The Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication has named a College of Journalism and Mass Communications faculty member as one of its 2023 Emerging Scholars.
Ciera Kirkpatrick, an assistant professor of advertising and public relations, was awarded a $3,500 grant as part of an AEJMC program to recognize promising young scholars and encourage their professional growth.
The program’s mission is to identify, encourage and recognize promising emerging scholars by providing funding for research or teaching projects, with the goal of developing and nurturing journalism and mass communications educators, by fostering an intellectually stimulating environment.
As part of the program, Kirkpatrick elected to be paired with a mentor who will serve as a resource and sounding board throughout the project. Mary Beth Oliver, the Donald P. Bellisario Professor of Media Studies at Penn State in the Department of Film/Video & Media Studies, was selected to be Kirkpatrick's mentor.
Kirkpatrick designed the study to provide knowledge on how young women are using TikTok to obtain health information and how health communication messaging on TikTok influences young women’s health-related behaviors.
“It's an honor to be chosen as an emerging scholar," Kirkpatrick said. "I think TikTok is having a significant impact on young women's health and I hope this project will be able to help provide some evidence of that."
Kirkpatrick will present her preliminary findings at the annual AEJMC conference in Washington, D.C., in August. Learn more about her research and read the abstract for “Examining Health Information Seeking on TikTok and the Impact of TikTok Message Features on Young Women’s Health-Related Attitudes, Perceptions, and Behavioral Intentions” below.
Ciera Kirkpatrick, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
“Examining Health Information Seeking on TikTok and the Impact of TikTok Message Features on Young Women’s Health-Related Attitudes, Perceptions, and Behavioral Intentions”
Abstract: TikTok is a preferred mass communication platform among young Americans, and recent reports suggest Generation Z prefers using TikTok instead of Google for locating information and advice. Simultaneously, TikTok has become home to millions of videos about health. Doctors use the platform to share health information, and young individuals use the platform to talk about personal health conditions and medical experiences.
While preliminary data has investigated how TikTok is used to obtain information, little is known about the actual uses and motivations of TikTok for health information specifically. This study is designed to provide knowledge of (1) how young women are using TikTok to obtain health information and (2) how health communication messaging on TikTok influences young women’s health-related behaviors. First, this study will involve a national survey of women aged 21-29 to gain a better understanding of how young women are using TikTok as a health information tool (e.g., frequency of information seeking, motivations, perceptions of information). Secondly, this study will use an experiment to test the effects of common message features found in TikTok health messages — source (doctor vs. peer) and level of autonomy support (supportive vs. non-supportive). Specifically, this study will examine the influence TikTok health messaging has on attitudes and intentions toward receiving important preventative health screenings. Nationally, the rate of young women overdue for a Pap test has increased from 14% overdue to 23% overdue. Pap tests are one of the most discussed women’s health topics on TikTok. The prevalence of this content, coupled with TikTok’s popularity among women aged 18-29, might cause young women’s knowledge, attitudes, and intentions toward preventative screening to be heavily influenced by content on this platform.
This project will demonstrate the importance of studying this communication platform’s impacts on public health and provide theoretical and practical guidance to health communicators.
