Research
Research Areas

Research Areas

The field of Communication is a dynamic and interdisciplinary one, continually evolving at the pace of our world.

At the Annenberg School for Communication, we embrace the diversity of Communication by encouraging students to shape their own academic path within the generosity of a broad field, working alongside faculty who themselves hail from a variety of different disciplines.

Broadly speaking, our faculty and students do work in the areas of culture and media, global communication, health communication, media institutions, political communication, and technology & society. In many cases, more than one of these areas would apply to their work. Click through each research area below to read more about the people and research in each.

Seven people standing next to a chunk of the Berlin Wall with a graffiti peace sign and the word "now"

Culture & Media

Rituals, practices, and artifacts profoundly shape individuals, groups, and societies. Communication is central to the construction, maintenance, and transmission of culture, as well as to cultural resistance and change. We explore the relationship between communication and culture and its implications for private, civil, and civic life.

Culture & Media at Annenberg

Mural showing hands with 1950s car in front of it and a man walking with a child on his shoulders while holding the hand of another

Global Communication

From Asia to the Middle East to Latin America and beyond, our researchers dive deep into the messages and media systems from around the globe, finding the unique characteristics in regional, national, and global contexts as well as the threads that link humanity around the world.

Global Communication at Annenberg

Woman holding Narcan and a Google cardboard standing in front of a poster with the headline "A new, free, virtual tool in the fight against opioid overdose deaths"

Health Communication

Messaging from clinicians, policymakers, and the media plays a major role in personal and public health. Annenberg examines the role of communication on health-related attitudes, opinions, information-processing, and behavior of individuals and groups.

Health Communication at Annenberg

People seated at a table facing an audience, in front of a slide with the headline "Amount spent on public media on a per capita basis (in US dollars)"

Media Institutions

We explore the history, design, diffusion, and regulation of traditional and emerging media, from specific technologies, mediums, organizations, and industries to their formation into broader local, national, and international media systems.

Media Institutions at Annenberg

Circle of people sitting around desks in a large open room, viewed from high above

Political Communication

Annenberg's political communication research examines the role of interpersonal and mass-mediated communication on the attitudes, opinions, information-processing, and behavior of citizens, political elites, political institutions, and political systems.

Political Communication at Annenberg

Viles in a lab, one filled with a green liquid. Bill Oxford / Unsplash

Science Communication

The complexity of scientific findings on vitally important topics like climate change, viruses and vaccines, and substance use can often be challenging for the general public to understand. Annenberg faculty and students develop principles for best communicating important scientific truths to everyone.

Science Communication at Annenberg

Sandra Gonzalez-Bailon standing front of a screen with many network diagrams

Technology & Society

From big data and network science to the impact of new technologies on our day-to-day lives, Annenberg research is at the cutting-edge of understanding the impact of shifting platforms and modes of communication on individuals and societies.

Technology & Society at Annenberg