Communication Department

Communication Addresses 21st Century Challenges and Opportunities

The Department of Communication is dedicated to advancing knowledge about communication and its practice in society. The department examines how meaning is created and negotiated in human interaction to address the personal, professional, and public communication challenges and opportunities posed by 21st century life.  Our students become leaders in private, public and civil sectors by developing a deep and practical appreciation of how communication shapes the world in which we live.Research from SC&I’s renowned faculty experts examines the complexity of communication processes related to five focal areas: communication and technology, health communication, interpersonal communication, language and social interaction, and organizational communication. SC&I’s students may also acquire knowledge and skills allowing them to pursue careers related to strategic communication and public relations, leadership, health and wellness, relational and family communication, and a range of other options.

Department of Communication programs:

Foci of Faculty Scholarship and Primary Areas of Doctoral Education:

  • Communication and Technology
  • Health Communication
  • Interpersonal Communication
  • Language and Social Interaction
  • Organizational Communication
 

Communication Department Faculty

Please visit our faculty site. 

Faculty accomplishments:

  • NSF, NIH, U.S. Department of Education and other grant recipients
  • NIH/NSF/CDC grant reviewers
  • Multiple national and international awards for scholarship
  • Top Dissertation and Dissertation Advisor Award winners
  • Dozens of Top Paper, Top Article, and Top Book Award honors
  • Keynote addresses given at multiple national and international conferences
  • Current and former NCA and ICA division chairs and board members
  • Journal editors and editorial board members for the leading academic journals in our field 
  • Rutgers awards for research, teaching and service

Thomson Scientific ranked U.S. institutions that published at least 75 papers between 2002 and 2006 in communication journals they index. The Rutgers Department of Communication ranked #1 nationwide. The Department is proud to have Top 20 rankings in the 2004 NCA Doctoral Program Reputation Studies for Organizational, Interpersonal, Technology, & Health Communication.

Research

The department also supports several research centers, clusters, and labs.

The Center for Communication and Health Issues Partnership for Education and Research is a consortium of university faculty, health educators, counselors, residence life staff, enforcement personnel, and graduate and undergraduate students who are leaders in creating an understanding of the role of communication and health issues in the college learning experience through research, education, prevention, program development and evaluation.

The Center for Organizational Leadership provides consulting, program development and research services for executive leaders and academic departments at Rutgers in the areas of leadership development, planning and assessment. We also contribute to the advancement of leadership and organizational development within higher education nationally and internationally.

The NetSCI Lab is dedicated to producing cutting-edge networks research, advancing theories of social networks, methods for network analysis and the practical application of networks research. Researchers in the lab are focused on the study of organizations and communities across multiple levels of interaction, connecting theory to practice and informing the design of networks in everyday life.

The Rutgers University Conversation Analysis Lab (RUCAL) brings together scholars with an interest in understanding the workings of social interaction across a wide variety of social settings and contexts. RUCAL faculty and students examine every day communicative activities as they are captured in field recordings of naturally occurring interactions among friends and family members, as well as in institutional settings.

The Laboratory for the Study of Applied Language Technology and Society (SALTS) brings together researchers interested in the development of next-generation natural language processing technology and methodology and the design and implementation of applied language technologies for investigating and supporting communication, information, and media processes across cultural, social, and geographic boundaries.

Research Videos

Hidden Organizations, Craig Scott 

Caregiving, Lisa Mikesell

Digital Street, Jeff Lane 

Department News

SC&I Scholars Examine and Advance Ethnography at Rutgers

DEWG’s Co-Chair, SC&I Associate Professor of Communication Jeff Lane, explains the mission of a group of faculty members and students from Rutgers and beyond who are working together through DEWG to advance methods of collecting research data from many kinds of populations, even those living in communities considered to be sensitive, vulnerable, or hard to reach.

“Inclusive Discovery” Is the Theme of SC&I’s 2023 Annual Scholarly Incubator

The aim of this year’s incubator, hosted by and for the school’s scholarly community, was “to explore the connections among DEI&A and the digitalization of life and living for the conduct of inclusive discovery in SC&I’s research and pedagogy, especially as it relates to insights and innovations in the methodologies and methods SC&I uses and teaches.”

"Ever Wonder Why Brits Sound So Smart? Right!"

According to a new Rutgers study, British and American English speakers use the word “right” differently in everyday conversation. Understanding this difference can lead to a deeper understanding of both language and culture.

Rutgers University Engages with Greece

At Rutgers, the core objective of the IAPP-Greece Initiative is to help advance health communications, research, education, and practice across health professions in both the U.S. and Greece. SC&I faculty member Associate Professor of Communication Matthew Matsaganis is one of the the Rutgers faculty members involved the initiative.