ECA 2018 Call for Papers
Health Communication Interest Group
109th Annual ECA Convention
Building Bridges
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Omni William Penn
April 25-29, 2018
SUBMISSION DEADLINE: OCTOBER 15, 2017
The Health Communication Interest Group invites submissions for the 109th Annual ECA Convention. We invite competitive papers, thematic panels, roundtables, workshops, performances, debates, community programs, and other innovative programs. The Health Communication Interest Group of ECA studies the processes, practices, and policies related to human and mediated communication in health care and health promotion. Research presented within this division evolves from a wide range of theories and methodological approaches that often address the ways individuals seek, interpret, and respond to health information. The interest group promotes scholarship that examines communication in health education and promotion, health care consumer-provider relationships, caregiving, healthcare organizations, health policy, health campaigns and interventions, communication and aging, lifespan development, risk communication, and e-health applications. The interest group welcomes submissions from scholars at all stages in their academic career, especially those interested in exploring and applying new theoretical perspectives to health communication.
Pittsburgh, also known as the city of bridges, will be home to the 2018 Eastern Communication Association Convention. Pittsburgh has a unique topography, being situated at the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela, which forms the Ohio River. When a city is located on water, bridges span the horizon.
The bridges of Pittsburgh play an important role in the city’s infrastructure. Without the 446 bridges interlacing the city, Pittsburgh would be a region of isolated communities. Just as the bridges in the city connect communities, communication has the opportunity to build bridges within and outside of our discipline, creating countless opportunities for research, teaching, and service.
The 2018 theme, Building Bridges, invites the exploration of cross-disciplinary research and encourages finding possibilities for connecting our research to theory and practice, creating new approaches to teaching, and collaborating with communities for service and civic engagement opportunities. How can we build bridges within our discipline? How do we communicate and engage others when the bridges are broken? What are ways in which communication creates opportunities for new connections and for building bridges? What can we gain by fostering communication among our many communities in order to further promote connection?
All submissions, which should fall into one of the two categories listed below, must be received by 11:59pm PDT on October 15, 2017 in order to be considered.
Completed Papers
Individual submissions of complete competitive papers should include two separate attachments:
Panel/Roundtable Proposals
Panel, roundtable, and innovative presentation proposals should focus on some unifying theme or concept relevant to research, theory, or instruction in the area of health communication. Programs may consist of a chair, individual presenters, and a respondent; however, roundtable discussions, performance venues, or other unique formats are encouraged. We request that any person serving as chair and/or respondent not be a participant in the panel or roundtable. We encourage including graduate students as chairs.
Innovative program proposals, especially those that provide opportunities for engaged interaction among participants and attendees, are encouraged. Programs co-sponsors with other interest groups are also welcome. Programs that relate to the convention theme, “Building Bridges,” are encouraged. The panel organizer is expected to take responsibility for communication with the Interest Group Chair, alert her to any changes or programs, and ensure that panelists register for the conference and deliver their papers.
Panel proposals should include the following:
Statement of Professional Responsibility
The following statement MUST be included with every submission in order for it to be eligible for review:
In submitting the attached paper or proposal, I/We recognize that this submission is considered a professional responsibility. I/We agree to present this panel or paper if it is accepted and programmed. I/We further recognize that all who attend and present at ECA’s annual meeting must register and pay required fees.
NOTE: Acceptance of a paper or panel proposal obligates authors to attend the conference and present the paper. For program/panel presentation, the organizer is expected to take responsibility for communication with the Interest Group Chair, alert her to any changes or problems, and ensure that panelists register for the conference and deliver their papers/presentations.
Please send completed submissions as a file attachment (.docx, .doc, or .pdf formats are acceptable) to the Health Communication Interest Group Chair, Dr. Hannah Ball, at ECAhealthcom2018@gmail.com. Remember, the deadline for submissions is 11:59pm PDT on October 15, 2017.