COMS Students & Faculty Present at Annual WSCA Convention

Communication Studies students and faculty are heading to Seattle next month to attend the 90th Western States Communication Association Convention which takes place February 23-25, 2019.  


Students in attendance will be presenting original analyses and research projects that were previously completed during their coursework at Cal Poly. 

Tina Reynolds is presenting during the Undergraduate Research Conference which takes place a day before the convention.  She will be presenting a paper titled: Media Depictions of Celebrity Post-Partum Bodies, How Cultivation Theory Can Explain Their Impact on Non-Celebrity Mothers’ Body Image and Behavior, and Implications.  This paper was written as a component of her Media Effects coursework under the guidance of her professor, Dr. Bethany Conway-Silva.

Rebecca Hyde is presenting during the convention for the Interpersonal Interest Group.  She will be presenting a paper titled: The impact of digital relationship visibility on relational satisfaction and social comparison. The final conference version was submitted in collaboration with her senior project advisor, Dr. Aubrie Adams.  Rebecca graduated from Cal Poly in Spring 2018. 

Oliver Levitch is presenting during the convention for the Communication and Instruction Interest Group.  He will be presenting a paper titled: A study in motivation: Exploring digital training in sexual harassment prevention.  This paper represents the work he completed for his senior project.  The final conference version was submitted in collaboration with his senior project advisor, Dr. Aubrie Adams.  Oliver graduated from Cal Poly in Spring 2018. 

In addition, faculty in attendance will be presenting original research, sharing best practices in teaching, participating in academic service opportunities, and networking with scholars.  Scheduled conference appearances and speaking events for faculty members include the following:  

Dr. Aubrie Adams

  • Evidence of Media Richness from Low to High: Teaching Social Information Processing Theory (Author)
  • A study in motivation: Exploring digital training in sexual harassment prevention (Co-author)
  • The impact of digital relationship visibility on relational satisfaction and social comparison (Co-author)

Dr. Lauren Kolodziejski

  • Beyond the 'Hullabaloo' of the Vaccine 'Debate': Understanding Parents’ Assessment of Risks When Making Vaccine Decisions (Author)

Dr. Megan Lambertz-Berndt

  • Advocacy in Mental Health: Offering a Voice to the Voiceless (Respondent)

Dr. Vince Meserko

  • Advocating with Evidence: What Counts as Evidence in Moral Reasoning (Roundtable)

Dr. Leslie Nelson

  • Eliciting a Thousand Words: A Case for Photo‐Elicitation in Interpersonal Communication Research (Author)

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