Romy RW

Assistant Professor of Communication Studies Loyola Marymount University

  • Los Angeles CA

Assistant Professor of Communication Studies

Contact

Loyola Marymount University

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Biography

Dr. Romy RW earned her Ph.D. in Communication from the University of Maryland, College Park. Prior to coming to LMU, she worked as a postdoctoral fellow at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and as a research fellow at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). She also brings practical experience as a news editor and journalist from her time at Tianjin Television Station and the National Film Museum in China.

Dr. Romy RW research focuses on the interrelationships among intercultural communication, health communication, and mediated technologies. She specifically addresses the power dynamics, stereotyping, and prejudice prevalent in intercultural communication that contribute to poorer health outcomes for marginalized and underserved populations. Additionally, she examines the roles and interactions of social identity and communication technologies to enhance intercultural relationships. In her dissertation, she conducted a health intervention to assess the impact of intercultural interactions and computer-mediated communication on mental health outcomes. She approaches these topics using social scientific methodologies. Her research has appeared in a variety of publications including Communication Studies, Journal of Applied Communications, Communication Teacher, and Mobile Media & Communication, among others.

Education

National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Postdoctoral Fellow

Health Communication and Psychological Science

2023

University of Maryland, College Park

Ph.D.

Communication

2022

University of Maryland, College Park

MA

Communicatiom

2019

Social

Areas of Expertise

Computer-mediated communication
Media Research
Health Disparities
Intercultural and Intergroup Communication
Social Identity
Health Communication
Mental Health
Social Scientific Methodologies

Industry Expertise

Museums and Institutions
Media - Broadcast
Research

Accomplishments

Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education Fellowship

Training experiences at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Affiliations

  • National Institutes of Health (NIH)
  • Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
  • National Communication Association
  • International Communication Association
  • Eastern Communication Association

Languages

  • English
  • Mandarin

Articles

Offensiveness and virtuousness of a sports crisis: Identity, situational crisis communication theory, and social assessment.

Public Relations Review

Page, T., Seate, A., Chatham, A., Lim, J., Shi, D., Ma, L., & RW, R.

2025-09-01

Offensiveness and virtuousness have been identified as strong predictors of post-crisis reputation in an experiment regarding a fictional organization. This study identifies how these variables reflect the types of information processing identified in the social assessment literature. Further, this study assesses the influence of virtuousness and offensiveness in a crisis facing real-world organizations with which participants have pre-existing connections. Using an experiment with 574 participants recruited from Amazon’s Mechanical Turk, the experiment examines a cheating crisis engulfing an NFL team. Utilizing the sports crisis communication literature, this research assesses the effects of SCCT’s prescribed responses and identity on reputation. Results show that identity directly influences offensiveness, virtuousness, and reputation, and has indirect effects on post-crisis reputation via the intervening variables, as proposed by REMREP. Connections between REMREP and the social assessment literature are identified and discussed.

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Effects of COVID-19 E-Mental health interventions: A systematic review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses.

Internet Intervention

RW, R. & Nan, X.

2025-03-01

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on global mental health. E-mental health has the potential to enhance the quality of care and can be swiftly implemented on a large scale. We performed a systematic review of systematic reviews, including meta-analyses, to assess the effects of COVID-19 e-mental health interventions. We followed an established search, screening, coding, and reporting protocol. Methodological quality was evaluated using the Measurement Tool to Assess Systematic Reviews (AMSTAR-2) checklist. The searches resulted in a total of 2341 articles. Of these, twelve systematic and meta-analytic reviews were included. The findings indicated that cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and psychoeducation were the most used mental health intervention types. E-mental health interventions were delivered via various communication channels including videoconferencing, telephone-based approaches, and mobile applications. E-mental health interventions have demonstrated their effectiveness in addressing prevalent mental health issues, particularly anxiety, depression, and stress. This study underscores the importance of e-mental health interventions in enhancing accessibility and efficiency to reduce mental health symptoms, providing valuable insights for policymakers and clinicians addressing mental health challenges exacerbated by global pandemics.

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Impacts of racial and gender identities on individuals’ intentions to seek a counselor

Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking. doi: 10.1089/cyber.2023.0521

RW, R. & Joyce, N.

2024-07-04

RW, R. & Joyce, N. (2024). Impacts of racial and gender identities on individuals’ intentions to seek a counselor. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking.

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