Human Communication Research

Call for Papers - Human Communication Research We're now accepting submissions for a special issue: "Who Are We Studying in Communication Research? Revisiting Audience in a Transforming Media Environment" Extended abstract deadline: August 31, 2026 academic.oup.com/hcr/pages/spec…

New in HCR: Stewart M. Coles (2026) finds that social media endorsements from co-partisans increased exposure intentions for a fictitious television program. This co-partisan endorsement effect was stronger among White participants. Read more: doi.org/10.1093/hcr/hq…

New in HCR: Zhu et al. (2026) show that larger choice sets increased overall and cross-cutting news selection, while choice set composition shaped cross-cutting exposure. Attitudes and behavioral intentions did not significantly change in the short term. doi.org/10.1093/hcr/hq…

We’re excited to announce that HCR is now on LinkedIn! Stay connected with us: linkedin.com/company/human-…

New @HCR_Journal issue out now! Featuring research on interparental conflict and parent-child triangulation, body-positive and fitspirational influencers, communicated sense-making in social groups, and digital panopticon/dataveillance. academic.oup.com/hcr/issue/52/2…

Great work by Priska L. Breves, Sophie C. Boerman, Jan-Philipp Stein, Carolin Ischen, and @ZephMCvanBerlo on this study!

New in HCR: In a 3-week longitudinal study, Breves et al. (2025) show that body-positive influencer content (vs. fitspirational content) fostered stronger parasocial relationships and increased wishful identification and body satisfaction over time. doi.org/10.1093/hcr/hq…

New in HCR: Across two experiments, Appel et al. (2025) show that congeniality bias persisted regardless of fiction vs. non-fiction labeling, emerging for positive portrayals but not for negative ones, with non-fiction slightly preferred overall. Read: doi.org/10.1093/hcr/hq…

New in HCR: @wliao229, Ya-Ching Lee, @haoning_xue, and @EmilyKMcKinley find that AI use (N = 2,187) is driven by self-agency and machine-communion, highlighting how trait perceptions operate within relational schemas and evolve with trust over time. Read: doi.org/10.1093/hcr/hq…

New in HCR: Meier & Masur (2025) study the "digital panopticon" via a 3-wave longitudinal experiment. While dataveillance links to privacy resignation between-person, critical privacy literacy is the key within-person predictor of self-inhibition. Read: doi.org/10.1093/hcr/hq…

📢 New in HCR by @R_AmandaCooper & @alice_fanari: Returning Christian missionaries use metaphors, memorable messages & personification filtered through Christian in-group vernacular to make sense of their experiences and post-missionary identity. Read: doi.org/10.1093/hcr/hq…

📢 New in HCR by @y_anthony_chen & @catalina_toma: Two preregistered experiments show Instagram self-presentation is self-affirming and, when it comes before upward social comparison, can buffer envy; well-being effects may depend on activity sequence. doi.org/10.1093/hcr/hq…

📢 New in HCR: Influencers can mobilize! In two experiments and a field study, influencer posts with collective response efficacy increased collective efficacy beliefs and action intentions, especially among followers with strong parasocial bonds. Read: doi.org/10.1093/hcr/hq…

📢 New in HCR by @JanaDreston and @AndreasNanz: Both intentional search and accidental exposure to election info on social media boost political knowledge—but don’t improve vote-choice alignment. Intentional seekers just feel more confident. Read: doi.org/10.1093/hcr/hq…

📢 New in HCR! Vol. 51, Issue 4 (Oct 2025)! Studies on intellectual humility, AI imaginaries, media parenting, gender and sexist behavior, political communication, identity, and parent-child conversations about mental health. Read the full issue here: academic.oup.com/hcr/issue/51/4

📢 New in HCR: “What do people watch under adversity?" Netflix viewing histories with diary data show no evidence that daily adversity predicts content choice. Instead, coping strategies shape genre preferences. 🔗 academic.oup.com/hcr/advance-ar… #Coping #MoodManagement #DiaryData

New editorial note out in Human Communication Research @HCR_Journal. doi.org/10.1093/hcr/hq…

⏰ Deadline Day! 🚨 Don't forget to submit your extended abstract to HCR's Special Issue: "Advancements in the Study of Causal Mechanisms across Communication Contexts." 📌 Due: Sep 15, 2025 👤 Guest Editor: R. Lance Holbert (UPenn) 🔗 academic.oup.com/hcr/pages/caus…

⏰ 10 days left! Submit your extended abstract to Human Communication Research's Special Issue, "Advancements in the Study of Causal Mechanisms across Communication Contexts." 📌Abstracts due: Sept 15, 2025 Guest Editor: R. Lance Holbert (UPenn) 🔗 academic.oup.com/hcr/pages/caus…