Sandi W. Smith Michigan State University, USA

Sandi W. Smith (Ph.D., University of Southern California) is Professor in the Department of Communication at Michigan State University, where she teaches courses in persuasion, communication theory, and interpersonal communication, and Director of the Health and Risk Communication Center. Her research interests parallel these course topics, and her research has been funded by foundations and government agencies such as the Kaiser Family Foundation, the Fetzer Institute, the U. S. Department of Education, and the National Cancer Institute. In specific, she has focused her research on the impact of memorable messages received from important others on health behaviors; persuading people to carry signed and witnessed organ donor cards and to engage in family discussion about their decisions related to organ donation; encouraging college students to consume alcohol moderately, if at all; and the portrayal of interpersonal relationships on television. Among her more than sixty publications are articles that appeared in Communication Monographs, Human Communication Research, Health Communication, Journal of Health Communication, Journal of Communication, and the Journal of Applied Communication Research, among others. She is active in the National Communication Association and the International Communication Association where she served as Chair of the Interpersonal Communication Division. She has received honors for her teaching and research from student groups, professional associations, and the universities at which she has worked. In 2007, she was honored with the Distinguished Faculty Award at Michigan State University, and in 2008 she received the B. Aubrey Fisher Mentorship Award from ICA.