Megan Sanders

Meghan Sanders

Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies; Katheryn Pate Callahan Professor; 222C Journalism Building | 225-578-7380 | msand@lsu.edu | CV

Biography

Meghan Sanders is the associate dean for research and graduate studies at LSU's Manship School of Mass Communication. She joined the LSU faculty in 2006. She specializes in media and psychology, focusing on the psychological effects of mass media, as they pertain to psychological and subjective well-being. Her research focuses on enjoyment and appreciation of entertainment, morality and narrative engagement, and positive media psychology. Sanders’ research has been published in Mass Communication and Society, Journal of Communication, and Communication Theory. She has presented her work both nationally and internationally at events in London, China, Japan and the Czech Republic. Her teaching expertise is in mass communication theory, research methods, statistics and public relations.

Sanders previously served as director of the Media Effects Lab, a research facility dedicated to exploring the underlying thought processes and emotions associated with using mediated communication.

From 2012 to 2016, she served as the associate dean for research and strategic planning for the Manship School. Sanders also served as director of the Scripps Howard Academic Leadership Academy, a program aimed at mentoring new and would-be administrators by providing four days of leadership training and professional networking. She continues to lead workshops on academic leadership, having done so for the Southeastern Conference (SEC), the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC), and the Kopenhaver Center for the Advancement of Women in Communication.

She earned her undergraduate degree in mass communication at Dillard University, her master's degree in media studies from The Pennsylvania State University and her doctorate in mass communication from The Pennsylvania State University.

Meghan Sanders on Twitter: @msand37

Videos

Selected Publications

Sanders, M. S., Yang, C., Whitenack, S. L., Ciaramella, A., Italiano, R., & Hickerson, H. M. (forthcoming). Entertainment media and social consciousness. In P. Vorderer & C. Klimmt (Eds.) The Oxford Handbook of Entertainment Theory. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Crosswell, L., & Sanders, M. S. (forthcoming). Parasocial influences and integrated marketing. In H. D. O’Hair & M. J. O’Hair (Eds.) Handbook of Applied Communication Research. New York: Wiley Publishing.
Sanders, M. S., & Whitenack, S. (2019). The role of media in perpetuating stereotypes. In E. P. Downs (Ed.) The Dark Side of Media & Technology: A 21st Century Guide to Media and Technological Literacy. New York: Peter Lang.
Ferchaud, A. M., Sanders, M. S. (2018). Seeing through the avatar’s eyes:  Effects of point-of-view and gender match on identification and enjoyment. Imagination, Cognition and Personality. [online first, February 2018]. doi: 10.1177/0276236618761372
Dale, K. R., Raney, A. A., Janicke, S. H., Sanders, M. S., & Oliver, M. B. (2017). YouTube for Good: A content analysis and examination of elicitors of self-transcendent media. Journal of Communication, 67(6), 897-919.  doi:10.1111/jcom.12333
Tsay-Vogel, M., & Sanders, M. S. (2017). Fandom and the search for meaning:  Examining communal involvement with popular media beyond pleasure. Psychology of Popular Media Culture, 6(1), 32-47 [online first, 2015].doi:  10.1037/ppm0000085
Sanders, M. S., & Tsay-Vogel, M. (2016). Examining Explanatory Mechanisms Underlying Moral Disengagement Across Characters of Different Moral Complexities. Mass Communication & Society, 19, 230-252. doi: 10.1080/15205436.2015.1096944
Sanders, M. S. (2010). Making a good (bad) impression: Examining the cognitive processes of disposition theory to form a synthesized model of media character impression formation. Communication Theory, 20(2),  147-168.
Jeong, Y., Sanders, M. S., & Zhou, X. (2010). Bridging the gap between time and space: Examining the impact of commercial length and frequency on advertising effectiveness. Journal of Marketing Communications, 1-17.
Ramasubramanian, S., & Sanders, M. S. (2009). The good, the bad, and the ugly: Effect of perceived morality, attractiveness, and competence on affective dispositions toward and playability of video game characters. Journal of American Media Psychology, 2(3-4), 148-169.
Sanders, M. S. (2009). Chapter 13: Introduction to Hypothesis Testing. In S. Zhou and D. Sloan (Eds.) Research Methods in Communication (pp. 181-202). Vision Press.
Oliver, M. B., Kim, J., & Sanders, M. S. (2006). Personality.  In J. Bryant and P. Vorderer (Eds.). Psychology of entertainment (pp. 329-342).  Mahwah, NJ:  Lawrence Erlbaum.
Oliver, M. B. & Sanders, M. S. (2004).  The appeal of horror and suspense.  In S. Prince (ed). The horror film (pp. 242-260). New Brunswick, NJ,  Rutgers University Press.