The Ohio State University
3068 Derby Hall
154 N. Oval Mall
Columbus, OH 43210
Qualifications:
B.A., 1991 University of Rochester
M.S., M.P.A., 1993 Syracuse University
Ph.D., 2000 University of Wisconsin-Madison
Publications:
Selected Peer-Reviewed Journal Publications by Area of Interest listed in order of Traditional Political Communication, Entertainment Media and Politics, Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), and General Methods:
Traditional Political Communication
Holbert, R. L., Hmielowski, J. D., & Weeks, B. E. (2012). Clarifying relations between ideology and ideologically-oriented cable TV bews consumption: A case of suppression. Communication Research, 39, 194-216.
Holbert, R. L., Garrett, R. K., & Gleason, L S. (2010). A new era of minimal effects? A response to Bennett and Iyengar. Journal of Communication, 60, 15-34.
Holbert, R. L., & Benoit, W. L. (2009). A theory of political campaign media connectedness. Communication Monographs, 76, 303-332.
Holbert. R. L., LaMarre, H., & Landreville, K. (2009). Fanning the flames of a partisan divide: The role of debate viewing in the formation of partisan-driven post-election evaluations of personal vote count accuracy. Communication Research, 36, 155-177.
Holbert, R. L. (2005). Television news viewing, governmental scope, and postmaterialist spending: Assessing partisan differences in mediation-based processes of influence. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 49, 416-434.
Holbert, R. L. (2005). Intramedia mediation: The cumulative and complementary effects of news media use. Political Communication, 22, 447-462.
Holbert, R. L. (2005). Back to basics: Revisiting, resolving, and expanding some of the fundamental issues of political communication research. Political Communication, 22, 511-514.
Holbert, R. L. (2005). Debate viewing as mediator and partisan reinforcement in the relationship between news use and vote choice. Journal of Communication, 55, 85-102.
Holbert, R. L. (2004). Political talk radio, perceived fairness, and the establishment of President George W. Bush’s political legitimacy. Harvard International Journal of Press/Politics, 9, 12-27.
Kwak, N., Shah, D. V., & Holbert, R. L. (2004). Connecting, trusting, and participating: The interactive effects of social associations and generalized trust on collective action. Political Research Quarterly,57, 643-652.
Benoit, W. L., Hansen, G. J., & Holbert, R. L. (2004). Presidential campaign advertisements educate voters. Mass Communication & Society, 7, 177-190.
Holbert, R. L., Benoit, W. L., Hansen, G. J., & Wen, W-C. (2002). The role of communication in the formation of an issue-based citizenry. Communication Monographs, 69, 296-310.
Pfau, M., Holbert, R. L., Szabo, E. A., & Kaminski, K. (2002). Effects of issue-advocacy versus candidate advertising on candidate preferences and democratic processes. Journal of Communication, 52, 301-315.
Entertainment Media and Politics
Holbert, R. L., Tchernev, J. M., Esralew, S. E., Walther, W. O., & Benski, K. (in press). Young voter perceptions of political satire as persuasion: A focus on perceived influence, persuasive intent, and message strength. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media.
Holbert, R. L., Lee, J., Esralew, S. E., Walther, W. O., Hmielowski, J. D., & Landrevillle, K. D. (in press). Affinity for political humor: An assessment of internal factor structure, reliability, and validity. Humor: International Journal of Humor Research.
Hmielowski, J. D., Holbert, R. L., & Lee, J. (2011). Predicting the consumption of political TV satire: Affinity for political humor, The Daily Show, and The Colbert Report. Communication Monographs, 78, 96-114.
Holbert, R. L., Hmielowski, J., Jain, P., Lather, J., & Morey, A. (2011). Adding nuance to the study of political humor effects: A study of juvenalian versus horatian satire. American Behavioral Scientist, 55, 187-211.
Landreville, K., Holbert, R. L., & LaMarre, H. L. (2010). The influence of late-night TV comedy viewing on political talk: A moderated-mediation model. International Journal of Press/Politics, 15, 482-498.
Holbert, R. L., & Hansen, G. J. (2008). Stepping beyond message specificity in the study of emotion as mediator and inter-emotion associations across attitude objects: Fahrenheit 9/11, anger, and debate superiority. Media Psychology, 11, 98-118.
Holbert, R. L., Hansen, G. J., Caplan, S. E., & Mortensen, S. (2007). Presidential debate viewing and Michael Moore’s Fahrenheit 9-11: A study of affect-as-transfer and passionate reasoning. Media Psychology, 9, 673-694.
Holbert, R. L., Lambe, J. L., Dudo, A. D., & Carlton, K. A. (2007). Primacy Effects of The Daily Show and National TV News Viewing: Young Viewers, Political Gratifications, and Internal Political Self-Efficacy.Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 51, 20-38.
Holbert, R. L., & Hansen, G. J. (2006). Fahrenheit 9-11, Need for Closure and the Priming of Affective Ambivalence: An Assessment of Intra-Affective Structures by Party Identification. Human Communication Research, 32, 109-129.
Holbert, R. L., Tschida, D. A., Dixon, M., Cherry, K., Steuber, K., & Airne, D. (2005). The West Wing and depictions of the American presidency: Expanding the theoretical and empirical domains of framing in political communication. Communication Quarterly, 53, 505-522.
Holbert, R. L. (2005). A typology for the study of entertainment television and politics. American Behavioral Scientist, 49, 436-453.
Holbert, R. L., Shah, D. V., & Kwak, N. (2004). Fear, authority, and justice: The influence of TV news, police reality, and crime drama viewing on endorsements of capital punishment and gun ownership.Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 81, 343-363.
Holbert, R. L., Pillion, O., Tschida, D. A., Armfield, G. G., Kinder, K., Cherry, K., & Daulton, A. (2003). The West Wing as endorsement of the American presidency: Expanding the domain of priming in political communication. Journal of Communication, 53, 427-443.
Holbert, R. L., Kwak, N., & Shah, D. V. (2003). Environmental concern, patterns of television viewing, and pro-environmental behaviors: Integrating models of media consumption and effects. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 47, 177-196.
Holbert, R. L., Shah, D.V., & Kwak, N. (2003). Political implications of prime-time drama and sitcom use: Genres of representation and opinions concerning women’s rights. Journal of Communication, 53, 45-60.
Structural Equation Modeling (SEM)
Holbert, R. L., & LaMarre, H. L. (2011). Expanding the use of structural equation modeling (SEM) in political communication. In E. P. Bucy & R. L. Holbert (Eds.), Sourcebook of Political Communication Research: Methods, Measures, and Analytical Techniques (pp. 419-433). New York: Routledge.
Holbert, R. L., & Stephenson, M. T. (2008). Commentary on the uses and misuses of structural equation modeling in communication research. In A. F. Hayes, M. D. Slater, & L. B. Snyder (Eds.), The Sage Handbook of Advanced Data Analysis Methods for Communication Research (pp. 185-218). Thousand Oaks, CA; Sage.
Stephenson, M. T., Holbert, R. L., & Zimmerman, R. S. (2006). Structural equation modeling in health communication. Health Communication, 20, 159-168.
Holbert, R. L., & Stephenson, M. T. (2003). The importance of analyzing indirect effects in media effects research: Testing for mediation in structural equation modeling. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 47, 553-569.
Stephenson, M. T., & Holbert, R. L. (2003). A monte carlo simulation of observable- versus latent-variable structural equation modeling techniques. Communication Research, 30, 332-354.
Holbert, R. L., & Stephenson, M. T. (2002). Structural equation modeling in the communication sciences, 1995-2000. Human Communication Research, 28, 531-551.
General Methods
Hill, M., Tchernev, J., & Holbert, R. L. (2012). Do we need to go cellular? Assessing political media consumption using a single-frame landline/cellular survey design. Mass Communication & Society, 15, 284-306.
Benoit, W. L., & Holbert, R. L. (2008). Conducting communication research at methodological intersections: Replication, multiple quantitative methods, and bridging the quantitative-qualitative divide. Journal of Communication, 58, 615-628.
Recent Books and Book Chapters:
Books
Bucy, E. P., & Holbert, R. L. (2011), Sourcebook of Political Communication Research: Methods, Measures, and Analytical Techniques. New York: Routledge.
McCombs, M. E., Holbert, R. L., Kiousus, S., & Wanta, W. (2011). The News & Public Opinion: Media Effects on the Elements of Civic Life. London: Polity.
Book Chapters
Holbert, R. L. (in press). Uses & Gratifications. Invited book chapter for Oxford Handbook of Political Communication (Oxford), edited by K. H. Jamieson & K. Kenski.
Holbert, R. L., Hill, M., & Lee, J. (in press).The political relevance of entertainment media. Invited book chapter for Political Communication (DeGruyter), edited by C. Reinemann.
Holbert, R. L., & Tchernev, J. (in press).Media as persuasion. Invited book chapter for The Persuasion Handbook (2nd edition; Sage), edited by J. P. Dillard & L. Shen.
Holbert, R. L.,& Young, D. G. (in press). Exploring relations between political entertainment media and traditional political communication information outlets: A research agenda. Invited book chapter for Media Effects/Media Psychology (Blackwell), edited by Erica Scharrer.
Holbert, R. L., & LaMarre, H. L. (2011). Expanding the use of structural equation modeling (SEM) in political communication. In E. P. Bucy & R. L. Holbert (Eds.), Sourcebook of Political Communication Research: Methods, Measures, and Analytical Techniques (pp. 419-433). New York: Routledge.
Holbert, R. L., & Hmielowski, J. (2011). Secondary analysis in political communication viewed as creative act. In E. P. Bucy & R. L. Holbert (Eds.), Sourcebook of Political Communication Research: Methods, Measures, and Analytical Techniques (pp. 81-95). New York: Routledge.
Holbert, R. L., & Bucy, E. P. (2011). Advancing methods and measurement: Supporting theory and keeping pace with the modern political media environment. In E. P. Bucy & R. L. Holbert (Eds.), Sourcebook of Political Communication Research: Methods, Measures, and Analytical Techniques (pp. 3-18). New York: Routledge.
Benoit, W. L., & Holbert, R. L. (2010). Political communication. In C. R. Berger, M. E. Roloff, & D. Roskos-Ewoldsen (Eds.), Handbook of communication science (2nd edition), pp. 437-452. Los Angeles, CA: Sage.
Quick Introduction:
Persuasion, Strategic Communication, Political Communication, and Methods.
Description:
My teaching specialties are in the areas of persuasion, strategic communication, political communication, and research methods. All of my courses exist at the crossroads of theory and practice. Each class I teach is grounded in theory, but theory is also applied to the creation or critical assessment of real-world promotional activities. Persuasion theories are utilized as a base from which to study all facets of strategic communication campaigns, whether the campaigns are commercial, political, or social in nature. Strong emphasis is placed on the study of conditional communication effects across publics and various sub-groups within publics.
My research in political communication has focused of late on the influence of entertainment television (e.g., political satire) and other non-traditional political outlets (e.g., political documentary film) on basic democratic outcome variables. In addition, I have devoted attention to the study of how the use of these non-traditional outlets complement the functions of more traditional sources of political communication ( e.g., debates, TV news, newspapers) in producing a range of effects, as well as how various traditional political communication information outlets (e.g., FOX News, MSNBC) function alongside one another to influence voters. In terms of research methods, I continue to study how the field of communication can better employ the use of structural equation modeling as a multivariate analytic technique.