Nancy Harrington

VitaeTeachingResearchPersonal

Research

My program of research focuses primarily on persuasive message design in a health behavior change context. I am interested in determining what about the content of a message makes it persuasive. Specifically, I am interested in the effects of targeting message content to individual differences in audience members. One of my current funded studies and one that is pending are designed to investigate these questions (see Persuasive Strategies for Effective Anti-Drug Messages and Improving Medication Related Outcomes , below). I also am interested in physician-patient communication issues, particularly as they relate to patient behavior change. Another of my current funded studies is looking at that issue (see Increasing the Effectiveness of Tailored Health Messages , below). Across all studies, I am interested in the role of technology in designing messages ­ from both a pragmatic perspective (i.e., designing multiple messages efficiently and at low cost) and a theoretical perspective (i.e., how technology can be used to tailor messages).

Current Studies - Pending Studies - Past Studies

 

Publications

McNeal, R. B., Jr., Hansen, W. B., Harrington, N. G., & Giles, S. M. (in press). How All Stars works: An examination of program effects on mediating variables. Health Education & Behavior.

Harrington, N. G., Lane, D. R., Donohew, L., Zimmerman, R. S., Norling, G. R., An, J., Cheah, W. H., McClure, L., Buckingham, T., Garofalo, E., & Bevins, C. C. (2003). Persuasive strategies for effective anti-drug messages. Communication Monographs, 70(1), 16-30.


Donohew, R. L., Palmgreen, P., Zimmerman, R. S., Harrington, N. G., & Lane, D. R. (2003). Health risk takers and prevention. In D. Romer (Ed.), Reducing adolescent risk (pp. 165-170). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.


Harrington, N. G. (2003). Just say...??? What to say when you want to say “No” to a drink. In M. Fearnow-Kenney, D. L. Wyrick, & W. B. Hansen (Eds.), Alcohol awareness: Readings for college students.


Bostrom, R. N., Lane, D. R., & Harrington, N. G. (2002). Music as persuasion: Creative mechanisms for enacting academe. American Communication Journal, 6(1). http://acjournal.org/holdings/vol6/iss1/special/bostrom.htm


Donohew, L., Palmgreen, P., Lorch, E. P., Zimmerman, R., & Harrington, N. G. (2002). Attention, persuasive communication, and prevention. In W. Crano & M. Burgoon (Eds.), Mass media and drug prevention: Classic and contemporary theories and research (pp. 119-143) Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.


Giles, S. M., Harrington, N. G., & Fearnow-Kenney, M. (2002). Evaluation of the All Stars program: Student and teacher factors that influence mediators of substance use. Journal of Drug Education, 31(4), 385-397.


Harrington, N. G. (2002). Funded research in communication: A chairperson’s perspective. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 30(4), 393-401.


Kelly, T. H., Delzer, T., Martin, C. A., Hays, L. R., Harrington, N. G., Bardo, M. J., & Rush, C. R. (2002). Behavioral effects of amphetamine and diazepam in high and low sensation seekers. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 66 (supplement 1), S91-S92.


Dsilva, M., Harrington, N. G., Palmgreen, P., Donohew, L., & Lorch, E. P. (2001). Drug use prevention for the high sensation seeker: The role of alternative activities. Substance Use and Misuse, 36(3), 373-385.


Harrington, N. G., Giles, S. M., Hoyle, R. H., Feeney, G. J., & Yungbluth, S. C. (2001). Evaluation of the All Stars character education and problem behavior prevention program: Effects on mediator and outcome variables for middle school students. Health Education & Behavior, 28(5), 533-546.


Palmgreen, P., Donohew, L., & Harrington, N. G. (2001). Sensation seeking in anti-drug campaign and message design. In R. Rice and C. Atkin (Eds.), Public communication campaigns, 3rd edition (pp. 300-304). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.


Fahringer, D., Assell, R., Harrington, N., Maschio, G., & Stone, L. (2000). Integrating servicelearning as a course into a university curriculum. Journal of Perspective on Physician Assistant Education, 11(3), 161-164.


Harrington, N. G., Hoyle, R., Giles, S. M., & Hansen, W. B. (2000). The All Stars prevention program. In W. B. Hansen, S. M. Giles, & M. D. Fearnow-Kenney (Eds.), Improving prevention effectiveness (pp. 203-212). Greensboro, NC: Tanglewood Research.


Bostrom, R. N., & Harrington, N. G. (1999). An exploratory investigation of the characteristics of compulsive talkers. Communication Education, 48, 73-80.


Harrington, N. G., Brigham, N. L., & Clayton, R. R. (1999). Alcohol risk reduction for fraternity and sorority members. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 60(4), 521-527.


Matthews, C. K., & Harrington, N. G. (1999). Invisible disabilities. In D. Braithwaite and T. L. Thompson (Eds.), Handbook of communication and people with disabilities: Research and application (pp. 405-421). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.


Harrington, N. G. (1997). Strategies used by college students to persuade peers to drink. The Southern Communication Journal, 62(3), 229-242.


Harrington, N. G., & Bostrom, R. N. (1997). Objectivism as the basic context for theory and research in communication. In J. L. Owen (Ed.), Context and communication behavior (pp. 118-143). Context Press.


Harrington, N. G., Brigham, N. L., & Clayton, R. R. (1997). Differences in alcohol use and alcohol-related problems among fraternity and sorority members. Drug & Alcohol Dependence, 47, 237-247.


Harrington, N. G., & Donohew, L. (1997). Jump Start: A targeted drug abuse prevention program. Health Education and Behavior, 24(5), 568-586.


Bardo, M., Donohew, L., & Harrington, N. G. (1996). Psychobiology of novelty seeking and drug seeking behavior. Behavioural Brain Research, 77, 1-21.


Clayton, R. R., Leukefeld, C. G., Harrington, N. G., & Cattarello, A. (1996). D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education): Very popular but not very effective. In C. B. McCoy, L. Metsch, & J. A. Inciardi (Eds.), Intervening with drug involved youth. Beverly Hills: Sage.


Donohew, L., & Harrington, N. G. (1996). Prevention: Shaping mass-media messages to vulnerable groups. In J. Jaffe (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Drugs and Alcohol (pp. 853-856). New York: Macmillan.


Harrington, N. G. (1995). The effects of college students' alcohol resistance strategies. Health Communication, 7(4), 371-391.
Clayton, R. R., Leukefeld, C. G., Donohew, L., Bardo, M., & Harrington, N. G. (1995). Risk and protective factors: A brief review. Drugs & Society, 8(3/4), 7-14.


Palmgreen, P., Lorch, E. P., Donohew, L., Harrington, N. G., Dsilva, M., & Helm, D. (1995). Reaching at-risk populations in a mass media drug abuse prevention campaign: Sensation seeking as a targeting variable. Drugs and Society, 8(3/4), 29-45.


Palmgreen, P., Donohew, L., Lorch, E. P., Rogus, M., Helm, D., & Grant, N. E. (1991). Sensation seeking, message sensation value, and drug use as mediators of PSA effectiveness. Health Communication, 3(4), 217-227.

Conference Papers, Posters and Presentations