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Learn more about how people communicate during crises with this insightful collection of resources
In Communicating Science in Times of Crisis: COVID-19 Pandemic, distinguished academics and editors H. Dan O'Hair and Mary John O'Hair have delivered an insightful collection of resources designed to shed light on the implications of attempting to communicate science to the public in times of crisis. Using the recent and ongoing coronavirus outbreak as a case study, the authors explain how to balance scientific findings with social and cultural issues, the ability of media to facilitate science and mitigate the impact of adverse events, and the ethical repercussions of communication during unpredictable, ongoing events.
The first volume in a set of two, Communicating Science in Times of Crisis: COVID-19 Pandemic isolates a particular issue or concern in each chapter and exposes the difficult choices and processes facing communicators in times of crisis or upheaval. The book connects scientific issues with public policy and creates a coherent fabric across several communication studies and disciplines. The subjects addressed include:
* A detailed background discussion of historical medical crises and how they were handled by the scientific and political communities of the time
* Cognitive and emotional responses to communications during a crisis
* Social media communication during a crisis, and the use of social media by authority figures during crises
* Communications about health care-related subjects
* Data strategies undertaken by people in authority during the coronavirus crisis
Perfect for communication scholars and researchers who focus on media and communication, Communicating Science in Times of Crisis: COVID-19 Pandemic also has a place on the bookshelves of those who specialize in particular aspects of the contexts raised in each of the chapters: social media communication, public policy, and health care.
List of contents
Part 1 Conceptualizing Communication Science and COVID-19 1
1. Managing Science Communication in a Pandemic 3
H. Dan O'Hair and Mary John O'Hair
2. Comprehending Covidiocy Communication: Dismisinformation, Conspiracy Theory, and Fake News 15
Brian H. Spitzberg
3. How Existential Anxiety Shapes Communication in Coping with the Coronavirus Pandemic: A Terror Management Theory Perspective 54
Claude H. Miller and Haijing Ma
Part 2 Promoting Health and Well-being 81
4. Communication and COVID-19: Challenges in Evidence-based Healthcare Design 83
Kevin Real, Kirk Hamilton, Terri Zborowsky, and Debbie Gregory
5. Identity and Information Overload: Examining the Impact of Health Messaging in Times of Crisis 110
Jessica Wendorf Muhamad and Patrick Merle
6. Social Media, Risk Perceptions Related to COVID-19, and Health Outcomes 128
Kevin B. Wright
7. Overcoming Obstacles to Collective Action by Communicating Compassion in Science 150
Erin B. Hester, Bobi Ivanov, and Kimberly A. Parker
8. Communicating the Science of COVID-19 to Children: Meet the Helpers 172
Jennifer Cook, Timothy L. Sellnow, Deanna D. Sellnow, Adam J. Parrish, and Rodrigo Soares
9. The Use of Telehealth in Behavioral Health and Educational Contexts During COVID-19 and Beyond 189
Alyssa Clements-Hickman, Jade Hollan, Christine Drew, Vanessa Hinton, and Robert J. Reese
Part 3 Advancing Models of Information and Media 215
10. Toward a New Model of Public Relations Crisis and Risk Communication Following Pandemics 217
Zifei Fay Chen, Zongchao Cathy Li, Yi Grace Ji, Don W. Stacks, and Bora Yook
11. Perspective Change in a Time of Crisis: The Emotion and Critical Reflection Model 242
Helen Lillie, Manusheela Pokharel, Mark J. Bergstrom, and Jakob D. Jensen
12. Social Media Surveillance and (Dis)Misinformation in the COVID-19 Pandemic 262
Brian H. Spitzberg, Ming-Hsiang Tsou, and Mark Gawron
13. Science Communication and Inoculation: Mitigating the Effects of the Coronavirus Outbreak 302
Bobi Ivanov and Kimberly A. Parker
Part 4 Examining Policy and Leadership 321
14. Communicating with Policymakers in a Pandemic 323
Michael T. Childress and Michael W. Clark
15. Equally Unpleasant Choices: Observations on School Leadership in a Time of Crisis 338
Justin M. Bathon and Lu S. Young
16. Controlling the Narrative: Mixed Messages and Presidential Credibility 358
Robert S. Littlefield
17. Communicating Death and Dying in the COVID-19 Pandemic 375
William Nowling and Matthew W. Seeger
Index 391
About the author
H. Dan O'Hair is Professor of Communication in the Department of Communication at the University of Kentucky. He formerly served as President of the National Communication Association and has published over 100 research articles in risk, organizational, and health communication. He received his PhD in Communication from the University of Oklahoma.
Mary John O'Hair is Professor of Educational Leadership Studies at the University of Kentucky. She was formerly Dean of the UK College of Education between 2009 and 2018. She is the founding editor of
Teacher Education Yearbook.
