Andrew Ledbetter

Professor & Chair of Communication Studies Texas Christian University

  • Fort Worth TX

Andrew Ledbetter investigates how people use communication technology to maintain close ties with friends, family, and romantic partners.

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Spotlight

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The Research Behind the Reputation: TCU’s Dr. Ledbetter Maps the Science of Taylor Swift’s Storytelling

At Texas Christian University, Dr. Andrew Ledbetter, Chair of the Communication Studies Department, is turning his scholarly attention to one of pop culture’s biggest phenomena: Taylor Swift. His research uses data-driven analysis to reveal how Swift’s albums and songs build an interconnected narrative universe — what he calls her “Taylorverse.” Ledbetter ran lyrics across ten albums through semantic-network software to show how certain songs act as linchpins connecting themes of fame, womanhood, love and storytelling. “I was interested in interconnections among the song lyrics,” says Ledbetter. “The songs that are most central have a lot of overlap with other songs, might tend to be songs that are the most popular.”  November 03 0 NBC News The work stands out not just for its pop-culture relevance, but for its academic innovation: combining computational text-analysis with narrative theory to unlock why certain tracks resonate more deeply than others. For journalists, cultural commentators or anyone covering the evolving intersection of music, identity and media, Dr. Ledbetter is a go-to expert. He can speak to how storytelling in music shapes audience engagement, how media fandom becomes scholarship, and why Swift’s songwriting continues to spark new research just as much as chart-topping hits. Andrew Ledbetter is available for interviews Simply click on his icon now to arrange an interview today.

Andrew Ledbetter

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Biography

Ledbetter was exposed to the beginnings of the online communication revolution at an early age, and this led him to study both computer science and communication at Wheaton College, and then to pursue a master's and doctorate in communication studies at the University of Kansas. Throughout his career, his research has focused on how communication technology intersects with relational and psychological well-being. Specific research topics include maintenance of close relationships during COVID, personal branding by social media influencers, attitudes toward communication technology, technology use and management of parent/child privacy, and the association between Facebook use and the mental health of mothers. Ledbetter also co-authors A First Look at Communication Theory, which is the leading communication theory textbook. He is also an avid Taylor Swift fan, and has commented on the connection between her music and communication theory.

Areas of Expertise

Quantitative Research Methods
Psychological Health
Friendships
Communication Technology
Social Media
Maintaining Relationships
Family Communication
Interpersonal Communication

Accomplishments

Outstanding Mentor Award

Master’s Education Division of the National Communication Association

Article of the Year Award

Journal of Family Communication

Early Career Award

Interpersonal Communication Division of the National Communication Association

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Education

The University of Kansas

Ph.D.

Communication Studies

2007

The University of Kansas

M.A.

Communication Studies

2004

Wheaton College

B.S.

Communication; Computer Science

2002

Affiliations

  • National Communication Association
  • Central States Communication Association

Languages

  • English

Media Appearances

Communication Studies (Taylor’s Version)

TCU Bob Schieffer College of Communication  online

2023-10-27

To celebrate the release of “1989 (Taylor’s Version),” we spoke with Andrew Ledbetter, Ph.D., professor and chair of the Department of Communication Studies (and self-proclaimed Swiftie), about Taylor Swift and how her work ties in to communication theory. More than a musician, Taylor is an expert communicator whose narrative skills jump off the music sheet and into real life.

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Taylor Swift in Texas

Texas Standard  online

2023-04-03

Twitter Spaces Interview

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Tell them how the crowds went wild: Taylor Swift fans in Texas are ready for the Eras Tour

Texas Standard  online

2023-03-30

Andrew Ledbetter is also excited to attend a Taylor Swift concert with his loved ones: his wife and two daughters.

“To get to go to the tour and get to see that and to celebrate that live with the people I enjoy most in the world, that also appreciate Taylor Swift, too,” he said. “Oh yeah, I’m really excited about it.”

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Articles

Tie strength and media use in friendships across the course of a year: Testing media multiplexity theory’s third proposition

New Media & Society

2023

Although central to media multiplexity theory’s logic, the proposition that tie strength and media multiplexity mutually cause each other has received limited empirical test. This study evaluated this proposition via survey data collected from friends in Spring 2020 and Spring 2021, examining their friendship across the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. When examining retrospective reports of the relationship pre-pandemic, results supported the claim that media multiplexity predicts tie strength; in contrast, longitudinal results between Spring 2020 and Spring 2021 supported the claim that tie strength predicts media multiplexity. These findings may indicate a need for clearer boundary conditions for the theory, as well as more thorough consideration of the explanatory mechanisms that underlie the link between multiplexity and tie strength.

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Relational Maintenance and Relational Entropy Predict Each Other Over a Year: A Test of the Theory of Relational Entropy in Friendships During COVID-19

Communication Studies

2022

To evaluate the foundational propositions of a nascent theory of relational entropy, this manuscript reports a longitudinal investigation of friendship across the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants included 165 members of Greek-letter organizations (both current students and alumni), with data collected in Spring 2020 and again in Spring 2021. Results indicated that relationships exhibited greater entropy and less maintenance in Spring 2021 than in Spring 2020, with Spring 2020 maintenance predicting less entropy in Spring 2021. Although the personal impact of the pandemic predicted increased maintenance in Spring 2020, the direction of this effect was reversed a year later. These findings support key propositions of the nascent theory and identify directions for future refinement of it.

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Extending the personal branding affordances typology to parasocial interaction with public figures on social media: Social presence and media multiplexity as mediators☆

Computers in Human Behavior

2021

The extent of a social media public figure's success often rests on their ability to establish a personal connection with audiences. Drawing from decades of prior research on parasocial interaction and a typology of personal branding affordances developed in our prior work, this study examined the extent to which a platform's perceived affordances might predict such parasocial interaction. Results supported this association and identified social presence and media multiplexity as independent mediators of it, consistent with prior work in interpersonal communication and technology research. Moreover, the pattern of findings validated audience involvement and locus of promotion as key dimensions delineating the personal branding affordances typology, with multiplatform participatory affordances fostering the most intimate perception of public figures by audiences (i.e., with heightened social presence, media multiplexity, and parasocial interaction).

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