Alan Abitbol
Biographic Data
| ID | 4258229 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Alan Abitbol |
| GIVEN NAMES | Alan |
| FAMILY NAME | Abitbol |
| SIGNATURE | ABITBOL A |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Dayton |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-2905-3099 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 25 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 21 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 25 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2015 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 2 |
For scientists who want to better communicate science
Science Communication for Scientists: Linking Strategy with Creativity, Practice, and Respect serves as a necessary, current resource for scientists seeking to communicate about their work more effectively. The book expertly meets the collective moment in which we find ourselves — socio-politically, based on practical norms and common institutional infrastructures and incentives, and based on the state of the science communication literature — to…
The Evolution of #OpenScience Discourse on Twitter
The current research observed historical public discourse surrounding the issue of open science given its contemporary salience across scientific disciplines. The Twitter API was used to collect the population of 1,723,169 open science-related tweets published from Twitter’s inception through September 2022. A latent factor Dirichlet multinomial mixture (LF-DMM) model was used to analyze textual tweet content. Stepwise segmented compositional reg…
Examining the impact of information sources in building consumer trust in the direct-to-consumer genetic testing industry
Purpose This study tests the impact of information sources on consumer trust of direct-to-consumer genetic testing (DTCGT) companies and of the genetic testing process. Design/methodology/approach An online survey was conducted using a probability-based panel of U.S. adults (N = 249) by Ipsos’ KnowledgePanel®. The sample consisted of participants who had taken a genetic test. Participants were asked questions that measured information sources use…
Verify, Accept, or Ignore: The Complexities of Media Trust Along Southeastern U.S. Coastal Communities During Severe Weather Events
This study examines how coastal community residents in Mississippi and Alabama gather information during severe weather events, focusing on the role of media, alternative information sources, and barriers to effective preparedness. The theoretical framework came from media trust and information sources among socially vulnerable populations. While media play a critical role, participants reported they relied on social media, local officials, and i…
The Role of Human Voice in Direct-To-Consumer Health Communication
Despite overall positive perceptions, many customers distrust direct-to-consumer genetic testing companies in regard to privacy and aftercare. Prior research suggests companies can assuage mistrust by personalizing communication when discussing sensitive health information. This content analysis of customer e-mails (N = 338) investigates the purpose, personalization, and use of the human voice strategy by direct-to-consumer genetic testing compan…
Industry in Crisis: Exploring the Perceptions PR Professionals Have Towards Disinformation
This study examines how public relations professionals navigate the societal issues presented through disinformation. Findings from in‐depth interviews indicate that when it comes to sharing incorrect information, especially on social media, it has significant implications for the PR industry. The study highlights the complexity surrounding disinformation and the importance of establishing intent in distinguishing between misinformation and disin…
Charting water sanitation concerns within vulnerable communities and international contexts on X
This study used a computational exploratory approach to examine X discourse on water sanitation challenges in the Black Belt region in the United States and compared it with larger international contexts. The research sought to uncover themes that impact salient environmental health issues and support future interventions. A two-part research question addressing the nature of water issues in a local and global context, resulted in a data set (n =…
Addressing grand challenges: Perceptions of interdisciplinary research and how communication structures facilitate interdisciplinary research at US research-intensive universities
Purpose The purpose of this research was to understand the role of interdisciplinarity in research and how communication structures and processes at universities facilitates such work. Design/methodology/approach Twenty-one semi-structured interviews with administrators, faculty, and staff from US R-1 Carnegie-designated higher education institutions were conducted. Findings Institutional culture reportedly drives interdisciplinary research effor…
How environment-focused communities discuss Covid-19 online: An analysis of social (risk) amplification and ripple effects on Reddit
This study investigated what (risk) information related to COVID-19 was most amplified through online discussions in environment-focused communities and how amplification and ripple effects evolved over time. The population of posts and comments (N = 14,156 observations) posted to 135 environment-focused subreddits from Dec. 1, 2019-Aug. 31, 2020 containing key terms related to COVID-19 was downloaded and subjected to computational content analys…
Pandemic Problems in the Ivory Tower: Exploring Employee Engagement During the Covid-19 Crisis
The purpose of this study was to investigate how communication constituted the engagement experiences of employees at research-intensive universities during the COVID-19 crisis. Twenty-one semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with vice presidents of research, research center and institute directors and support staff, and research faculty at research-intensive universities in the U.S. The findings revealed paradoxical engagement expe…
Examining the perceived transparency of DTC genetic testing company communication and its impact on consumer trust, attitude and behavioral intentions
Purpose This study examines perceived transparency of direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic testing communication and measures its impact on consumers' trust, attitudes, and the intention to recommend the test to others. Design/methodology/approach An online survey of US–based adults (over 18 years of age) ( N = 271) was administered by the online panel company Qualtrics Panels. The sample consisted of participants who have taken a DTC genetic test pr…
How Male Consumers Respond to “Enlightened Manvertising” Campaigns: Gender Schema, Hostile Sexism, And Political Orientation Feed Attitudes
The results of a survey of U.S. men ( N = 285) indicated that participants’ gender schemas, hostile sexism, political orientation, and support for women’s rights influenced their attitude toward “enlightened manvertising,” which refers to advertising that redefines masculinity by promoting both masculine and feminine traits as elements of contemporary manhood. The study uses the advertising self-congruence framework, which in previous research ha…
Dialogic Communication Practices of Water District Officials: Insights from Practitioner Interviews
Limited research has evaluated organizations’ public communication strategies for creating and maintaining dialogue about water risks with constituents. To fill this gap in the literature, 24 semi-structured telephone interviews with 25 officials employed by Texas groundwater conservation districts were conducted to determine how these officials engage in strategic public communication with their stakeholders. Results indicated that water distric…
How risk decision-makers interpret and use flood forecast information: Assessing the Mississippi River Outlook email product
While the National Weather Service and its River Forecast Centers and Weather Forecast Offices produce visuals, graphics, and outreach designed to support weather forecasts and warnings and inform decisions about natural resource management and emergency services, opportunities exist for risk communication scholarship to refine theory and promote best practices for communicating such information to the various stakeholders who need it. In Septemb…
Science Communication Meets Consumer Relations: An Analysis of Twitter Use by 23andMe
For-profit organizations play a considerable role in the dissemination of scientific research and information. In the case of direct-to-consumer genetic testing, this is important because how consumers learn about genetic science can influence health decisions and support for science. Through a content analysis of Twitter posts ( N = 1,000), this study examined how 23andMe balances traditional promotion, communicating product benefits, and sharin…
Does Oil and Goodwill Mix: Examining the Oil and Gas Industry’s Impact on Stakeholder Engagement on Facebook
The present study explores how oil and gas companies use Facebook to communicate about community-supporting initiatives and engage stakeholders. Drawing from the company–cause fit and social interactivity literature, we examined the type of message and the language used in company Facebook posts to elicit stakeholder engagement, as measured by the number of likes, shares, and comments. We content analyzed 953 Facebook posts from 12 companies feat…
A Missed Opportunity: Noaa’s Use of Social Media to Communicate Climate Science
In the current media landscape, organizations often communicate about science directly with publics through online channels rather than relying on journalist gatekeepers. Online platforms present organizations with the opportunity to participate in two-way communication in order to increase engagement with science. The present study examined how the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) utilizes social media to interact with publ…
A Reply to Lindsey, Herring, and Greenhalgh on “A Missed Opportunity: Noaa’s Use of Social Media to Communicate Climate Science”
"A Reply to Lindsey, Herring, and Greenhalgh on “A Missed Opportunity?: NOAA’s Use of Social Media to Communicate Climate Science”." Environmental Communication, 12(2), pp. 287–288
Live Streams and Revenue Streams: Twitch as a Hybrid Gaming Culture
This chapter examines Twitch, a live streaming social gaming site, as a melded social media platform that integrates the social affordances of online gaming sites with those of social networking and video sharing. Although rich in opportunities for acquiring the resources, skills, and competencies typically associated with civic gaming experiences, such multifaceted gaming sites place greater social demands on participants, thereby altering the n…
Championing Women’s Empowerment as a Catalyst for Purchase Intentions: Testing the Mediating Roles of OPRs and Brand Loyalty in the Context of Femvertising
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) research indicates that consumers are skeptical of a company’s support of social causes unless they can determine that the efforts are legitimate and authentic. One way companies can demonstrate legitimacy in their CSR efforts is by supporting causes that are perceived to “fit.” The goal of this study is to explore the effects of company–cause fit within the context of the CSR strategy of femvertising. Femver…
Communicating Local Climate Risks Online Through an Interactive Data Visualization
Literature suggests a need to develop climate communication tools that focus on the impacts of climate change at local scales to increase proximity and communicate the risks on a more personal level. However, the nature of raw climate projection data makes accessibility by the lay audience a challenge and necessitates the need for innovative technological approaches to its distribution. ClimateData.US was created as an interactive visualization t…
The Role of Public Relations in Social Capital
Public relations research has traditionally focused on how public relations efforts make organizations more effective. Recently, scholars have argued for the broader role of public relations in society. That is, how can public relations be used to improve society rather than simply making organizations more effective? Existing studies have emphasized the relationship between internal public relations and organizational social capital. Lack of sch…
Understanding Green Content Strategies: An Analysis of Environmental Advertising Frames From 1990 to 2010
This content analysis examined the characteristics of environmental advertisements (N = 449) published in Newsweek, Time, and U.S. News and World Report in 1990, 2000, and 2010. Findings revealed that responsibility frames were dominant as the strategy used in environmental advertisements over time. The species/habitat protection issue was the dominant issue in 1990, and energy efficiency was the prevalent issue in 2000 and 2010. Advertisements p…
Selective perceptions of hydraulic fracturing: The role of issue support in the evaluation of visual frames
Hydraulic fracturing (HF) is a focal topic in discussions about domestic energy production, yet the American public is largely unfamiliar and undecided about the practice. This study sheds light on how individuals may come to understand hydraulic fracturing as this unconventional production technology becomes more prominent in the United States. For the study, a thorough search of HF photographs was performed, and a systematic evaluation of 40 im…
Set It and Forget It: The One-Way Use of Social Media by Government Agencies Communicating Science
As traditional thinking about science communication is modified to emphasize engagement with science, public relations theorizing—particularly related to dialogic communication—may contribute to science communication theory and practice. Despite calls to move beyond the deficit model, we argue that many science organizations continue to practice one-way communication and underutilize social media’s potential for dialogue. To support our argument,…
Set It and Forget It: The One-Way Use of Social Media by Government Agencies Communicating Science
As traditional thinking about science communication is modified to emphasize engagement with science, public relations theorizing—particularly related to dialogic communication—may contribute to science communication theory and practice. Despite calls to move beyond the deficit model, we argue that many science organizations continue to practice one-way communication and underutilize social media’s potential for dialogue. To support our argument,…
Championing Women’s Empowerment as a Catalyst for Purchase Intentions: Testing the Mediating Roles of OPRs and Brand Loyalty in the Context of Femvertising
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) research indicates that consumers are skeptical of a company’s support of social causes unless they can determine that the efforts are legitimate and authentic. One way companies can demonstrate legitimacy in their CSR efforts is by supporting causes that are perceived to “fit.” The goal of this study is to explore the effects of company–cause fit within the context of the CSR strategy of femvertising. Femver…
Selective perceptions of hydraulic fracturing: The role of issue support in the evaluation of visual frames
Hydraulic fracturing (HF) is a focal topic in discussions about domestic energy production, yet the American public is largely unfamiliar and undecided about the practice. This study sheds light on how individuals may come to understand hydraulic fracturing as this unconventional production technology becomes more prominent in the United States. For the study, a thorough search of HF photographs was performed, and a systematic evaluation of 40 im…
Charting water sanitation concerns within vulnerable communities and international contexts on X
This study used a computational exploratory approach to examine X discourse on water sanitation challenges in the Black Belt region in the United States and compared it with larger international contexts. The research sought to uncover themes that impact salient environmental health issues and support future interventions. A two-part research question addressing the nature of water issues in a local and global context, resulted in a data set (n =…
Science Communication Meets Consumer Relations: An Analysis of Twitter Use by 23andMe
For-profit organizations play a considerable role in the dissemination of scientific research and information. In the case of direct-to-consumer genetic testing, this is important because how consumers learn about genetic science can influence health decisions and support for science. Through a content analysis of Twitter posts ( N = 1,000), this study examined how 23andMe balances traditional promotion, communicating product benefits, and sharin…
Selective perceptions of hydraulic fracturing: The role of issue support in the evaluation of visual frames
Hydraulic fracturing (HF) is a focal topic in discussions about domestic energy production, yet the American public is largely unfamiliar and undecided about the practice. This study sheds light on how individuals may come to understand hydraulic fracturing as this unconventional production technology becomes more prominent in the United States. For the study, a thorough search of HF photographs was performed, and a systematic evaluation of 40 im…
Set It and Forget It: The One-Way Use of Social Media by Government Agencies Communicating Science
As traditional thinking about science communication is modified to emphasize engagement with science, public relations theorizing—particularly related to dialogic communication—may contribute to science communication theory and practice. Despite calls to move beyond the deficit model, we argue that many science organizations continue to practice one-way communication and underutilize social media’s potential for dialogue. To support our argument,…
The Role of Public Relations in Social Capital
Public relations research has traditionally focused on how public relations efforts make organizations more effective. Recently, scholars have argued for the broader role of public relations in society. That is, how can public relations be used to improve society rather than simply making organizations more effective? Existing studies have emphasized the relationship between internal public relations and organizational social capital. Lack of sch…
Understanding Green Content Strategies: An Analysis of Environmental Advertising Frames From 1990 to 2010
This content analysis examined the characteristics of environmental advertisements (N = 449) published in Newsweek, Time, and U.S. News and World Report in 1990, 2000, and 2010. Findings revealed that responsibility frames were dominant as the strategy used in environmental advertisements over time. The species/habitat protection issue was the dominant issue in 1990, and energy efficiency was the prevalent issue in 2000 and 2010. Advertisements p…
Communicating Local Climate Risks Online Through an Interactive Data Visualization
Literature suggests a need to develop climate communication tools that focus on the impacts of climate change at local scales to increase proximity and communicate the risks on a more personal level. However, the nature of raw climate projection data makes accessibility by the lay audience a challenge and necessitates the need for innovative technological approaches to its distribution. ClimateData.US was created as an interactive visualization t…
A Missed Opportunity: Noaa’s Use of Social Media to Communicate Climate Science
In the current media landscape, organizations often communicate about science directly with publics through online channels rather than relying on journalist gatekeepers. Online platforms present organizations with the opportunity to participate in two-way communication in order to increase engagement with science. The present study examined how the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) utilizes social media to interact with publ…
A Reply to Lindsey, Herring, and Greenhalgh on “A Missed Opportunity: Noaa’s Use of Social Media to Communicate Climate Science”
"A Reply to Lindsey, Herring, and Greenhalgh on “A Missed Opportunity?: NOAA’s Use of Social Media to Communicate Climate Science”." Environmental Communication, 12(2), pp. 287–288
Live Streams and Revenue Streams: Twitch as a Hybrid Gaming Culture
This chapter examines Twitch, a live streaming social gaming site, as a melded social media platform that integrates the social affordances of online gaming sites with those of social networking and video sharing. Although rich in opportunities for acquiring the resources, skills, and competencies typically associated with civic gaming experiences, such multifaceted gaming sites place greater social demands on participants, thereby altering the n…
Championing Women’s Empowerment as a Catalyst for Purchase Intentions: Testing the Mediating Roles of OPRs and Brand Loyalty in the Context of Femvertising
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) research indicates that consumers are skeptical of a company’s support of social causes unless they can determine that the efforts are legitimate and authentic. One way companies can demonstrate legitimacy in their CSR efforts is by supporting causes that are perceived to “fit.” The goal of this study is to explore the effects of company–cause fit within the context of the CSR strategy of femvertising. Femver…
Does Oil and Goodwill Mix: Examining the Oil and Gas Industry’s Impact on Stakeholder Engagement on Facebook
The present study explores how oil and gas companies use Facebook to communicate about community-supporting initiatives and engage stakeholders. Drawing from the company–cause fit and social interactivity literature, we examined the type of message and the language used in company Facebook posts to elicit stakeholder engagement, as measured by the number of likes, shares, and comments. We content analyzed 953 Facebook posts from 12 companies feat…
Dialogic Communication Practices of Water District Officials: Insights from Practitioner Interviews
Limited research has evaluated organizations’ public communication strategies for creating and maintaining dialogue about water risks with constituents. To fill this gap in the literature, 24 semi-structured telephone interviews with 25 officials employed by Texas groundwater conservation districts were conducted to determine how these officials engage in strategic public communication with their stakeholders. Results indicated that water distric…
How risk decision-makers interpret and use flood forecast information: Assessing the Mississippi River Outlook email product
While the National Weather Service and its River Forecast Centers and Weather Forecast Offices produce visuals, graphics, and outreach designed to support weather forecasts and warnings and inform decisions about natural resource management and emergency services, opportunities exist for risk communication scholarship to refine theory and promote best practices for communicating such information to the various stakeholders who need it. In Septemb…
Science Communication Meets Consumer Relations: An Analysis of Twitter Use by 23andMe
For-profit organizations play a considerable role in the dissemination of scientific research and information. In the case of direct-to-consumer genetic testing, this is important because how consumers learn about genetic science can influence health decisions and support for science. Through a content analysis of Twitter posts ( N = 1,000), this study examined how 23andMe balances traditional promotion, communicating product benefits, and sharin…
Examining the perceived transparency of DTC genetic testing company communication and its impact on consumer trust, attitude and behavioral intentions
Purpose This study examines perceived transparency of direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic testing communication and measures its impact on consumers' trust, attitudes, and the intention to recommend the test to others. Design/methodology/approach An online survey of US–based adults (over 18 years of age) ( N = 271) was administered by the online panel company Qualtrics Panels. The sample consisted of participants who have taken a DTC genetic test pr…
How Male Consumers Respond to “Enlightened Manvertising” Campaigns: Gender Schema, Hostile Sexism, And Political Orientation Feed Attitudes
The results of a survey of U.S. men ( N = 285) indicated that participants’ gender schemas, hostile sexism, political orientation, and support for women’s rights influenced their attitude toward “enlightened manvertising,” which refers to advertising that redefines masculinity by promoting both masculine and feminine traits as elements of contemporary manhood. The study uses the advertising self-congruence framework, which in previous research ha…
Addressing grand challenges: Perceptions of interdisciplinary research and how communication structures facilitate interdisciplinary research at US research-intensive universities
Purpose The purpose of this research was to understand the role of interdisciplinarity in research and how communication structures and processes at universities facilitates such work. Design/methodology/approach Twenty-one semi-structured interviews with administrators, faculty, and staff from US R-1 Carnegie-designated higher education institutions were conducted. Findings Institutional culture reportedly drives interdisciplinary research effor…
How environment-focused communities discuss Covid-19 online: An analysis of social (risk) amplification and ripple effects on Reddit
This study investigated what (risk) information related to COVID-19 was most amplified through online discussions in environment-focused communities and how amplification and ripple effects evolved over time. The population of posts and comments (N = 14,156 observations) posted to 135 environment-focused subreddits from Dec. 1, 2019-Aug. 31, 2020 containing key terms related to COVID-19 was downloaded and subjected to computational content analys…
Pandemic Problems in the Ivory Tower: Exploring Employee Engagement During the Covid-19 Crisis
The purpose of this study was to investigate how communication constituted the engagement experiences of employees at research-intensive universities during the COVID-19 crisis. Twenty-one semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with vice presidents of research, research center and institute directors and support staff, and research faculty at research-intensive universities in the U.S. The findings revealed paradoxical engagement expe…
Charting water sanitation concerns within vulnerable communities and international contexts on X
This study used a computational exploratory approach to examine X discourse on water sanitation challenges in the Black Belt region in the United States and compared it with larger international contexts. The research sought to uncover themes that impact salient environmental health issues and support future interventions. A two-part research question addressing the nature of water issues in a local and global context, resulted in a data set (n =…
Examining the impact of information sources in building consumer trust in the direct-to-consumer genetic testing industry
Purpose This study tests the impact of information sources on consumer trust of direct-to-consumer genetic testing (DTCGT) companies and of the genetic testing process. Design/methodology/approach An online survey was conducted using a probability-based panel of U.S. adults (N = 249) by Ipsos’ KnowledgePanel®. The sample consisted of participants who had taken a genetic test. Participants were asked questions that measured information sources use…
Verify, Accept, or Ignore: The Complexities of Media Trust Along Southeastern U.S. Coastal Communities During Severe Weather Events
This study examines how coastal community residents in Mississippi and Alabama gather information during severe weather events, focusing on the role of media, alternative information sources, and barriers to effective preparedness. The theoretical framework came from media trust and information sources among socially vulnerable populations. While media play a critical role, participants reported they relied on social media, local officials, and i…
The Role of Human Voice in Direct-To-Consumer Health Communication
Despite overall positive perceptions, many customers distrust direct-to-consumer genetic testing companies in regard to privacy and aftercare. Prior research suggests companies can assuage mistrust by personalizing communication when discussing sensitive health information. This content analysis of customer e-mails (N = 338) investigates the purpose, personalization, and use of the human voice strategy by direct-to-consumer genetic testing compan…
Industry in Crisis: Exploring the Perceptions PR Professionals Have Towards Disinformation
This study examines how public relations professionals navigate the societal issues presented through disinformation. Findings from in‐depth interviews indicate that when it comes to sharing incorrect information, especially on social media, it has significant implications for the PR industry. The study highlights the complexity surrounding disinformation and the importance of establishing intent in distinguishing between misinformation and disin…
For scientists who want to better communicate science
Science Communication for Scientists: Linking Strategy with Creativity, Practice, and Respect serves as a necessary, current resource for scientists seeking to communicate about their work more effectively. The book expertly meets the collective moment in which we find ourselves — socio-politically, based on practical norms and common institutional infrastructures and incentives, and based on the state of the science communication literature — to…
The Evolution of #OpenScience Discourse on Twitter
The current research observed historical public discourse surrounding the issue of open science given its contemporary salience across scientific disciplines. The Twitter API was used to collect the population of 1,723,169 open science-related tweets published from Twitter’s inception through September 2022. A latent factor Dirichlet multinomial mixture (LF-DMM) model was used to analyze textual tweet content. Stepwise segmented compositional reg…
Political science (15 works) · Business (12 works) · Psychology (12 works) · Public relations (12 works) · Sociology (12 works) · Climate Change Communication and Perception (11 works) · Public Relations and Crisis Communication (11 works) · Computer Science (9 works) · Marketing (7 works) · Media Studies and Communication (7 works)