Call for Papers

Post date: 05/27/10

Call for Papers.doc

Special Issue of the Journal of Applied Communication: Examining the Linkages between Religion, Spirituality and Communication for Individual and Social Change

Overview:  This special issue is devoted to research articles and essays that focus on the role and impact of religion and spirituality (R/S) on the design, impact and practice of communication via the media and between individuals. Papers that address practical implications and linkages between R/S and communication in areas such as health, wellbeing, personal relationships, instruction, policy, public understanding or social discourse will be ideal for this special issue.

Rationale: A Pew survey of the landscape of faith and religion in American found that 92% of Americans believe in God or a universal spirit. For a majority of Americans, faith includes church attendance and group worship and six out of 10 Americans back up their public worship with daily private prayer. In light of these findings, it not surprising that religion and faith are intricately interwoven into our private and public lives, touching on politics, policies and issues ranging from prayer in schools, intelligent design, stem-cell research, terrorism, abortion, divorce, gay rights, capital punishment, and faith-based health initiatives.

Despite the reach of faith and spirituality, research on this topic has been sparse within an applied communication context. The purpose of this call is to encourage researchers to share their original research and thoughts on the opportunities and challenges of incorporating faith and religion into communication research. The field could benefit from research that demonstrates how faith-based communication could be employed to improve individual, relational, and social outcomes. For example, faith-based approaches are being used effectively by public health researchers for the treatment of chronic conditions like diabetes and obesity, under the umbrella of Complementary and Alternative medicine or Mind-Body research. Similarly, there may be other areas from the framing of intelligent design to politics of presidential campaigns, which could benefit from a better understanding of the overlap between R/S and communication.

Two types of submissions are encouraged:

1. Original research articles that conform to the journal’s specifications with faith, religion or spirituality as a critical, if not focal, variable within the broad framework of applied communication research.

2. 1000-word essays on the role of faith, religion or spirituality in communication research, with a clear statement of how the insights from the essay could inform applied research. A collection of essays will be published as a symposium section within the special issue.

Submission Deadline: January 5, 2011.  For additional information about JACR, including submission guidelines and processes please refer to the journal’s homepage http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/rjac

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