William Gee
Email: gee.127@osu.edu
I am a doctoral candidate in Political Communication at The Ohio State University, where my research examines how communities are shaped by politics, morality, and social identity. Using methods from network analysis, computational linguistics, and political psychology, I study how people connect, argue, and belong in civic life. Recognized with the Albert Warren Scholarship for Excellence in Teaching, I strive to bring the same energy and rigor to the classroom. My work is also grounded in professional experience across political campaigns, international diplomacy, and public policy. Learn more at TheNewCivics.org.
Advisor: Dr. William Eveland
Ji Youn "Jessica" Ryu
Email: ryu.205@osu.edu
As a health and risk communication scholar, my research centers around health communication and persuasion. At the core of my research are two central themes: (1) Understanding why people acquire health information and how it shapes health beliefs, knowledge, and behaviors, and (2) designing theory-driven interventions to promote health behaviors. Across my work, I combine theoretically grounded inquiry with diverse methods to better understand the drivers and effects health/risk communication and design health campaign interventions. While my work is primarily quantitative, I employ qualitative, mixed, interdisciplinary methods where appropriate. In my dissertation, I examine the impact of active versus passive information acquisition in encouraging physical activity, where I leverage AI-based chatbots as a tool to compare different modes of information acquisition.
Dissertation title: Information acquisition behavior as a tool to bridge the intention-behavior gap in physical activity: Application and extension of health action process approach
Advisor: Dr. Shelly Hovick