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What to Do When No One Agrees
Presented by Myiah J. Hutchens, Ph.D., Associate Professor, College of Journalism and Communications, University of Florida
Free for Members – Register Now
Thursday, September 22, 2022 | Noon EDT
This session will address both the causes and consequences of exposure to information that we disagree with. Good information is key to making good decisions, and information is better when we are willing to hear multiple perspectives. However, especially in politics, many individuals are reluctant to engage with ideas that are counter to what they already believe. Dr. Myiah Hutchens, an expert in diverse perspectives, will address the biases that audiences often have when approaching counter-attitudinal information and what strategies can be used to make those conversations more productive.
Takeaways:
- What your in-group does matters – challenge yourself to seek out diverse perspectives
- Disagreement can have positive effects
- Try to reinforce shared identities when talking to someone you disagree with
Dr. Myiah Hutchens is associate professor and associate chair of the Department of Public Relations and graduate coordinator of the Public Relations Research & Theory Master of Arts in Mass Communication (MAMC) at the College of Journalism and Communications, University of Florida. She is a political communication scholar whose research centers on how communication functions in democratic processes – that is, to help or hinder political processes. Her research generally focuses on what leads people to seek out diverse perspectives – particularly views they disagree with – and how individuals then process that disagreement. She has more than 40 publications which can be found in the top journals in communication, and her work has been cited nearly 2,000 times. She is a former head of the Communication Theory and Methodology division of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication and currently sits on the editorial boards of the Journal of Communication, Communication Research and Communication Methods and Measures.