Elizabeth Dorrance Hall
Associate Professor | Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI, UNITED STATES
Elizabeth Dorrance Hall has applied and extended interpersonal and family communication theories to explore difficult conversations.
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Biography
Elizabeth Dorrance Hall is an Associate Professor in the Communication Department at Michigan State University and Director of the Family Communication and Relationships Lab. She received her Ph.D. in Family and Interpersonal Communication from Purdue University. Elizabeth's research focuses on communication processes in close relationships, especially in the context of family.
Elizabeth has applied and extended interpersonal and family communication theories (e.g., family communication patterns theory (FCP), confirmation theory) to explore difficult conversations, how close relationships evolve over time, and under what conditions family communication and support are associated with well-being.
Other projects focus on experiences of family member marginalization over the life course, family-of-origin dynamics for first-generation college graduates, and women's experiences in "traditionally male" career fields.
Elizabeth completed a Fulbright Scholar award to study communication in multigenerational families in Slovenia in 2021. Her work is currently funded by a NSF CAREER Award grant to assess effective parent-daughter communication about STEM interests and careers in families from diverse backgrounds (2023-2027). Elizabeth is a MSU Teacher-Scholar awardee.
Industry Expertise (3)
Writing and Editing
Education/Learning
Research
Areas of Expertise (3)
Interpersonal Communication
Family Communication
Organizational Communication
Accomplishments (2)
Family Communication Division Early Career Scholar Award (professional)
2021 National Communication Association
Bruce Kendall Award for Excellence in Teaching (professional)
Brian Lamb School of Communication, Purdue University
Education (3)
Purdue University: Ph.D., Family and Interpersonal Communication
College of Charleston: M.A., Communication
Western Michigan University: B.A., Organizational Communication
Links (7)
News (5)
How COVID-19 Changed Communication for Strained Families
Psychology Today online
2022-03-11
In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, loved ones were reaching out to one another for support. Communication among family members helped people make sense of the pandemic and cope with uncertainty. There is at least one group of family members for whom this support may have been harder to come by.
Social circles protect against depression in elderly adults
MSU Today online
2020-12-15
The study, “Multilayered Social Dynamics and Depression among Older Adults: A 10-year cross-lagged analysis,” was led by Reed Reynolds, and conducted in collaboration with Jingbo Meng and Elizabeth Dorrance Hall in MSU’s Department of Communication.
A Detailed Map of Who Is Wearing Masks in the U.S.
The New York Times online
2020-07-17
These variations reflect differences in disease risk and politics, but they also may reflect some local idiosyncrasies. Elizabeth Dorrance Hall, an assistant professor of communications at Michigan State University, said mask behavior can be subject to a kind of peer pressure: If most everyone is wearing one, reluctant people may go along. If few people are, that can influence behavior, too. Such dynamics can shape the behavior of friends, neighbors and communities.
Talking to Difficult People
Psychology Today online
2019-04-23
We all encounter difficult people from time to time. Some of us live with them, and a lot of us work with them. No matter the frequency with which you talk to difficult people, these tips will help smooth the process and create more peace for all involved.
What It's Like To Be The Black Sheep Of The Family
Forbes online
2017-05-07
Elizabeth Dorrance Hall, an assistant professor of communication at Utah State University and a director of the Family Communication and Relationships Lab has published research about black sheep and challenging family relationships. She prefers to call black sheep “marginalized family members.” Her research notes that family provides most people with a sense of identity, place and connection, but that family is culturally constructed in the same ways that narratives about families are constructed.
Journal Articles (5)
The online dating effect: Where a couple meets predicts the quality of their marriage
Computers in Human Behavior2024 Drawing on social ecology theory, this study compares the marriages of people who met in online dating to those who were introduced offline. A survey was administered to a sample of 923 married U.S. adults, roughly half of whom met their spouse in online dating. The results provided evidence of an online dating effect, with online daters reporting less satisfying and stable marriages than offline daters.
Reactance to Healthy Eating and Physical Activity Messages: Face Threat and Face Management Strategies in Memorable Daily Conversations Among Couples
Health Communication2023 Most adults in the United States (U.S.) fail to meet guidelines for physical activity (PA) and nutrition outlined by the Centers for Disease Control. One important predictor of engagement in healthy behavior is support from one’s romantic partner. However, messages from partners may fail to motivate healthy behavior if they threaten recipients’ face and cause reactance. The present study examines face-threatening acts (FTAs) and face management strategies (FMSs) in conversations between romantic couples and their associations with reactance, healthy eating, and PA behaviors.
Exploring the Career Resilience Processes of Women in the Early Stages of Traditionally Male Careers
Western Journal of Communication2022 Although career resilience (CR) research has revealed insights about the conditions under which individuals overcome obstacles and achieve career success, it has not explicated the nature of CR processes or considered how CR processes may be unique to particular social groups. Based on interviews with 41 women who self-identified as being in the early stages of traditionally male careers (TMCs), this study integrates CR with the communication theory of resilience to elucidate how women persist in/ TMCs despite facing gender-based marginalization.
Family and Cultural Perceptions About Meat Consumption among Hispanic/Latino and White Adults in the United States
Ecology of Food and Nutrition2022 The study examines the extent to which Hispanic/Latino Americans and non-Hispanic White Americans report that meat is an important aspect of their cultural beliefs and practices. An online national survey was completed using quota sampling to recruit approximately equal groups of U.S. Hispanic/Latino and non-Hispanic White Americans (n = 512).
Changes in family communication during the COVID-19 pandemic: the role of family communication patterns and relational distance
Communication Research Reports2022 Communication between family members facilitated sensemaking and coping with uncertainty during the COVID-19 pandemic for many, however, accessing this form of coping can be challenging for marginalized family members who maintain relational distance with family. This study sought to understand how family communication changed during the COVID-19 pandemic for marginalized family members and how those changes were associated with family communication patterns.
