Interpersonal Communication
Our interpersonal communication area focuses on the study of fundamental processes that occur during all conversations (interpretation, message production) and the codes (verbal and nonverbal) through which everyday conversations are accomplished. We also investigate how communication shapes, and is shaped by, human relationships, including friendships, romances, families, and work relationships. Program graduates pursue academic careers as well as professional careers in the corporate sector, non-profit organizations, and health-care organizations.
Reasons to Study Interpersonal Communication at Purdue
- Obtain a degree from one of the top-ranked interpersonal communication programs in the nation
- Work with some of the most prolific scholars in the discipline of Communication
- Participate in stimulating interpersonal communication courses covering a wide variety of areas
- Design a personally-tailored plan of study that best suits your needs
- Collaborate with faculty members and fellow graduate students on research projects
- Teach or assist with undergraduate interpersonal communication courses
Program Strengths and Faculty Interests
Social Support, Emotion, Close Relationships: Brant Burleson
Interviewing: Suzanne Collins
Cognitive Processes, Nonverbal Communication: John Greene
Communication, Stress and Coping: Erina MacGeorge
Communication, Aging, & Families: Melanie Morgan
Identity, Communication Ecologies, Sociolinguistics: Felicia Roberts
Mass Media and Relationships: Glenn Sparks
Social Cognition, New Communication Technologies: Howard E. Sypher
Self-presentation, Self-regulation, and Social Cognition: James Tyler
Culture, Gender, and Communication: Ralph Webb
Influence, Negotiation, Family Violence: Steve Wilson
Selected Course Offerings
Interpersonal Communication (COM 512)
Nonverbal Communication (COM 508)
Persuasion (COM 518)
Communication and Emotion (COM 612B)
Language, Gender, and Social Identity (COM 612G)
Interpersonal Influence (COM 612W)
Culture and Negotiation (COM 674C)
Social Support (COM 612E)
Intimate Violence
Research Methods (COM 582)
Interdisciplinary Connections
Our interpersonal faculty is connected to many interdisciplinary programs on campus, including the Center for Families, the Center for Education and Research in Information Security and Assurance (CERIAS), and the Gerontology Program. Students have the opportunity to develop research and professional connections through these programs. In addition, students supplement studies of interpersonal communication in our department with courses offered in the Departments of Child Development and Family Studies, Philosophy, Psychology, and Sociology/Anthropology as well as the Krannert School of Management.