*Photo Courtesy of Washington State University Website
Article by Ava Villalobos, Alyssa Heinlein, Brittany Montiel, and Nevaeh San Luis
ABOUT DR. ERICA AUSTIN – BACKGROUND AND INSPIRATION
Our team interviewed Dr. Erica Austin from Washington State University. She obtained her PhD in Communications from Stanford University, and she currently works as the Director of the Murrow Center for Media and Health Promotion Research at Washington State. We contacted Dr. Austin to discuss her study, “An Exploration of the Associations of Alcohol-Related Social Media Use and Message Interpretation Outcomes to Problem Drinking Among College Students.”
Dr. Austin’s motivation for this study stemmed from her interest in how people can use the media to make effective decisions rather than being used by the media. Alcohol was a great example of how consumers can be influenced intentionally or unintentionally by media messages. From birth, humans are influenced by the media to make decisions based on social factors and modeled behavior, known as cradle-to-grave marketing. She emphasized that children do not understand the difference between marketing and factual information, so they tend to believe what they see in the media as the truth. Dr. Austin mentioned that children’s marketing mirrors alcohol marketing, creating a smooth transition for young adults to be influenced to make adult purchases. This anticipatory socialization primes consumers from a young age to buy alcohol products. From this knowledge, her interest in media literacy pushed her to study the unintended effects of marketing to give people the tools to make the best use of media.
The message interpretation process was necessary to research how consumers make decisions. Dr. Austin and her team were inspired by the idea that many people view social media as “bad.” She believes the result of social media depends on how and why people use it, so her team was interested in finding the process that might lead social media users to develop drinking problems. Dr. Austin was clear in stating, “There is no automatic one-to-one link between drinking problems and social media use.” Instead, she directed her team to look at what might explain links that could exist, understand how and why those links exist, and then create interventions that might disrupt that link. That was the purpose of her study. Dr. Austin wanted to credit people for being the decision-makers and not attribute everything to social media.
RESEARCH METHODS & CHALLENGES
After discussing the overarching ideas behind the study, we asked for more specifics on how it was conducted. We started by asking how she and her team formulated their research questions into concrete hypotheses. Dr. Austin said they relied on the Message Interpretation Model, a theory she had worked with since grad school in the 1980s. She explained that most of her research since then has revolved around this model, and with this study, she wanted to apply it to a new context.
When asked why the team chose to do a quantitative study and not a qualitative one, Dr. Austin said that when conducting any research, “You want to find the research method that matches up well with the questions you are asking and the hypotheses you are testing.” Since the overall study revolved around college students and alcohol, they wanted to use quantitative research in the form of a survey because they wanted to generalize the results, and there were already established measures they could follow, so they did not need to do any explorative research to decide these measures.
Like any study, there are always going to be challenges. In our discussion about challenges, she said the research went smoothly overall. They just had a few bumps in the road. Some specific challenges they faced included timing. Since the study was conducted at two different universities, two different approval processes were used to conduct this study, which pushed back the timing of the entire project. Another challenge was they had fewer people do the survey, which she said was disappointing, but they had enough to continue. A final challenge was working in a team. She said it was sometimes difficult as people take different time to respond, but one thing she did say her team was great at was playing to their own strengths. One of the members was more of a statistics whiz, so they gave them most of the stats, whereas Dr. Austin was in charge of the theory and the application of the theory in the study. She claimed that as well as being nice to each other, delegating tasks to each person’s strengths is a great way to work cohesively together.
Dr. Austin did say that she does want to follow up on this study with a qualitative one so that they can expand on how students feel about this research. To explain her point, Dr. Austin used an analogy of a target. She said you can have a reliable target, but it only explains a small portion of the dart board. In a broader context, she claims, “The best studies provide you with useful results but raise even more questions that you want answered in the future.” That is what her team was able to achieve with this study.
KEY FINDINGS AND IMPLICATIONS
The study “An Exploration of the Associations of Alcohol-Related Social Media Use and Message Interpretation Outcomes to Problem Drinking Among College Students” (2017) examines how social media influences alcohol consumption among university students. With the rise of digital communication, alcohol marketing has expanded online, prompting researchers to conduct two surveys exploring students’ experiences with alcohol-related social media, their decision-making regarding alcohol use, and problematic drinking behaviors.
The study found that engagement with alcohol-related content predicted drinking behaviors, and factors such as wishful identification, perceived desirability, perceived similarity, and normative beliefs influenced drinking expectations, ultimately leading to problematic drinking patterns. By examining how students interpret digital alcohol marketing messages, this study highlights the link between social media exposure and risky alcohol use.
*Graph sourced from “An Exploration of the Associations of Alcohol-Related Social Media Use and Message Interpretation Outcomes to Problem Drinking Among College Students.”
While it can be both rewarding and surprising when a study turns out as expected, Dr. Erica explains how she never takes it for granted. To become a good researcher, she emphasizes the importance of proposing and testing hypotheses with the possibility that they could be false. She highlights the importance of “always staying skeptical” no matter how confident one is in the results, as this is a crucial quality to have for any researcher. The interviewer noted that a 2017 study on alcohol ads’ effects on college students was still relevant today and speculated how results might differ today with TikTok’s rise and the increasing trend of celebrities promoting their own alcohol brands. After being asked if she would alter their approach if conducting the study again with her team, Dr Erica responded that she would update her measures and social media considerations, incorporate focus groups to assess norms and desirability, and review prior research and product release trends. She emphasized that prior research plays a crucial role in selecting behavioral measures, as it helps ensure reliability and relevance while avoiding the need to reinvent the wheel. Additionally, she noted the importance of timing in data collection and expanding the timeframe to gather more comprehensive insights.
ADVICE FOR ASPIRING RESEARCHERS
As our interview with Dr. Erica came to a close, we took the opportunity to ask for her advice as we embark on our own research study. Given her extensive background and years of experience in the field, we knew her insights would be invaluable in helping us approach our work with the right mindset and strategies. She emphasized that curiosity, organizational skills, and collaboration are among the most important qualities for conducting impactful research. Curiosity, drives meaningful research, pushing researchers to ask important questions and seek out new perspectives. Without a genuine desire to explore and understand a topic, research can become a routine task rather than an opportunity for discovery. However, curiosity alone is not enough, organization plays a crucial role in ensuring that research is thorough and manageable. Dr. Erica recommended creating a clear outline with a structured plan, breaking the work into smaller tasks, and working backward from deadlines to avoid last-minute stress. She also stressed the importance of building a buffer period, as unexpected obstacles are almost always a part of the research process. Whether it’s technical difficulties, scheduling conflicts, or the need to revise certain aspects of the study, having extra time can prevent these setbacks from conflicting progress.
In addition to these useful strategies, Dr. Erica emphasized the value of collaboration in research. She explained that while working with others can be challenging at times, it is essential to establish a supportive and dependable team environment. Researchers should not only be kind to one another but also reliable in their commitments. A successful research team depends on mutual respect and trust, where every member contributes their strengths while also being accountable for their responsibilities. Communication, she added, is key to ensuring that everyone stays aligned and that the project progresses smoothly.
When we asked her which areas of research she hoped future scholars would explore, she pointed to the way people engage with social media and the need for more critical thinking in that space. Dr. Erica expressed concern that many users do not approach social media content with the level of thoughtfulness it requires. Often, people accept information at face value without considering the credibility of the source or the potential biases in the content. She states the importance of encouraging people to be more discerning about their sources, as well as to seek out multiple perspectives rather than relying on a single narrative. By promoting better research habits and critical evaluation skills, we can work toward a more informed and responsible digital culture. Her insights left us with a deeper appreciation for the research process, not just in terms of methodology but also in its broader impact on society.
Below are some additional highlights from our interview with Dr. Erica Austin.
CONCLUSION
Learning from Dr. Austin was an invaluable experience. We learned how to rely on previous research to guide continuing studies. She taught us how to create research methods that align with the study and the challenges faced in conducting a study. We discovered how to analyze data and how to be okay with hypotheses being proved wrong. We received advice on how to work as a team and how to have the best mindset around researching. Learning from a qualified researcher not only helped us with our own research but also gave us a better understanding of how research impacts the world.
Reference List:
The Society for Communications Research 