Heather J. Carmack, PhD

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Undergraduate Courses                                                                    

Introduction Courses:                                                                                                                          

Fundamental Human Communication: Individual Presentations

Fundamental Human Communication: Group Presentations                                                                                            Fundamentals of Public Speaking

 

Health Communication Courses:

Introduction to Health Communication

Communication and Aging (as special topic Communicating about Death and Dying)

Health Communication Campaigns

Advanced Health Communication

Health Communication and Culture

Communication in Health Organizations 

 

Organizational Communication Courses:

Introduction of Organizational Communication

Communication in Organizations (seated course and online course)

Business and Professional Communication 

Leadership Communication

Small Group Communication

 

Other Courses:

 Communication Research Methods

 Qualitative Communication Research Methods

 Introduction to Argumentation

 Argumentative Analysis and Advocacy

 Principles and Techniques of Interviewing

 Senior Capstone Seminar: Narrative Theory

With my advisee Kris Inman (MA, 2012) at the Organizational Communication Mini Conference at the University of Missouri, Columbia, MO. This conference is traditionally for PhD students. Kris was one of  the few MA students selected to present.
Presenting with my advisees Ethan Smith (MA, 2015) and Nicole Hudak (MA, 2015) at the 2015 DC Conference on Health Communication.

Graduate Courses

Introduction to Graduate Studies

Health Communication and Culture

Qualitative Research Methods

Foundations in Health Communication Advocacy

Intercultural Health Communication Advocacy

Concepts and Analysis of Communication in Organizations

Health Communication Advocacy and Social Influence: Campaign Development and Delivery

Risk and Crisis Communication

Independent Study (Structuration Theory)

Independent Study (Independent Research Project-Smoke Free Campus Initiatives)

Thesis Hours 

With my advisee Katie Lese (MA, 2016) before her thesis defense.

Mentoring

Mentoring students is an important part of my academic life, whether it is advising a graduate student's seminar paper or thesis or helping a student develop a cover letter. My approach is to provide guidance and the tools to be independent workers, researchers, and learners.  For me, there is nothing more exciting than watching the joy on a student's face when he/she/they gets a job offer, has a paper accepted for presentation/publication, or wins an award. I also see moments of failure as wonderful teaching moments and a chance for students to grow. It's my job to help you see the opportunities in failure--what can you learn from that stumble? How can it help you grow as a student, worker, and person?

 

 

 

 

 

With my advisee Ashley Reynolds (MA, 2017) after she successfully defended her thesis. 

Masters Thesis Advisor

 

Goldsmith, Shanna. M.A. in Communication, Missouri State University. (Spring, 2010). Thesis: Helping Those Who Help Themselves: A Critical Discourse Analysis of CNN’s ‘In Depth: Empowered Patient’. (Received the 2010 Department of Communication Excellence in Research Award)

 

Hudak, Nicole. M.A. in Communication and Advocacy (Health Communication track), James Madison University. (Spring, 2015). Thesis: Identity Disclosure in Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Patient-Provider Communication. 


Lazenby, Braidyn. M.A. in Communication Studies, University of Alabama. (Spring, 2020). Thesis: For the Love of Country Ham: A Qualitative Analysis of Cardiac Event Survivors. 


Lese, Kathryn. M.A. in Communication and Advocacy (Health Communication track), James Madison University. (Spring, 2016). Thesis: Padded Assumptions: A Discourse Analysis of Menstruation Shaming. 

 

Reynolds, Ashley. M. A. in Communication and Advocacy (Health Communication track), James Madison University. (Spring, 2017). Thesis: Health Campaign and Evaluation to Reduce Mental Health Stigma in College Freshmen. 


Smith, Ethan. M.A. in Communication and Advocacy (Health Communication track), James Madison University. (Spring, 2015). Thesis: Let's Chat: Willingness to Communicate and the Development of a De-Stigmatizing Campaign.(JMU nominated-thesis for the Council of Southern Graduate School's Master's Thesis Award- Social Sciences, Business, and Education division) 


Van Bebber, David. M. A. in Communication, Missouri State University. (Summer, 2012). Thesis: The Death of My Sister: Exploring the Evangelical Grieving Process Through the Three Traditional Research Methods and Crystallization. (Received the 2012 Department of Communication Excellence in Research Award) 


Wehrman, Erin. M.A. in Communication, Missouri State University. (Summer, 2012). Thesis: “I Was Their Worst Nightmare”: The Narrative Experience of Military Widows.    

 

Masters Seminar Paper Advisor


Ashley, Lauren. M. A. in Communication, Missouri State University. (Spring, 2012). Seminar Paper: The Use and Abuse of Facebook: A Qualitative Study on Facebook and Conflict.

 

Gash, Brandon. M. A. in Communication, Missouri State University. (Spring, 2012). Seminar Paper: “The Claws are Coming Out”: Exploring Employee-Employee Interactions in an Organizational Culture of Anger.

 

Inman, Kristopher. M. A. in Communication, Missouri State University. (Spring, 2012). Seminar Paper: Communicating Discipline: Finding Accord in the Supervisor-Subordinate Exchange.

 

Lairmore, Brooke. M. A. in Communication, Missouri State University. (Spring, 2012). Seminar Paper: Class Meets Online: Computer Mediated Communication and Online Courses.

 

Lewis, Kristin. M. A. in Communication, Missouri State University. (Fall, 2011). Seminar Paper: A Photoethnography Approach to Health and Health Campaigns.

 

Pizzo, Terra. M. A. in Communication, Missouri State University. (Spring, 2012). Seminar Paper: The Coming Out Narrative: Individual Self-Disclosure to Parents.  

 

Wendel, Courtney. M. A. in Communication, Missouri State University. (Fall, 2011). Seminar Paper: “Feminism is a Loaded Word”: Understanding Feminism and Negotiating Feminist Self-Identification in the New Millennium.   

 

Doctoral Dissertation Committee Member

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Harrison, Millie. PhD in Communication, University of Texas-Austin. (expected Spring, 2019). Dissertation: Technology Use, Affordances, and Contextual Embeddedness in Hospital Technostress: A Repertoire Perspective.

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Masters Thesis Committee Member

 

Clements, Jessica. M. A. in Communication, Missouri State University. (Spring, 2011). Thesis: Love, Rescue, Heal: Managing the Meaning of a Mission to End Human Trafficking. (Received the 2011 Department of Communication Excellence in Research Award)

 

Davenport, Alex. M.A. in Communication and Advocacy (Environmental Communication track), James Madison University. (Spring, 2015). Thesis: Save the Endangered Hillbilly: The Utopia of Resistance in Judy Bonds' Rhetoric. 


Howard, Cori. M.A. in Communication and Advocacy (Health Communication track), James Madison University. (Spring, 2016). Thesis: Understanding Appalachia: An Exploration of Family Practices and Mental Health. 


Lochhaas, Theresa. M.A. in Communication, Missouri State University. (Fall, 2011). Thesis: The C-Street Conflict: Identifying Conflict Perceptions in Multi-Party, Long-term Community Conflict.

 

Moukrime, Moulay Abdelkarim. M.A. in Communication, Missouri State University. (Spring, 2011). Thesis: Using the Arabic Language as a Tool for Cultural Understanding in Post 9/11 America.


Vieth, Daniel. M. A. in Communication and Advocacy (Health Communication track), James Madison University. (Spring, 2017). Thesis: #Zika #Olympics: The Use of Dialogue in Tweets and Instagram Posts Regarding the Zika Virus and the 2016 Rio Olympics.

 

Zackrison, Eric. M. A. in Communication, Missouri State University. (Summer, 2012). Thesis: The Dialectics of Boundary Spanning: An Examination of the Dialectical Tensions Experienced by the Boundary Spanners of a Complex Organization Composed on Interrelated Groups.

 

Outside Masters Thesis Committee Member

 

Diamond, Emily. M. A. in Technical and Scientific Writing, James Madison University. (Spring, 2017). Internship: Health Writing at the University Health Center.


Farnsworth, Michael. M.A. in Technical and Scientific Writing, James Madison University. (Spring, 2014). Thesis: Health Information Delivery in the Digital Age: Exploring Perceived Difficulty in Print and Online Patient Education Materials. 


Saroop, Anjali. Masters in Communication Studies, Auckland University of Technology (New Zealand). (Spring, 2013). Thesis: Good Man, You Enjoy Your Beer! An Investigation of Online Forum Posts on Binge Drinking from a Health Belief Perspective.