Sydney Wallace - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Sydney Wallace

Research paper thumbnail of ‘The Chronicle of Nightmares’: Emergency Nurses’ Frontstage and Backstage Communication in the Emergency Department

Health Communication

Effective emergency nurse-patient (EN) communication and ENs' communication with other health... more Effective emergency nurse-patient (EN) communication and ENs' communication with other healthcare workers have implications for patient outcomes. Effective EN-patient communication informs and empowers patients. This study sought to better understand ENs frontstage and backstage interactions in a metropolitan emergency department (ED). The researcher engaged in participant observation of 15 different ENs' healthcare interactions with patients and other healthcare workers in the ED for a total of 47 hours and 30 minutes. Iterative analysis of field notes builds reveal two key observations. First, frontstage and backstage spaces are fluid in nature, where healthcare workers simultaneously engage in backstage and frontstage communication regardless of physical space or audience. Second, frontstage communication processes can be categorized into three groups: information seeking and sharing, informally attending to patients and rapport building, and acting out of character. Further, a novel type of front stage interaction, "acting out of character" is conceptualized as when ENs act in ways that are inconsistent with their typical role when communicating with a patient. Implications for health communication practice and theorizing are discussed.

Research paper thumbnail of “The Best Damn Representation of Islam:” Muslims, Gender, Social Media, and Islamophobia in the United States

Research paper thumbnail of Gender and Presence of Children: Examining Media Uses, Informational Needs, and Source Preferences during the Flint, Michigan Water Crisis

Journal of International Crisis and Risk Communication Research, 2020

In 2014, a water crisis emerged in Flint, Michigan. Using uses and gratifications theory as the g... more In 2014, a water crisis emerged in Flint, Michigan. Using uses and gratifications theory as the guiding framework, this study examines if crisis-related media uses, informational needs, and source preferences are related to respondents’ gender and/or whether or not respondents had children. A random sample of 208 Flint residents yielded results that are largely consistent with extant research, although minor nuances were found. Media uses, preferred informational sources, and desire to receive future crisis-related health information varied between women and men. Women reported significantly higher use of Facebook and Instagram. However, there were not significant differences between genders or respondents with/without children regarding their future informational needs about crisis-related health topics. Results are discussed in relation to extant research, theory, and praxis. Limitations and future research are also discussed.

Research paper thumbnail of Ahyper differential counterpublic: Muslim social media users and Islamophobia during the 2016 US presidential election

New Media & Society, 2019

We interviewed 61 Muslims in 15 focus groups from the most visible Muslim population in the Unite... more We interviewed 61 Muslims in 15 focus groups from the most visible Muslim population in the United States: the Detroit Metropolitan Area. Participants shared their experiences of and responses to Islamophobia on social media and face-to-face during the 2016 US presidential election campaign and aftermath. Applying Fraser’s and Squires’ theories of counterpublics, we developed an adapted understanding of counterpublics in collapsed contexts of online and face-to-face spaces. We argue that everyday Muslim internet users in the United States are an example of a hyper differential counterpublic. They face the pressures of near ubiquitous and ever evolving Islamophobic attacks, while needing to engage with the internet for personal and professional purposes. We suggest that hyper differential counterpublics operate in collapsed contexts of mixed, unimaginable publics, switch between group and individual responses, and craft hyper situational responses to discriminations case by case.

Research paper thumbnail of “We Weren’t Raised that Way”: Using Stigma Management Communication Theory to Understand How Families Manage the Stigma of Substance Abuse

Health Communication, 2019

While people who abuse substances experience widespread health and social consequences stemming f... more While people who abuse substances experience widespread health and social consequences stemming from their substance use, these consequences also extend to their family through stigmatization. Such stigma has implications for families' mental and physical health, as well as their overall quality of life. This study seeks to fill a gap in research surrounding the stigma experienced by families with a history of substance abuse by investigating how affected family members experience and communicatively manage stigma messages relating to their family member's substance abuse. Fifteen people whose families include a person who uses substances (PWUS) participated in semi-structured interviews where they were prompted to discuss how they experience and respond to this stigma. An iterative approach to data analysis revealed four overarching themes: (a) stigma experiences, (b) accept application of stigma to self/PWUS and accept public perception of stigma, (c) accept application stigma to self/PWUS but challenge public perception of stigma, and (d) challenge public perception of stigma and challenge application of stigma to self/PWUS. Findings from this study can extend our understanding of stigma management communication and inform practical interventions that target families dealing with substance use issues.

Research paper thumbnail of Informational Sources, Social Media Use, and Race in the Flint, Michigan, Water Crisis

Communication Studies, 2019

Safe, clean water is necessary for health and well-being. Water issues affect minority and vulner... more Safe, clean water is necessary for health and well-being. Water issues affect minority and vulnerable populations at disproportionate rates, including the poor and racial and ethnic Ashleigh M. Day is a PhD candidate, Thomas C. Rumble Fellow, and graduate teaching assistant in the Department of Communication at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. Ashleigh's research interests center around crisis, risk, organizational and health communication. Sydney O'Shay-Wallace is a PhD candidate and graduate research assistant in the Department of Communication at Wayne State University, as well as a fellow with the Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute for Child and Family Development. She is a health and risk communication scholar whose work is centered around stigma communication in healthcare contexts. Her research focuses on how stigma is constructed in communication between healthcare workers and patients as well as among healthcare workers. Matthew W. Seeger (PhD, Indiana University) has been a faculty member and administrator at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan for over 30 years. He currently serves as dean for the College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts. Dean Seeger's research interests concern crisis and risk communication, health promotion and communication, crisis response and agency coordination, the role of media, including new media, in crisis, crisis and communication ethics, failure of complex systems and post-crisis renewal. He has worked closely with the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on communication and the anthrax attack and on communication and pandemic influenza preparedness. Work with the CDC also includes assistance in developing the Crisis and Emergency Risk Communication (CERC) framework. He has also worked with the World Health Organization on developing risk communication guidance. Dr.

Research paper thumbnail of Boil Water Advisories as Risk Communication: Consistency between CDC Guidelines and Local News Media Articles

Health Communication, 2020

The Safe Drinking Water Act Public Notification Rule requires that customers of public water syst... more The Safe Drinking Water Act Public Notification Rule requires that customers of public water systems (PWS) be informed of problems that may pose a risk to public health. Boil water advisories (BWA) are a form of communication intended to mitigate potential health risks. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) developed guidance for BWAs. We examined how local US news media incorporate the CDC's guidelines when reporting on BWAs. A content analysis of 1040 local news media articles shows these reports did not consistently incorporate CDC guidelines. Overall, 89% of the articles communicated enough information for readers to determine if they were included in the impacted area. Articles that included at least some of the CDC's instructions for boiling water were likely (p < .001) to include other risk information, such as the functions for which water should be boiled (e.g., drinking, brushing teeth) and that bottled water could be used as an alternative source. However, this information was included in only 47% of the articles evaluated. Results suggest public notifications often do not serve the public need for clear risk communication. The American Society of Civil Engineers American Society of Civil Engineers (2017) has graded drinking water infrastructure of the United States (U.S.) as a "D+." ASCE estimates that there are over 240,000 water main breaks in the U.S. each year, or about 650 breaks per day. Additionally, between 1982 and 2015, the number of health-based violations to the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) regulations has doubled (Allaire et al., 2018). It is unclear, however, if and how risks associated with these challenges are effectively communicated to the public. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation (2016), the public perceives contaminated drinking water among the nation's most serious health issues, trailing behind cancer and heroin abuse. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Protection Agency (2013) states, The nation's drinking water utilities need 384.2 USD billion in infrastructure investments over the next 20 years for thousands of miles of pipe as well as thousands of treatment plants, storage tanks, and other key assets to ensure the public health, security, and economic well-being of our cities, towns, and communities. (p. i).

Research paper thumbnail of ‘The Chronicle of Nightmares’: Emergency Nurses’ Frontstage and Backstage Communication in the Emergency Department

Health Communication

Effective emergency nurse-patient (EN) communication and ENs' communication with other health... more Effective emergency nurse-patient (EN) communication and ENs' communication with other healthcare workers have implications for patient outcomes. Effective EN-patient communication informs and empowers patients. This study sought to better understand ENs frontstage and backstage interactions in a metropolitan emergency department (ED). The researcher engaged in participant observation of 15 different ENs' healthcare interactions with patients and other healthcare workers in the ED for a total of 47 hours and 30 minutes. Iterative analysis of field notes builds reveal two key observations. First, frontstage and backstage spaces are fluid in nature, where healthcare workers simultaneously engage in backstage and frontstage communication regardless of physical space or audience. Second, frontstage communication processes can be categorized into three groups: information seeking and sharing, informally attending to patients and rapport building, and acting out of character. Further, a novel type of front stage interaction, "acting out of character" is conceptualized as when ENs act in ways that are inconsistent with their typical role when communicating with a patient. Implications for health communication practice and theorizing are discussed.

Research paper thumbnail of “The Best Damn Representation of Islam:” Muslims, Gender, Social Media, and Islamophobia in the United States

Research paper thumbnail of Gender and Presence of Children: Examining Media Uses, Informational Needs, and Source Preferences during the Flint, Michigan Water Crisis

Journal of International Crisis and Risk Communication Research, 2020

In 2014, a water crisis emerged in Flint, Michigan. Using uses and gratifications theory as the g... more In 2014, a water crisis emerged in Flint, Michigan. Using uses and gratifications theory as the guiding framework, this study examines if crisis-related media uses, informational needs, and source preferences are related to respondents’ gender and/or whether or not respondents had children. A random sample of 208 Flint residents yielded results that are largely consistent with extant research, although minor nuances were found. Media uses, preferred informational sources, and desire to receive future crisis-related health information varied between women and men. Women reported significantly higher use of Facebook and Instagram. However, there were not significant differences between genders or respondents with/without children regarding their future informational needs about crisis-related health topics. Results are discussed in relation to extant research, theory, and praxis. Limitations and future research are also discussed.

Research paper thumbnail of Ahyper differential counterpublic: Muslim social media users and Islamophobia during the 2016 US presidential election

New Media & Society, 2019

We interviewed 61 Muslims in 15 focus groups from the most visible Muslim population in the Unite... more We interviewed 61 Muslims in 15 focus groups from the most visible Muslim population in the United States: the Detroit Metropolitan Area. Participants shared their experiences of and responses to Islamophobia on social media and face-to-face during the 2016 US presidential election campaign and aftermath. Applying Fraser’s and Squires’ theories of counterpublics, we developed an adapted understanding of counterpublics in collapsed contexts of online and face-to-face spaces. We argue that everyday Muslim internet users in the United States are an example of a hyper differential counterpublic. They face the pressures of near ubiquitous and ever evolving Islamophobic attacks, while needing to engage with the internet for personal and professional purposes. We suggest that hyper differential counterpublics operate in collapsed contexts of mixed, unimaginable publics, switch between group and individual responses, and craft hyper situational responses to discriminations case by case.

Research paper thumbnail of “We Weren’t Raised that Way”: Using Stigma Management Communication Theory to Understand How Families Manage the Stigma of Substance Abuse

Health Communication, 2019

While people who abuse substances experience widespread health and social consequences stemming f... more While people who abuse substances experience widespread health and social consequences stemming from their substance use, these consequences also extend to their family through stigmatization. Such stigma has implications for families' mental and physical health, as well as their overall quality of life. This study seeks to fill a gap in research surrounding the stigma experienced by families with a history of substance abuse by investigating how affected family members experience and communicatively manage stigma messages relating to their family member's substance abuse. Fifteen people whose families include a person who uses substances (PWUS) participated in semi-structured interviews where they were prompted to discuss how they experience and respond to this stigma. An iterative approach to data analysis revealed four overarching themes: (a) stigma experiences, (b) accept application of stigma to self/PWUS and accept public perception of stigma, (c) accept application stigma to self/PWUS but challenge public perception of stigma, and (d) challenge public perception of stigma and challenge application of stigma to self/PWUS. Findings from this study can extend our understanding of stigma management communication and inform practical interventions that target families dealing with substance use issues.

Research paper thumbnail of Informational Sources, Social Media Use, and Race in the Flint, Michigan, Water Crisis

Communication Studies, 2019

Safe, clean water is necessary for health and well-being. Water issues affect minority and vulner... more Safe, clean water is necessary for health and well-being. Water issues affect minority and vulnerable populations at disproportionate rates, including the poor and racial and ethnic Ashleigh M. Day is a PhD candidate, Thomas C. Rumble Fellow, and graduate teaching assistant in the Department of Communication at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. Ashleigh's research interests center around crisis, risk, organizational and health communication. Sydney O'Shay-Wallace is a PhD candidate and graduate research assistant in the Department of Communication at Wayne State University, as well as a fellow with the Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute for Child and Family Development. She is a health and risk communication scholar whose work is centered around stigma communication in healthcare contexts. Her research focuses on how stigma is constructed in communication between healthcare workers and patients as well as among healthcare workers. Matthew W. Seeger (PhD, Indiana University) has been a faculty member and administrator at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan for over 30 years. He currently serves as dean for the College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts. Dean Seeger's research interests concern crisis and risk communication, health promotion and communication, crisis response and agency coordination, the role of media, including new media, in crisis, crisis and communication ethics, failure of complex systems and post-crisis renewal. He has worked closely with the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on communication and the anthrax attack and on communication and pandemic influenza preparedness. Work with the CDC also includes assistance in developing the Crisis and Emergency Risk Communication (CERC) framework. He has also worked with the World Health Organization on developing risk communication guidance. Dr.

Research paper thumbnail of Boil Water Advisories as Risk Communication: Consistency between CDC Guidelines and Local News Media Articles

Health Communication, 2020

The Safe Drinking Water Act Public Notification Rule requires that customers of public water syst... more The Safe Drinking Water Act Public Notification Rule requires that customers of public water systems (PWS) be informed of problems that may pose a risk to public health. Boil water advisories (BWA) are a form of communication intended to mitigate potential health risks. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) developed guidance for BWAs. We examined how local US news media incorporate the CDC's guidelines when reporting on BWAs. A content analysis of 1040 local news media articles shows these reports did not consistently incorporate CDC guidelines. Overall, 89% of the articles communicated enough information for readers to determine if they were included in the impacted area. Articles that included at least some of the CDC's instructions for boiling water were likely (p < .001) to include other risk information, such as the functions for which water should be boiled (e.g., drinking, brushing teeth) and that bottled water could be used as an alternative source. However, this information was included in only 47% of the articles evaluated. Results suggest public notifications often do not serve the public need for clear risk communication. The American Society of Civil Engineers American Society of Civil Engineers (2017) has graded drinking water infrastructure of the United States (U.S.) as a "D+." ASCE estimates that there are over 240,000 water main breaks in the U.S. each year, or about 650 breaks per day. Additionally, between 1982 and 2015, the number of health-based violations to the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) regulations has doubled (Allaire et al., 2018). It is unclear, however, if and how risks associated with these challenges are effectively communicated to the public. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation (2016), the public perceives contaminated drinking water among the nation's most serious health issues, trailing behind cancer and heroin abuse. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Protection Agency (2013) states, The nation's drinking water utilities need 384.2 USD billion in infrastructure investments over the next 20 years for thousands of miles of pipe as well as thousands of treatment plants, storage tanks, and other key assets to ensure the public health, security, and economic well-being of our cities, towns, and communities. (p. i).