Dr. Yang "Alice" Cheng received the Ph.D. degree from Missouri School of Journalism, which is one of the oldest formal journalism schools in the world. She also graduated with the outstanding academic award from the nationally recognized Crosby MBA program. She teaches research methods, the introduction of public relations, crisis communication, and global communication in the U.S. and Hong Kong. She has demonstrated a long-term commitment to research involving AI-powered tools in business and health communication, public relations management, digital media, and crisis communication. She has published more than 35 journal articles and book chapters. Some of her publications have appeared in top journals such as the New Media & Society, American Behavioral Scientist, Journal of Applied Communication Research, Journal of Product & Brand Management, Telematics and informatics, Mass Communication & Society, International Journal of Communication, Public Relations Review, and Asian Journal of Communication. Acting as the Principal Investigator (PI) or senior researcher, her research has been funded by many global prestigious institutions, such as National Science Foundation (NSF) ($1 million), Arthur Page Center (USA) ($4,000), North Carolina State University (USA) ($15,000), and the Chinese University of Hong Kong (Hong Kong)($7,000). Especially, The Arthur Page Johnson Legacy Scholar Grant is awarded to support scholars and professionals making important contributions to knowledge, practice, or public understanding of ethics and responsibility in public communication The funded study that examines mobile CSR activities in crises has been accepted in the 68th Annual Conference of the International Communication Association (2018) and won the Top Faculty Paper Award. Her research has been internationally and domestically recognized via various awards, for its originality, quality, and productivity. The received honors and awards included the Best Paper Award, Public Relations Division, International Communication Association Conference, 2013, 2014 and 2018; Top Paper Award in Mass Communication Division in 2014 and 2016, awarded by the International Communication Association Conference; Grunig PRIME Research Fellowship from Institute of Public Relations and PRIME research in 2015; and Peter Debreceny Corporate Award in the 18th International Public Relations Research Conference in 2015. Additionally, She has received the Hong Kong Government Reaching Out Award and the extremely competitive Extraordinary Potential Prize of 2016 Chinese Government Award. Due to her expertise in Communication, especially in social media and public relations, She has been invited to review many manuscripts for top journals such as Journal of Communication, Communication Research, New Media & Society, Public Relations Review, Journal of Applied Communication Research, Journal of Public Relations Research, Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly, and Management Communication Quarterly. She also serves on the editorial board of Public Relations Review and Public Relations Inquiry.
Works (21)
2021 article
Social Media Influencers in CSR Endorsement: The Effect of Consumer Mimicry on CSR Behaviors and Consumer Relationships
SOCIAL SCIENCE COMPUTER REVIEW.
Sources: Web Of Science, ORCID
Added: March 15, 2021
2021 journal article
The Moderating Effects of Perceived Severity on the Generational Gap in Preventive Behaviors during the COVID-19 Pandemic in the US
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH, 18(4).
www.mdpi.com (publisher PDF)
Sources: Web Of Science, ORCID
Added: March 22, 2021
2021 article
The NRA in Crisis: Social Identities and Publics' Cognitive and Affective Evaluations
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BUSINESS COMMUNICATION.
Sources: Web Of Science, ORCID
Added: February 15, 2021
2020 journal article
AI-Powered mental health chatbots: Examining users' motivations, active communicative action and engagement after mass-shooting disasters
JOURNAL OF CONTINGENCIES AND CRISIS MANAGEMENT, 28(3), 339–354.
Sources: Web Of Science, ORCID
Added: October 19, 2020
2020 journal article
Consumer response to fake news about brands on social media: the effects of self-efficacy, media trust, and persuasion knowledge on brand trust
JOURNAL OF PRODUCT AND BRAND MANAGEMENT, 29(2), 188–198.
Sources: Web Of Science, ORCID
Added: September 21, 2020
2020 article
Contingent organization-public relationship (COPR) matters: reconciling the contingency theory of accommodation into the relationship management paradigm
JOURNAL OF PUBLIC RELATIONS RESEARCH.
Sources: Web Of Science, ORCID
Added: November 2, 2020
2020 journal article
Corporate dialogue in crises of China: Examining dialogic strategies and communicative outcomes in a child abuse scandal
PUBLIC RELATIONS REVIEW, 46(1).
Sources: Web Of Science, ORCID
Added: April 20, 2020
2020 article
Encountering misinformation online: antecedents of trust and distrust and their impact on the intensity of Facebook use
ONLINE INFORMATION REVIEW.
Sources: Web Of Science, ORCID
Added: December 21, 2020
2020 article
How Do AI-driven Chatbots Impact User Experience? Examining Gratifications, Perceived Privacy Risk, Satisfaction, Loyalty, and Continued Use
JOURNAL OF BROADCASTING & ELECTRONIC MEDIA.
Sources: Web Of Science, ORCID
Added: January 4, 2021
2020 article
The Influence of Presumed Fake News Influence: Examining Public Support for Corporate Corrective Response, Media Literacy Interventions, and Governmental Regulation
MASS COMMUNICATION AND SOCIETY.
Sources: Web Of Science, ORCID
Added: May 26, 2020
2020 article
The presumed influence of digital misinformation: examining US public's support for governmental restrictions versus corrective action in the COVID-19 pandemic
ONLINE INFORMATION REVIEW.
Sources: Web Of Science, ORCID
Added: December 21, 2020
2020 journal article
The social-mediated crisis communication research: Revisiting dialogue between organizations and publics in crises of China
PUBLIC RELATIONS REVIEW, 46(1).
Sources: Web Of Science, ORCID
Added: April 20, 2020
2019 journal article
Engaging International Publics via Mobile-Enhanced CSR (mCSR): A Cross-National Study on Stakeholder Reactions to Corporate Disaster Relief Efforts
AMERICAN BEHAVIORAL SCIENTIST, 63(12), 1603–1623.
Sources: Web Of Science, ORCID
Added: October 14, 2019
2019 article
Examining six modes of relationships in a social-mediated crisis in China: an exploratory study of contingent organization-public relationships (COPR)
JOURNAL OF APPLIED COMMUNICATION RESEARCH.
Sources: Web Of Science, ORCID
Added: December 16, 2019
2019 journal article
Mobile Corporate Social Responsibility (mCSR): Examining Publics’ Responses to CSR-Based Initiatives in Natural Disasters
International Journal of Strategic Communication, 13(1), 76–93.
Sources: Crossref, ORCID
Added: December 21, 2020
2019 journal article
Online crisis communication in a post-truth Chinese society: Evidence from interdisciplinary literature
PUBLIC RELATIONS REVIEW, 45(4).
Sources: Web Of Science, ORCID
Added: November 25, 2019
2018 journal article
Looking back, moving forward: A review and reflection of the organization-public relationship (OPR) research
Public Relations Review, 44(1), 120–130.
Sources: Crossref, ORCID
Added: December 21, 2020
2017 journal article
Global questioners: examining journalists’ aggressiveness at Chinese premiers’ press conferences (1993–2015)
Asian Journal of Communication, 27(4), 357–377.
Sources: Crossref, ORCID
Added: December 21, 2020
2017 journal article
Public relations, media coverage, and public opinion in contemporary China: Testing agenda building theory in a social mediated crisis
Telematics and Informatics, 34(3), 765–773.
Sources: Crossref, ORCID
Added: December 21, 2020
2016 journal article
Crisis communication in context: Cultural and political influences underpinning Chinese public relations practice
Public Relations Review, 42(1), 201–213.
Sources: Crossref, ORCID
Added: March 30, 2021
2016 journal article
The third-level agenda-setting study: an examination of media, implicit, and explicit public agendas in China
Asian Journal of Communication, 26(4), 319–332.
Sources: Crossref, ORCID
Added: March 30, 2021
Employment
2017 - present
North Carolina State University Raleigh, NC, US
Education
University of Missouri Columbia Columbia, MO, US
PhD
School of Journalism
