Professor Director, Institute of Communications Research
Affiliations
Charles H. Sandage Department of Advertising
Institute of Communications Research
Gies College of Business
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Education
Ph.D. Communication, University of California, Santa Barbara
B.A. Psychology & Film Studies double majors, University of California, Santa Barbara
Course Specialties
Online privacy
Technology mediated communication
Technology and advertising
Programmatic advertising
Research and Creative Endeavor
Mike Yao’s research focuses on the social and psychological impacts of interactive digital media. He conducts research and writes on a variety of topics such as online behavior, digital literacy, and computer-mediated communication. His current interest is in how users perceive and manage personal boundaries on social media. Specifically, he examines people’s attitudes, beliefs and self-protective behaviors related to online privacy from a psychosocial perspective by considering the influence of cognitive appraisal, social norm, and individual differences. A second area of Mike’s active research is the psychological impacts of digital media use. He examined the influence of various interactive media, such as video games and social media, on users’ online and offline social behavior. He is currently trying to extend this line of research to developing an integrated theory of digitally mediated human behavior.
MFA in Design for Responsible Innovation (DRI), University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, expected graduation 2027
MALS in American Studies, 2005, Georgetown University
BA in Psychology, 2001, Mount Holyoke College
Course Specialties
Sandage Project / Capstone Course
Digital Content and Social Media Management
AI and Advertising
Writing and Public Relations
Social Media and Personal Branding
Background
Marisa Peacock is the founder and chief strategist of The Strategic Peacock, helping organizations implement effective social media strategies. As a senior lecturer, she teaches the Sandage Project, digital content and social media management and AI and Advertising. She also leads the Social Media Lab, where advertising students gain hands-on experience, build portfolios, and connect with employers—benefiting both businesses and emerging talent.
Research and Creative Endeavor
Marisa is currently pursuing an MFA in Design for Responsible Innovation at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, where her research focuses on integrating inclusive design in advertising education by empowering faculty to foster digital inclusivity.
Marisa regularly presents at marketing and media conferences such as the Home Furnishings Association, Seattle Interactive, Illinois Web Con, and ConvergeSouth. Her presentations focus on social media, customer experience, and strategies for businesses of all sizes to enhance their online presence.
PhD, University of Amsterdam (Persuasive Communication)
MA, Jagiellonian University (Psychology)
Course Specialties
Computational Advertising
Consumer Insight
Persuasion
Background
Ewa holds a Ph.D. in Communication Science from the University of Amsterdam and an M.A. in Psychology from Jagiellonian University and completed postdoctoral research at Northwestern University. Ewa has been published in International Journal of Advertising, Computers in Human Behavior, Journal of Marketing Management, Decision Support Systems, and others.
Awards
Digital Communication Methods Lab (University of Amsterdam, Research Priority Area) research grant 2019. Project: Improving the measurement of consumers’ exposure to online content.
Marketing Science Institute research grant 2018. Project: The effects of trait-based personalization in social media.
Best Paper Award International Journal of Advertising 2017
Best Paper Award Journal of Marketing Management 2016
Top faculty paper award Communication and Technology Division AEJMC Conference 2015, San Francisco, CA
Best paper nominee ICORIA conference 2018, Valencia, Spain
Best paper nominee ICORIA conference 2017, Ghent, Belgium
Research and Creative Endeavor
Ewa’s research investigates how we interact with digital platforms, focusing on how communication design and personalization influence persuasion and platform (dis)engagement. Additionally, she analyzes the impact of deceptive content, such as fake reviews, on consumer decision-making. Using a multi-method approach, integrating experiments, psychophysiology, digital-trace data, and qualitative techniques, she aims to understand the psychological impact of digital communication and inform frameworks that protect user autonomy in an increasingly opaque media landscape.
Select Publications
Maslowska, E., Segijn, C. M., Vakeel, K. A., & Viswanathan, V. (2019). How consumers attend to online reviews: an eye-tracking and network analysis approach. International Journal of Advertising, 1-25.
Kim, S. J., Maslowska, E., & Tamaddoni, A. (2019). The paradox of (dis)trust in sponsorship disclosure: The characteristics and effects of sponsored online consumer reviews. Decision Support Systems, 116, 114-124.
Malthouse E.C., Maslowska, E., Franks, J. (2018). Understanding programmatic TV advertising. International Journal of Advertising, 37(5), 769-784
Viswanathan, V., Malthouse, E.C., Maslowska, E., Hoornaert, S., & van den Peol, D. (2018). Dynamics between Social Media Engagement, Firm-Generated Content, Live and Time-Shifted TV Viewing. Journal of Service Management, 29(3), 378-398
Maslowska, E., Malthouse, E.C., & Bernritter, S.F. (2017). Too good to be true: The role of online reviews’ features in probability to buy. International Journal of Advertising, 36(1), 142-163
Maslowska, E. Malthouse, E.C., & Viswanathan, V. (2017). Do customer reviews drive purchase decisions? The moderating roles of review exposure and price. Decision Support Systems, 98, 1–9
Maslowska, E., Malthouse, E. C., & Collinger, T. (2016). The Customer Engagement Ecosystem. Journal of Marketing Management, 32(5-6), 469-501
Maslowska, E. Smit, E.G., & van den Putte, B. (2016) It Is All in the Name: A Study of Consumers’ Responses to Personalized Communication. Journal of Interactive Advertising, 16(1), 74-85
Maslowska, E., Smit, E.G., & Van den Putte, B. (2013). Assessing the cross-cultural applicability of tailored advertising: A comparative study between the Netherlands and Poland. International Journal of Advertising, 32(4), 487-510.
Maslowska, E., Van den Putte., B, & Smit, E. G. (2011). The effectiveness of personalized e-mail newsletters and the role of personal characteristics. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 14, 765-770. DOI: 10.1089/cyber.2011.0050.
PhD in Media and Information Studies, Michigan State University
MS in Applied Sociology, Clemson University
BA in Sociology, Augusta State University
Course Specialties
Interactive Media & You
Augmented and Virtual Reality
Research Methods in Journalism
Background
Dr. Ball is an assistant professor in the Department of Journalism. Before joining the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, he was a research assistant and instructor while working on his PhD at Michigan State University. During this time, he worked extensively on various grant funded research projects and he taught a number of cutting-edge courses. In addition to his PhD, he also obtained graduate certifications in both Educational Technology as well as Serious Game Design and Research. Before beginning his doctoral studies, he was employed as a research associate at Clemson University where he designed and tested educational virtual world programs.
Research and Creative Endeavor
Dr. Ball’s research interests involve the influence of new technologies on society and how these technologies can be studied and harnessed for research, education, and outreach purposes. More specifically, his research focuses on the use of interactive media and technologies such as video games, virtual worlds, and virtual reality to foster pro-social outcomes and experiential learning across the life course.
Dr. Ball has published collaborative research spanning a multitude of technology-related topic areas, demographic populations, and research methodologies. As a result, he has been published in various top-tier journals such as Information, Communication & Society; Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking; the Journal of Applied Gerontology; the Journal of Medical Internet Research Mental Health; and Games and Culture.
M.S. Journalism, University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign
B.S. Journalism, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Course Specialties
Documentary Production
Writing
Video Production
Background
Alison Davis has been producing national documentaries for over two decades. Her programs have received numerous awards including seven regional Emmy Awards and over 20 Emmy nominations.
Davis produced documentaries for the Big Ten Network when she joined Illinois’ Division of Intercollegiate Athletics / Public Affairs in April of 2008. Before that she worked at WILL-TV (PBS) where she was the longtime producer and host of Prairie Fire, a cultural magazine series about the people and places of central Illinois.
Awards
Davis won a 2019 National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Mid-America Emmy award for Illinois Artists: Endalyn Taylor, produced for the Big Ten Network. She won a 2017 Mid-America Emmy award for writing The Game Changer, the story of disability rights pioneer Tim Nugent. In 2015 she won an Emmy for writing the documentary Carlos Montezuma: Changing Is not Vanishing. She was awarded her first regional Emmy in 1999 for her documentary, Walter Burley Griffin: In His Own Right about the talented, but overlooked Illinois architect.
Her documentary Against the Wind, the story of wheelchair athlete Jean Driscoll’s attempt to become the first athlete to win seven consecutive Boston Marathons, was named best Television Documentary in 1997 by American Women in Radio and Television. She was one of 20 producers selected to attend the 2001 WGBH Boston Producers Workshop, where she participated in extensive hands-on training with some of television’s most experienced content creators.
Davis’s other productions include the nationally distributed Lincoln: Prelude to the Presidency and Gold Star Mothers: Pilgrimage of Remembrance. She was also nominated for an Emmy for writing Ten Sisters: A True Story.
I came to the College of Media in 2013 after spending 9 years at the Missouri School of Journalism, where I co-founded and co-directed the PRIME Lab and taught in the School’s Strategic Communication sequence.
Research and Creative Endeavor
My research explores the psychology underlying interactive media use. In other words, how do different attributes of medium, message, person, and situation influence the processes and outcomes of media use? I primarily address this question through experiments that measure physiological and self-report indicators of cognition, emotion, and motivation.
Current/Prospective Students: Collaborating with students on research is one of my great joys. Please feel free to email me anytime if you’re interested in learning more about research and/or working in a media research lab.
If you’re not currently at the University of Illinois but interested in coming here, please feel free to email me about student assistantship opportunities.
Ph.D., University of Minnesota (Mass communication)
M.A., University of Minnesota (Communication studies)
B.S., Valley Forge Christian College (Theology)
Course Specialties
Introduction to public relations
Public relations writing
Advanced public relations
Social media and public relations
Background
Wirtz received a Ph.D. in mass communication in 2009 from the University of Minnesota. His studies there focused on how theories of human behavior (primarily grounded in psychology) can help us better understand how exposure to mass media content influences our thoughts and behavior. After completing his Ph.D., Wirtz was assistant professor at Texas Tech University for three years, before joining the Department of Advertising at the College of Media this fall.
Prior to attending graduate school, Wirtz worked for 11 years in a number of positions with public relations and marketing responsibilities. He worked for six years at an international NGO in donor relations and event planning. He also worked for five years directing fund raising, alumni relations and marketing efforts at two universities in the Midwest.
Research and Creative Endeavor
Wirtz’s research focuses on the intersection of interpersonal communication and mass media content. More specifically, Wirtz is interested in how conversation influences how individuals respond to ads—what they remember about the ads, how they evaluate the ads and whether they are more or less likely to take action on recommendations in the ads—based on the type of conversations they have prior to and while viewing the ads.
Wirtz also has an applied component to his research, as he also studies how to make mass media health campaigns more effective and culturally relevant. An example here is a recent research project involving adult Hispanics that tested different styles of presenting information about healthy eating habits and the importance of regular moderate exercise.
Wirtz’s research has appeared in Public Relations Journal, Psychological Science, Human Communication Research, and Communication Studies.
School of Information Sciences Informatics Programs
Center for Social and Behavioral Sciences
Education
Ph.D., The Ohio State University (Social Psychology)
M.A., The Ohio State University (Psychology)
B.A., St. Mary’s College of Maryland (Philosophy, Psychology)
Course Specialties
Advertising Research Methods
Attitude-Behavior Relations
Psychology of Advertising
Background
Vargas double-majored in philosophy and psychology at St. Mary’s College of Maryland and went on to pursue graduate studies in social psychology (with a minor in quantitative psychology) at The Ohio State University. While at OSU, he worked most closely with professors Bill von Hippel, Rich Petty and Bob Arkin. In 1997-98, Vargas worked as a post-doctoral researcher under the guidance of Joe Forgas at the University of New South Wales. Since 1998, Vargas has been at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
Research and Creative Endeavor
Vargas has broad research interests spanning social psychology, consumer behavior, advertising, and marketing. A significant portion of his work examines implicit attitudes, stereotyping, prejudice, and how these relate to information processing biases that can influence social judgments and behaviors. His research program bridges social psychological processes with consumer behavior and marketing strategy.
He has explored topics like linguistic intergroup bias, implicit stereotyping as a predictor of discrimination, and using implicit attitude measures to understand consumer responses to advertising. Vargas has also studied affective influences on cognition, such as the roles of mood and emotion in processes like eyewitness memory, decision-making, and well-being. Additionally, his research explores areas of consumer psychology, investigating phenomena like materialism, responses to marketing visuals and branding, the influence of virtual self-representation, and persuasion dynamics in advertising and marketing communications.
M.A. Mudra Institute of Communications, Ahmedabad, (MICA) India
B.E. NSIT, University of Delhi, India
Course Specialties
Audience Analysis
Network Analysis
Seminar in Media and Communication Research
Background
Harsh Taneja is interested in how people consume media. He teaches and researches about media audiences, an area that is relevant to all media majors and beyond, regardless of whether they want to pursue advertising, journalism or media studies. His teaching draws on contemporary and historical conversations about media metrics, data and AI.
Before becoming an academic researcher, Harsh has worked in the global media and advertising industry, including as an audience researcher at the Global News Division of the BBC.
Research and Creative Endeavor
Harsh Taneja is interested in how people consume media in an environment where they purportedly have plenty of choice. Within this broader question, his work focuses on global internet audiences, as well as how people consume news on digital media.
PhD, University of Wisconsin-Madison (Mass Communications)
MPA, University of Wisconsin-Madison (Public Affairs)
MS, National Taiwan University (Chemistry)
BS, National Chiao-Tung University (Applied Chemistry)
Course Specialties
ADV 490: Social media analytics*
ADV 492: Tech and advertising campaigns
ADV 581: Quantitative research methods in advertising*
* made the List of Teachers Ranked as Excellent by Their Students
Background
Dr. Su is a faculty affiliate at the Institute of Communications Research, the Center for Digital Agriculture (CDA), and the Informatics Programs. She is on the editorial board of Environmental Communication and has served as a reviewer for the National Science Foundation (NSF) and more than 20 journals.
Su’s research examines the interplay between media and society, with a particular focus on how social media and new technologies influence human communication and social behaviors in the context of scientific and health topics. It has appeared in New Media & Society, Information, Communication & Society, Telematics and Informatics, Science Communication, Health Communication, Environmental Communication, and Science and Public Policy, among other peer-reviewed publications.
Awards
Su is currently a co-principal investigator on an NSF-funded project that examines the effectiveness of using humor for communication about science, particularly on social media. As a principal investigator, she is also leading a CDA project that computationally analyzes tweets about an emerging food technology, with the aim of understanding branding strategies and public opinion.
Research and Creative Endeavor
Su’s key research areas include studies on social norms, humor, incivility, social media, engagement metrics, virtual assistants, big data, machine learning, brand communication, science communication, health communication, and environmental communication.
Critical strands of her current work involve:
Optimizing the use of digital tools to improve scientific literacy and debunk misinformation;
Helping communicators design digital media tools and messages that will enhance public understanding of, and engagement with, science and health topics;
Using text analytics to understand public opinion related to controversial or emerging science, technological, and health issues; and
Using data-driven approaches to develop marketing strategies that will help brands and technology companies engage with consumers more effectively online.
Methodologically, Su’s research involves the use of surveys, experiments, and computational approaches such as large-scale text analytics.
She is enthusiastic about engaging in a range of interdisciplinary and collaborative research projects on science and health issues. She also enjoys collaborating with students, and encourages them to contact her if they are interested in learning more about her research or working with her on projects.
Select Publications
Lee, S.#, Yao, M., & Su, L. Y.-F. (forthcoming). Expressing unpopular opinion or trolling: Can dark personalities differentiate them? Telematics and Informatics, 63. doi: 10.1016/j.tele.2021.101645
Gong, Z.#, Su, L. Y.-F., Zhang, J. S.#, Chen, T.#, & Wang, Y.-C. (2022). Understanding the association between date labels and consumer-level food waste. Food Quality and Preference. 96. doi: 10.1016/j.foodqual.2021.104373
Su, L. Y.-F., McKasy, M., Cacciatore, M. A., Yeo, S. K., DeGrauw, A., & Zhang, S. J.# (2022). Generating science buzz: An examination of multidimensional engagement with humorous scientific messages on Twitter and Instagram. Science Communication, 44 (1), 30-59. doi: 10.1177/10755470211063902
Su, L. Y.-F., Scheufele, D. A., Brossard, D., & Xenos, M. A. (2021). Political and personality predispositions and topical contexts matter: Effects of uncivil comments on science news engagement intentions. New Media & Society, 23(5), 894-919. doi: 10.1177/1461444820904365
Yeo, S. K., Cacciatore, M. A., Su, L. Y.-F., McKasy, M., & O’Neill, L. (2021). Following science on social media: The effects of humor and source likability. Public Understanding of Science, 30(5), 552-569. doi:10.1177/0963662520986942
Yeo, S. K.*, Su, L. Y.-F.*, Cacciatore, M. A., McKasy, M., & Qian, S#. (2020). Predicting intentions to engage with scientific messages on Twitter: The roles of mirth and need for humor. Science Communication, 42(4), 481-507. doi: 10.1177/1075547020942512 (*equally contributed)
Lee, T. K. & Su, L. Y.-F. (2020). When a personal HPV story on a blog influences perceived social norms: The roles of personal experience, framing, perceived similarity, and social media metrics. Health Communication, 35(4), 438-446. doi: 10.1080/10410236.2019.1567440
Yeo, S. K., Su, L. Y.-F., Scheufele, D. A., Brossard, D., Xenos, M. A., & Corley, E. A. (2019). The effect of comment moderation on perceived bias in science news. Information, Communication & Society, 22(1), 129-146. doi: 10.1080/1369118X.2017.1356861
Su, L. Y.-F., Xenos, M. A., Rose, K. M., Wirz, C. D., Scheufele, D. A., & Brossard, D. (2018). Uncivil and personal? Comparing patterns of incivility in comments on the Facebook pages of news outlets. New Media & Society, 20(10), 3678-3699. doi: 10.1177/1461444818757205
Su, L. Y.-F., Scheufele, D. A., Bell, L., Brossard, D., & Xenos, M. A. (2017). Information-sharing and community-building: Exploring the use of Twitter in science public relations. Science Communication, 39(5), 569-597. doi: 10.1177/1075547017734226
Su, L. Y.-F., Cacciatore, M. A., Liang, X., Brossard, D., Scheufele, D. A., & Xenos, M. A. (2017). Analyzing public sentiments online: Combining human- and computer-based content analysis. Information, Communication & Society, 20(3), 406-427. doi:10.1080/1369118X.2016.1182197
Spartz, J. T., Su, L. Y.-F., Griffin, R., Brossard, D., & Dunwoody, S. (2017). YouTube, social norms and perceived salience of climate change in the American mind. Environmental Communication, 11(1), 1-16. doi:10.1080/17524032.2015.1047887
Su, L. Y.-F., Cacciatore, M. A., Brossard, D., Corley, E. A., Scheufele, D. A., & Xenos, M. A. (2016). Attitudinal gaps: How experts and lay audiences form policy attitudes toward controversial science. Science and Public Policy, 43(2), 196-206. doi:10.1093/scipol/scv031
Su, L. Y.-F., Akin, H., Brossard, D., Scheufele, D., & Xenos, M. (2015). Science news consumption patterns and their implications for public understanding of science. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 92(3), 597-616. doi: 10.1177/1077699015586415
Su, L. Y.-F., Cacciatore, M. A., Scheufele, D. A., Brossard, D., & Xenos, M. (2014). Inequalities in scientific understanding: Differentiating between factual and perceived knowledge gaps. Science Communication, 36(3), 352-378. doi: 10.1177/1075547014529093
# a student author/co-author at the time of submission
