Research

Grady Research

Research at Grady College

Pursuing effective messages and stories that have a broad impact.

Faculty and graduate students at Grady College are recognized for their innovative research, critical thinking and thought leadership. From global communication studies and press freedom, to communicating with virtual reality, eye tracking and social media listening, we are leaders in pursuing effective messages and stories that have a broad impact. 

A few of our areas of specialty include:

Crisis communications — led by Dr. Yan Jin who also directs the Crisis Communication Think Tank.

Health & risk communications — led by Dr. Glen Nowak, one of the leading experts on communcations about vaccination acceptance. 

Message testing — featuring our Psychophysiology Suite, which includes eye-tracking equipment, as well as measures for heart and brain response for visual and audio stimulus.

Social media analytics and emerging technologies — featuring our SEE Suite, a social media listening and analytics lab dedicated to studying the messages people are talking about online.

Virtual reality and augmented reality — led by Dr. Grace Ahn, who is directing a $3.3 million grant project right now testing the effectiveness of virtual reality in rewarding children for meeting physical fitness goals.

We invite you to review our areas of expertise and see how we can collaborate on your next project. 

Research Articles

Booker Mattison’s latest film, ‘An Unusual Suspect’ premiered on Tubi on April 25th
Booker Mattison’s latest film, ‘An Unusual Suspect’ premiered on Tubi on April 25th. The trailer can be found at: https://youtu.be/ZSHSrWiftRE?feature=shared  Also notable, he I had the production hire three former students, […]
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Netflix and the Global-Local Nexus: Korean TV Drama Creators and the Global Imaginary
Benjamin M. Han, “Netflix and the Global-Local Nexus: Korean TV Drama Creators and the Global Imaginary,” Society for Cinema and Media Studies Conference, Chicago, Illinois, April 6, 2025.
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Examining Transformational Teaching Through the Lens of Transformational Leadership
Keith Herndon, Ruth Poproski, Alexis Derickson (M.A. student) and Brittany Adams-Pope. “Examining Transformational Teaching Through the Lens of Transformational Leadership,” practice/application paper accepted for the annual conference of the Association of […]
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Sink, Swim or Soar: Surviving arid local news environments in Germany and the U.S.
Karin Assmann and Rick, J., “Sink, Swim or Soar: Surviving arid local news environments in Germany and the U.S.,” paper to be presented at the Future of Journalism Conference in […]
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Reporters with borders: German journalists under duress rethinking reporting practices
Karin Assmann, “Reporters with borders: German journalists under duress rethinking reporting practices,” paper to be presented at the Future of Journalism Conference in Cardiff, Wales in September 2025. Abstract: This […]
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Sequencing of humor and risk information in social media public service announcements on vaccines: the moderating role of vaccination calculation
Ja Kyung Seo (Ph.D. candidate), Hye Jin Yoon, Hanyoung Kim (Ph.D. Alum), Jeong-Yeob Han. (Accepted). “Sequencing of humor and risk information in social media public service announcements on vaccines: the moderating role of vaccination calculation.” Journal of Social […]
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Sustainability and internal communication: Leveraging employee green behaviors
Ruoyu Sun, Lee, Y., & Dong, E. (2025). “Sustainability and internal communication: Leveraging employee green behaviors.” Public Relations Review, 51(2), 102565. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2025.102565 Abstract: This study aims to investigate the impacts of […]
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Setting the Agenda for a Social Movement: A New Approach to the Network Agenda Setting Model
Daud, I.M., Guo, L., Itai Himelboim, & Golan, G.J. Setting the Agenda for a Social Movement: A New Approach to the Network Agenda Setting Model. Accepted for publication in Journalism […]
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Trust Erosion Framework for Organisational Responses to and Management of Global Emergencies
LaShonda Eaddy (PhD alum), Santosh Vijaykumar, Yan Jin, Xuerong Lu (PhD alum), Swati Sharma, and Aravind Sesagiri Raamkumar (2025). “Trust Erosion Framework for Organisational Responses to and Management of Global Emergencies.” Journal […]
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Grady Research Radio Podcast

Grady Research Radio highlights the research and expertise coming out of Grady College, advancing knowledge, innovation and creation in the fields of journalism, advertising, public relations, and entertainment and media studies.

Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Stitcher.

The Latest

Read the newest headlines, get updates and discover events happening at Grady.

Grady College faculty member explores the future of dubbing

A new study, conducted by Laurena Bernabo, Grady College assistant professor in the Department of Entertainment and Media Studies, highlights dubbing professionals’ perspectives on the changing role of artificial intelligence […]

Grady College faculty and graduate students showcase their research at 2025 AEJMC Colloquium

Faculty and graduate students from Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication will present research and network with other educators at the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication […]

Storm surge virtual reality simulation designed to save lives

 Weather the Storm, a virtual reality simulation that takes users through the effects of storm surge to communicate its devastating and sometimes fatal consequences, is now available for download. This […]

Headshot of Nicholas Eng with Faculty Research header.

Nicholas Eng studies human emotions in environmental and health message design

Nicholas Eng has long been interested in emotion science and prosocial environmental and health messaging. How people respond emotionally to different sequences of positive and negative environmental messages is the […]

Carolina Acosta Alzuru stands on the Schnitzer Family Media Lawn outside of Grady College.

Carolina Acosta-Alzuru receives 2024-25 Fulbright Distinguished Scholar Award

Dr. Carolina Acosta-Alzuru, a professor in the Department of Advertising and Public Relations at the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, has received a Fulbright Distinguished […]

A news slider with a red background and a photo of Hye Jin Yoon. It has text with the episode name: "The power of humor in advertising."

The power of humor in advertising, with Dr. Hye Jin Yoon

Listen to the full episode on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Dr. Hye Jin Yoon (MA ‘06, PhD ‘10) is an associate professor of advertising in the Department of Advertising and […]

A graphic with an image of Ruoyu Sun that says "Faculty Research."

Study shows the impact of environmental corporate social responsibility communication

With the rising threats of climate change and environmental degradation, many companies and organizations have instilled sustainability goals over recent years. But, how can they effectively motivate employees to engage […]

Perspectives

“My favorite memory as a Ph.D. student was working as a senior researcher at Grady College’s Digital Media Attention and Cognition (DMAC) Lab. The team would pitch study ideas and work collaboratively to bring those projects to fruition. It was honestly so cool to conduct eye-tracking studies, meet over Jittery Joe’s coffee, and then apply our individual strengths to share our work with others in the field.”

Camila Young

Ph.D. ’20, Social Research Scientist, National Institute of Standards and Technology

Perspectives

“It’s exciting to see our student journalists wanting to engage with larger questions about the future of the industry and journalism’s role in society. CURO is a great way to support these emerging scholars as they take their first steps into research.”

Karin Assmann

Assistant Professor, Journalism