Interpersonal Communication and Relationships (ICR)
The graduate interpersonal communication and relationships program (ICR) focuses on the study of how the communicative practices of relating in everyday life construct, shape, sustain, and change who we are as individuals, as well as the quality of our lives as social beings. The program is centered on theory complemented by a multi-method commitment to both qualitative and quantitative research methods. The ICR area concentrates on the study of relationships—those familial, personal, social, and work-related bonds of which everyday life is comprised. Relationships are not merely contexts in which to study communication. More significantly, we view relating as social action; it is through relating that we construct, sustain, and change who we are as individuals and the social worlds we occupy. Relationships, then, are positioned as fundamental building blocks of social action and change.
The goal of this program is to produce research scholars who possess sophisticated knowledge of theory and methodology, who are careful consumers of theories and methods, and who can develop their own approaches to communication phenomena. Cognate work of interest to ICR scholars can be found in the other two graduate programs in the department as well as in fields such as American studies, anthropology, community and behavioral health, education, journalism and mass communication, philosophy, psychology, social work, sociology, and women's studies.
In addition to the coursework available in the Communication Studies Department, students interested in Interpersonal Communication & Relationships avail themselves of a richly diverse array of courses in other departments on campus.
ICR Possible Coursework for Graduate Degrees
Faculty
Leslie Baxter is an F. Wendell Miller Distinguished Professor in the Interpersonal Communication and Relationships Program in the department. She received her Ph.D. degree in interpersonal communication in 1975, and has taught at the University of Montana, Lewis & Clark College, and the University of California-Davis prior to joining the faculty here in 1994. Professor Baxter has published over 100 refereed articles, book chapters, and books. Her research focuses on the contradictions that animate the development and maintenance of friendships, romantic relationships, marriages, and families. She has received the 1995 Berscheid-Hatfield Award from INPR; the 1995 "Outstanding Article" award from the Organization for the Study of Communication, Language, and Gender; 1997 G.R. Miller Book Award from NCA for her book with Barbara Montgomery on the dialectics of relating; the 2001 Knower "Best Article" award from NCA; and the 2002 "Legacy Theory" award from CSCA, among others. She has dual training in both quantitative and qualitative methods. In addition to her duties in the Communication Studies Department, Dr. Baxter holds a 0% appointment in the College of Public Health. Leslie-Baxter@uiowa.edu
Steve Duck received his Ph.D. from the University of Sheffield, England, in 1971. Daniel and Amy Starch Distinguished Research Chair since 1986. Steve focuses mostly on the rhetorics of everyday life, processes in romantic relationships and friendship, and (occasionally) persuasive effects of television production techniques. He is particularly interested in applying prior comparative analysis of concepts and theories in the scholarly discussion as they relate to communicative research practices, whether qualitative or quantitative. He has been called a metatheorist. Steve-Duck@uiowa.edu
Kristine Fitch received her Ph.D. from the University of Washington in 1989. She studies the interplay of culture and communication, focusing on interpersonal relationships and persuasion. Her research interests include interpersonal ideology -- how the values and beliefs of particular speech communities influence the construction of identities and relationships through everyday talk. Kristine-Fitch@uiowa.edu
Shelly Campo received her Ph.D. from Michigan State University. Shelly's research interests include persuasion/social influence, health communication, and campaigns. She iscurrently working on projects involving alcohol/binge drinking and smoking. She has also worked recently with issues involving sexually transmitted infections and lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgender health. Her projects usually focus on prevention and health promotion, but she has conducted research in end of life care for cancer patients and organizational issues surrounding HIV/AIDS outreach and prevention efforts. Shelly is jointly appointed in Communication Studies (25%) and Community and Behavioral Health (75%).