several studies have explored resistant student behaviors as a product of an instructor’s syllabus policies. To build upon this line of research, a 2 × 2 experiment was conducted manipulating controlling language (low, high) and fairness (fair, unfair) within a syllabus policy. To increase external

ABSTRACT Witnessing characters enact and receive punishment for transgressions – that is, narrative retribution – is central to affective disposition theory. Despite its centrality, a standardized set of retribution narratives is absent from the literature. The current study seeks to provide validation evidence for a set of retribution narratives used in a previous study. Based on theoretical conceptualizations

ABSTRACT Narrative appeals are an effective way of shaping attitudes toward health-related topics. However, questions persist regarding the contexts in which narratives hold an advantage over other commonly used message formats. The current article compares narrative appeals to statistical appeals, one commonly used message format, in the context of HIV testing intentions. In addition, the current

ABSTRACT Although the social implications of children’s media have been a central public concern for millennia, there has been no systematic attempt to quantify the representation of other- versus self-serving values in children’s literature. A coding scheme based on the model of intuitive motivations and exemplars was applied to examine the representation of altruistic and egoistic motivations in

ABSTRACT Truth-default theory posits that absent a trigger, people passively accept communication content as truthful and honest. Most often, the idea that some communication might be deceptive does not come to mind. The current research exposed participants to one of six video clips that varied in credibility and credulity. The clips included educational lectures, political speeches, an investigative

ABSTRACT The notion that a healthy democracy requires a public who discusses politics is based on the assumption that discussions expose people to perspective that differ from their own. That people generally prefer to avoid political disagreements, however, suggests that people may withhold their opinions during such encounters. This work couples survey responses and a content analysis of sixty political

ABSTRACT Using the health risks of nuclear plant accident as a context of enquiry, this study focuses on how peoples’ reactions to a piece of online news are affected by social media engagement metrics associated with the story. Based on the bandwagon heuristic, it assumes that online news with a high social media engagement metrics – high-sharing, -liking, and -commenting, show direct and mediated

ABSTRACT The decision to engage in informal political talk within one’s interpersonal network is not easily undertaken, particularly when that communication takes place through social networking sites (SNSs). This study explored motivations for engaging in informal political talk on the SNS, Facebook. Results suggest that those who are motivated by interpersonally focused goals online (i.e., relationship

ABSTRACT There are conflicting findings about the role that timing plays in the administration of self-efficacy questionnaires and the relationships between self-efficacy scores, training, and subsequent demonstration of skills. The current study examined self-efficacy in the context of a training program to educate residents in patient-centered communication skills. Previous research indicates that

ABSTRACT The present investigation tested the effects of a gene x environment interaction on sexual communication and relational well-being. It was hypothesized that the interaction of variation in oxytocin receptor gene OXTR rs53576 and orgasm would predict post sex communication and subsequent relationship satisfaction. The results revealed that for women in the sample, orgasm was positively associated

ABSTRACT This project explores how team resilience enacted in the work domain shapes and is shaped by resilience practices in the non-work domain – a process we label, domain diffusion of resilience. Weather forecasters’ team, organizational, and professional work give rise to a resilient mentality, which then tends to manifest in their own non-work contexts. Qualitative data collected from a National

ABSTRACT This article expands situational crisis communication theory (SCCT) to narrative persuasion. In a randomized experiment featuring a news interview of a scandalized company, an organization’s spokesperson responds to a journalist’s questions through (a) on-topic narratives, (b) off-topic (spinning) narratives, or (c) nonnarrative information. Consistent with SCCT, on-topic narratives and nonnarrative

ABSTRACT The largely interdisciplinary literature on sexual compliance, or consensual but unwanted sexual activity, primarily focuses on its function and consequence as a gendered relational maintenance activity. The present study investigated if sexual compliance predicts state mental health in addition to relational satisfaction. Data from a sample of understudied relationship types indicates that

ABSTRACT Perhaps one of the most well-established findings stemming from decades of research exploring the effects of televised presidential debates is that exposure to this “information-rich” source of campaign communication enables viewers’ acquisition of issue knowledge. However, certain individuals will benefit more from the debate viewing experience because differences in individual characteristics

ABSTRACT The current study explores the relationship between person-centeredness, cognitive complexity, and relevant outcomes in computer-mediated patient-provider communication. The study examined the relationships between constructivism constructs based on a hypothetical e-mail exchange between a healthcare provider and participants. Participants filled out a questionnaire after reading the hypothetical

ABSTRACT Pregnancy is a unique health context, as women undergo physical, social, and identity transformations across gestation and childbirth. Prenatal health care providers, such as obstetricians and midwives, play principal roles in how patients understand and navigate pregnancy, and patient-centered communication is an approach to clinical interaction that can help patients as they encounter physical

ABSTRACT Scientific practices are constantly evolving to meet the best practices and standards available at a point in time. In the current publication environment, advances in communication technology in tandem with concerns about the transparency of extant communication scholarship have encouraged many to reconsider how we share knowledge with one another. Among a broader suite of open science practices

ABSTRACT Although the world of professional wrestling is characterized as larger than life, a speech by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) wrestler Phillip Brooks appeared to cross the line between fantasy and reality. Brooks’ speech, instead of being character driven, focused on his lack of promotion despite his tenure of hard work. He broke character, addressing specific elements of backstage politics

ABSTRACT Opinion leaders play a significant role in public opinion formation by highlighting, defining and framing political issues for their circle of friends. Although we know opinion leaders are more likely to participate in politics, we are less sure about how they process mediated information and what motivate them to participate more actively than individuals who are less politically active.

ABSTRACT Persuasion research highlights the central role emotions play in driving persuasion processes. This investigation addressed the influence of message factors and risk perceptions in determining how positive and negative emotions predict judgments of healthy eating messages. Consistent with prior research, gain-framed messages induced greater positive emotions, whereas loss-framed messages induced

ABSTRACT Preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) has been an effective preventive measure against human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) transmission among the men who have sex with men (MSM) community. Many medical reports, however, show concern that PrEP users engage in riskier sexual behaviors after PrEP use (risk compensation), such as reducing condom use and acquiring more sexual partners. The current study

ABSTRACT As organizing logics shift as the result of increasing reliance on digital technology, social movement framing also shifts. Understanding these changes is vital to shaping contemporary movement organizing. This article examines the budding anti-Trump movement at its earliest and thus far largest organized event, the Women’s March on Washington. We conduct a frame analysis of messages shared

ABSTRACT This study investigated parents-in-law's (PIL) relational uncertainty management, specifically, associations between PIL’s relational uncertainty, cognitions (i.e., identity goal and perceived communication efficacy), and relational uncertainty management choices (i.e., direct uncertainty communication and linchpin mediated communication) were examined. Results from an online survey of PIL

ABSTRACT This study focuses on the performativity and subversion of privacy and face in sexual minorities’ recollections of interpersonal interactions related to coming out. Drawing upon communication privacy management theory and performative face theory as conceptual foundations for this piece, the current analysis demonstrates how dominant discourses of heteronormativity undergird queer individuals’

ABSTRACT Through an application of Communication Privacy Management Theory, this study examines students’ perceptions of risk and the criteria that influence student decisions to conceal or disclose mental health conditions to their college instructors. Participants included 228 college students who self-identified as struggling with depression or another mental health condition. The findings of the

ABSTRACT Childbirth is widely considered to be a bonding experience among women. Women often feel compelled to share their story, and this research highlights communicative and reflexive aspects of storytelling as a means for meaning-making and relationship-building. This inductive thematic analysis explored 22 women’s motivations for engaging in storytelling about birth across five focus groups and

In more than 60 years since the founding of artificial intelligence (AI) as a formal academic discipline, rapid advances in technology have driven an enormous increase in interest in the field of study. AI subfields, including machine learning, neural networks, and the social implications of AI, have initiated new approaches to research and emergent questions. Of particular interest is the study of

ABSTRACT News credibility as an essential democratic value has been at the forefront of scholarly endeavors over the last several decades. Despite prolific research in this area, scholarship on the credibility of algorithm-based and automated news has yet to offer empirical findings in regards to the causes and their impacts. In line with prior studies concerning news credibility, this study examines

ABSTRACT Previous research has shown the harmful effects of stereotypical messages on viewers, including increased negative attitudes toward outgroup members. In contrast, positive or counter-stereotypical portrayals can lead to less prejudiced attitudes toward outgroup members; however, these kinds of portrayals are not always easy to come by. As a result, alternative methods for combating the effects

ABSTRACT Sibling relationships are typically long-lasting, providing opportunities for critical social support throughout a lifetime. This study examined how perceptions of sibling support differ for closest and least close sibling relationships, and how support in one sibling relationship can be associated with satisfaction in the other. Adults with at least two siblings answered questions about closest

ABSTRACT As artificial intelligence (AI) technologies become more common and capable interaction partners (human-machine communication; HMC), understanding how people perceive and interact with them becomes increasingly important to study. This essay argues that one important avenue for this study is the application of relevant interpersonal and computer-mediated communication (CMC) theories. The paper

ABSTRACT On a Saturday evening in September, 2006, six infants in the Newborn Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at an Indiana hospital were given incorrect doses of medication that ultimately ended with the death of three of the infants. How can an organization respond in this type of extreme situation, when the wrongful act unintentionally results in the worst outcome? This study examines the hospital’s

ABSTRACT While more researchers have begun to study the work-spouse relationship and made claims that it is unique, scholars have yet to specifically examine how, if at all, communication in the work-spouse relationship is different from that with other coworkers. Facework was used as a theoretical lens to analyze data from 41 in-depth interviews with work spouses. Findings highlight how participants

ABSTRACT The prevalence and severity of mental health issues among students have been increasingly talked about on campuses in recent years. The Internet has rapidly developed to deliver information and facilitate online communication, which creates online counseling to meet the mental health needs of college students. Using the Theory of Planned Behavior, this study examines college students’ intentions

ABSTRACT When employees have strong identification with an organization, they are more likely to remain working there and to make decisions that are in the best interest of the organization. This can be important when employees work remotely and have little contact with the organization. Through analyzing interviews with low status, remote-working home health aides and their supervisors, this study

ABSTRACT Workplace friendships are primary sites of organizing associated with important outcomes including cohesive climates, creativity and innovation, and employee job satisfaction. Research indicates the workplace context influences the initiation of workplace friendships via physical proximity and shared projects. The present study demonstrates how another context variable – perceived task interdependence

ABSTRACT Studies of faith-based organizations (FBOs) often ignore the theologies that inform the communicative behavior and constitution of FBOs. As such, they miss components of how discourse establishes an FBO’s distinct religious identity, and the strategies engaged to maintain that identity. This study uses discourse tracing to look at a particular FBO, Big Idea Entertainment, known for the VeggieTales

ABSTRACT Previous research demonstrated that exposure to news of the 2015 terrorist attacks in Paris, France increased the salience of moral intuitions associated with respect for authority and purity in a sample of U.S. participants. The present study attempted to replicate this finding with news of domestic terrorism by examining the effect of exposure to news of the 2017 Las Vegas, Nevada music

ABSTRACT The present study focuses on newspaper articles published in all newspapers in the Netherlands from 2000 up to 2018 on how they report on artificial intelligence. The study showed how reporting changes over time and how different types of newspapers report differently about various topics in the field of artificial intelligence. The findings show that newspapers increasingly report about AI

ABSTRACT The purpose of this paper is to discuss if and how Brazilian media outlets make use of automated strategies and artificial intelligence (AI) in order to produce convenient social media metrics about themselves and amplify their relevance on Twitter. We examine how media bots can manipulate online ratings, change social perception of what is relevant and increase engagement with both on- and

ABSTRACT In this study we identify, for the first time, social determinants of opposition to artificial intelligence, based on the assessment of its benefits and risks. Using a national survey in Spain (n = 5200) and linear regression models, we show that common explanations regarding opposition to artificial intelligence, such as competition and relative vulnerability theories, are not confirmed or

ABSTRACT Using an ego network analysis, this study examined how young adults actively seek out vocational anticipatory socialization (“VAS”) information and whether there is a difference between those who report knowing or not knowing their future career paths. Findings reveal that young adults follow Jablin’s model for their sources of information. Further, significant gender patterns emerged. Respondents

ABSTRACT This study examined elaboration likelihood model (ELM) processing routes used by audiences to evaluate image repair messages for two organizations that often provoke polarizing dispositions in audiences: the National Rifle Association (NRA) and the New England Patriots football team. Involvement is a key concept in the ELM paradigm, yet studies have overlooked issues on the extreme ends of

ABSTRACT Guided by Family Communication Patterns, O-S-R-O-R Model, and Information Repertoires Theories, this study explores how family communication patterns developed in childhood mobilize adults’ civic engagement and political participation. Political socialization occurs through the development of self-efficacy, as well as by the use of multiple information sources, coupled with traditional and

ABSTRACT Artificially intelligent (AI) agents increasingly occupy roles once served by humans in computer-mediated communication (CMC). Technological affordances like emoji give interactants (humans or bots) the ability to partially overcome the limited nonverbal information in CMC. However, despite the growth of chatbots as conversational partners, few CMC and human-machine communication (HMC) studies

ABSTRACT This case study documents how an academic team of mathematicians engaged in collective communication design work (CCDW) in order to improve how they communicated a process innovation to student stakeholders. The study, supported by interviews and observations, explains how team members worked together to develop structural and verbal strategies for sensebreaking student stakeholders’ preconceived

ABSTRACT In its use of interactive media technology, the public takes on an important role in disseminating news, especially when sharing it through social networking sites. This study demonstrates what motivates media users to participate in the process of sharing online news in two cultures: South Korea and the United States (U.S.). Employing the theory of reasoned action, this study empirically