S. Shyam Sundar

CV, as PDF

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S. Shyam Sundar is the founder of the Media Effects Research Laboratory (http://www.psu.edu/dept/medialab), a leading facility of its kind in the country. He teaches courses in the psychology of communication technology, mass-communication theory, and research methodology.

He earned his doctoral and master’s degrees in communication. He also holds bachelor's degrees in communication and engineering. His industry experience includes more than eight years as a print journalist.

Just as his background is eclectic, his current work is quite interdisciplinary—he holds joint faculty appointments in the departments of film-video and media studies, advertising, architecture, and communication arts and sciences at Penn State.

Prof. Sundar’s research investigates social and psychological effects of technological elements unique to Web-based mass-communication. In particular, his studies experimentally investigate the effects of interactivity, navigability, multi-modality, and agency (source attribution) in Web interfaces upon online users’ thoughts, emotions, and actions.

His research is supported by the National Science Foundation, Korea Science and Engineering Foundation, the MacArthur Foundation and Lockheed Martin Information Systems and Global Services, among others.

Sundar was among the first to publish refereed research on the effects of new media in Journal of Communication, the flagship publication of the International Communication Association (ICA). His work has also appeared in such leading journals as Communication Research, Media Psychology, Behaviour & Information Technology, The Information Society, Journal of Advertising, and Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly.

In a content analysis of journal articles published during the first decade of the Internet, Sundar was identified as the most published author of Internet-related research in the field of communications, and across 11 leading journals of communications, marketing and advertising (Cho & Khang, 2006;Journal of Advertising, 35: 3, 143-163).

A frequently cited source on technology, Sundar has testified before Congress as an expert witness and delivered talks at several universities in the United States, Germany, Netherlands, Hong Kong, Korea, China and India. He is associate editor of Human Communication Research and serves on the editorial boards of a dozen other journals, including Communication Research, Journal of Communication, Media Psychology, Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, and Journal of Advertising.

He was elected chair of the Communication & Technology Division and vice president of the International Communication Association, 2008-2010. His contribution to the field also includes serving as the head of the Communication Technology Division of the Association for Education in Journalism & Mass Communication in 2000-2001. More recently, he was member and chair of the association's Publications Committee and also served on its Strategic Plan Committee.

Publications

• Sundar, S. S., Oh, J., Bellur, S., Jia, H., & Kim, H. S. (2012). Interactivity as self-expression: A field experiment with customization and blogging. Proceedings of the 2012 Annual Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI’12), 395-404.
• Sundar, S. S., Xu, Q., & Dou, X. (2012). Role of technology in online persuasion: A MAIN Model perspective. In S. Rodgers & E. Thorson (Eds.), Advertising theory (pp. 355-372). New York: Routledge.
• Kim, K. J., Park, E., Sundar, S. S., & del Pobil, A. P. (2012). The effects of immersive tendency and need to belong on human-robot interaction. Proceedings of the 7th ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI’12), 207-208.
• Nie, J., Park, M., Marin, A. L., & Sundar, S. S. (2012). Can you hold my hand? Physical warmth in human-robot interaction. Proceedings of the 7th ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI’12), 201-202.
• Park, E., Kim, K. J., Sundar, S. S., & del Pobil, A. P. (2012). Online gaming with robots vs. computers as allies vs. opponents. Proceedings of the 7th ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI’12), 205-206.
• Kim, Y., & Sundar, S. S. (2012). Anthropomorphism of computers: Is it mindful or mindless? Computers in Human Behavior, 28, 241-250.
• Kang, H., Bae, K., Zhang, S., & Sundar, S. S. (2011). Source cues in online news: Is the proximate source more powerful than distal sources? Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 88(4), 719-736.
• Balakrishnan, B., & Sundar, S. S. (2011). Where am I? How can I get there? Impact of navigability and narrative transportation on spatial presence. Human Computer Interaction, 26, 161-204.
• Kim, K. J., & Sundar, S. S. (2011). Does panel type matter for LCD monitors? A study examining the effects of S-IPS, S-PVA, and TN panels in video gaming and movie viewing. In P. Campos et al. (Eds.), Proceedings of INTERACT 2011, Part II, LNCS 6947, 281-288.
• Sundar, S. S., Bellur, S., Oh, J., & Jia, H. (2011). Calls for interaction: The more the better? User experience of 3D carousel and additional interaction techniques. In P. Campos et al. (Eds.), Proceedings of INTERACT 2011, Part IV, LNCS 6949, 487-490.
• Sundar, S. S., Rice, R. E, Kim, H.S., & Sciamanna, C. (2011). Online health information: Conceptual challenges and theoretical opportunities. In T. Thompson, R. Parrott, & J. Nussbaum (Eds.), Handbook of health communication (2nd ed.) (pp. 181-202). New York: Routledge.
• Downs, E. P., & Sundar, S. S. (2011). “We won” vs. “they lost”: Exploring egoenhancement and self-preservation tendencies in the context of video game play. Entertainment Computing, 2, 23-28.
• Kim, H. S., & Sundar, S. S. (2011). Using interface cues in online health community boards to change impressions and encourage user contribution. Proceedings of the 2011 Annual Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI’11), 599-608.
• Kim, K. J., Sundar, S. S., & Park, E. (2011). The effects of screen-size and communication modality on psychology of mobile device users. Proceedings of the 2011 Annual Conference Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI EA’11), 1207-1212.
• Marathe, S., & Sundar, S. S. (2011). What drives customization? Control or identity? Proceedings of the 2011 Annual Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI’11), 781-790.

• Sundar, S. S., Oeldorf-Hirsch, A., Nussbaum, J. F., & Behr, R. A. (2011). Retirees on Facebook: Can online social networking enhance their health and wellness? Proceedings of the 2011 Annual Conference Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI EA'11), 2287-2292.
• Sundar, S. S., Xu, Q., Bellur, S., Oh, J., & Jia, H. (2011). Beyond pointing and clicking: How do newer interaction modalities affect user engagement? Proceedings of the 2011 Annual Conference Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI EA’11), 1477-1482.
• Garris, K., Guillory, J., & Sundar, S. S. (2011). Does interactivity serve the public interest? The role of political blogs in deliberative democracy. International Journal of Interactive Communication Systems and Technologies, 1, 1-18.
• Lee, N., Shin, H., & Sundar, S. S. (2011). Utilitarian vs. hedonic robots: Role of parasocial tendency and anthropomorphism in shaping user attitudes. Proceedings of the 6th International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI’11), 183-184.
• Sah, Y. J., Yoo, B., & Sundar, S. S. (2011). Are specialist robots better than generalist robots? Proceedings of the 6th International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI’11), 241-242.
• You, S., Nie, J., Suh, K., & Sundar, S. S. (2011). When the robot criticizes you…Selfserving bias in human-robot interaction. Proceedings of the 6th International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI’11), 295-296.
• Sundar, S. S., & Bellur, S. (2010). Concept explication in the internet age: The case of interactivity. In E. P. Bucy & R. L. Holbert (Eds.), Sourcebook for Political communication research: Methods, measures, and analytical techniques (pp. 485-500). New York: Routledge.
• Koh, Y. J., & Sundar, S. S. (2010). Effects of specialization in computers, web sites and web agents on e-commerce trust. International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 68, 899-912.
• Kim, N. Y., & Sundar, S. S. (2010). Relevance to the rescue: Can smart ads reduce negative response to online ad clutter? Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 87(2), 346-362.
• Hutton, E., & Sundar, S. S. (2010). Can video games enhance creativity? Effects of emotion generated by Dance Dance Revolution. Creativity Research Journal, 22(3), 294-303.
• Sundar, S. S., & Marathe, S. S. (2010). Personalization vs. customization: The importance of agency, privacy and power usage. Human Communication Research, 36, 298-322.

• Sundar, S. S., Xu, Q., & Bellur, S. (2010). Designing interactivity in media interfaces: A communications perspective. Proceedings of the 28th International Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI '10), 2247-2256.
• Sundar, S. S., Xu, Q., Bellur, S., Oh, J., & Jia, H. (2010). Modality is the message: Interactivity effects on perception and engagement. Proceedings of the 28th of the International Conference Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI EA’10), 4105-4110.
• Koh, Y. J., & Sundar, S. S. (2010). Heuristic versus systematic processing of specialist versus generalist sources in online media. Human Communication Research, 36, 103-124.
• Hu, Y., & Sundar, S. S. (2010). Effects of online health sources on credibility and behavioral intentions. Communication Research, 37(1), 105-132.
• Wagner, C., & Sundar, S. S. (2009). Sneaking it in: The importance of peripheral processing in promoting strong anti-drug attitudes. American Journal of Media Psychology, 2(1/2), 9-43.
• Syvertsen, A. K., Stout, M. D., & Flanagan, C. A. (with Mitra, D. L., Oliver, M. B., & Sundar, S. S.). (2009). Using elections as teachable moments: A randomized evaluation of the Student Voices civic education program. American Journal of Education, 116, 33-67.
• Sundar, S. S. (2009). Media effects 2.0: Social and psychological effects of communication technologies. In R. L. Nabi & M. B. Oliver (Eds.), The SAGE handbook of media processes and effects (pp. 545-560). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
• Kim, Y., & Sundar, S. S. (2009). Me, myself, and my avatar: The effects of avatar on SNW (Social Networking) users' attitudes toward a website and its ad content. In N. T. Wood & M. R. Solomon (Eds.), Virtual social identity and consumer behavior (pp. 141-156). Armonk, NY: M. E. Sharpe.
• Lee, E-J., & Sundar, S. S. (2009). Human-computer interaction. In C. R. Berger, M. E. Roloff, & D. R. Roskos-Ewoldsen (Eds.), The handbook of communication science (2nd ed.) (pp. 507-523). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
• Sundar, S. S., Xu, Q., & Oeldorf-Hirsch, A. (2009). Authority vs. peer: How interface cues influence users. Proceedings of the 27th International Conference Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI’09), 27, 4231-4236.
• Sundar, S. S. (2009). Online journalism: The psychology of mass communication on the Web. In L. Leung, A. Y. H. Fung & P.S.N. Lee (Eds.), Embedding into our lives: New opportunities and challenges of the internet (pp. 127-144). Hong Kong: The Chinese University Press.
• Sundar, S. S., Oeldorf-Hirsch, A., & Garga, A. (2008). A cognitive-heuristics approach to understanding presence in virtual environments. In A. Spagnolli and L. Gamberini (Eds.), PRESENCE 2008: Proceedings of the 11th Annual International Workshop on Presence (pp. 219-228). Padova, Italy: CLEUP Cooperativa Libraria Universitaria Padova. Article retrievable from: http://www.temple.edu/ispr/prev_conferences/proceedings/2008/sundar.pdf 
• Kalyanaraman, S., & Sundar, S. S. (2008). Portrait of the portal as a metaphor: Explicating Web portals for communication research. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 85(2), 239-256.
• Banjo, O., Hu, Y., & Sundar, S. S. (2008). Cell phone usage and social interaction with proximate others: Ringing in a theoretical model. The Open Communication Journal, 2, 127-135. Article retrievable from: http://www.bentham.org/open/tocommj/openaccess2.htm
• Wagner, C., & Sundar, S. S. (2008). The curiosity-arousing function of anti-drug ads. The Open Communication Journal, 2, 43-59. Article retrievable from: http://www.bentham.org/open/tocommj/openaccess2.htm
• Sundar, S. S. (2008). Self as source: Agency and customization in interactive media. In E. Konijn, S. Utz, M. Tanis, & S. Barnes (Eds.), Mediated interpersonal communication (pp. 58-74). New York: Routledge.
• Kalyanaraman, S., & Sundar, S. S. (2008). Impression formation effects in online mediated communication. In E. Konijn, S. Utz, M. Tanis, & S. Barnes (Eds.), Mediated interpersonal communication (pp. 217-233). New York: Routledge.
• Sundar, S. S., Oeldorf-Hirsch, A., & Xu, Q. (2008). The bandwagon effect of collaborative filtering technology. Proceedings of CHI’08 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems, 26, 3453-3458.
• Stavrositu, C., & Sundar, S. S. (2008). Can blogs empower women? Designing agencyenhancing and community-building interfaces. Proceedings of CHI’08 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems, 26, 2781-2786.
• Stavrositu, C., & Sundar, S. S. (2008). If internet credibility is so iffy, why the heavy use? The relationship between medium use and credibility. Cyberpsychology & Behavior, 11(1), 65-68.
• Sundar, S. S. (2008). The MAIN model: A heuristic approach to understanding technology effects on credibility. In M. J. Metzger & A. J. Flanagin (Eds.), Digital media, youth, and credibility (pp. 72-100). Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press. Chapter retrievable from http://www.mitpressjournals.org/doi/abs/10.1162/dmal.9780262562324.073
• Sundar, S. S. (2007). Social psychology of interactivity in human-website interaction. In A. N. Joinson, K. Y. A. McKenna, T. Postmes & U-D. Reips (Eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Internet Psychology (pp. 89-104). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
• Sundar, S. S., Edwards, H. H., Hu, Y., & Stavrositu, C. (2007). Blogging for better health: Putting the “public” back in public health. In M. Tremayne (Ed.), Blogging, citizenship, and the future of media (pp. 83-102). New York: Routledge.
• Sundar, S. S., Knobloch-Westerwick, S., & Hastall, M. R. (2007). News cues: Information scent and cognitive heuristics. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 58(3), 366-378.
• Kalyanaraman, S., & Sundar, S. S. (2006). The psychological appeal of personalized online content in Web portals: Does customization affect attitudes and behavior? Journal of Communication, 56, 110-132.
• Lee, S. Y., & Sundar, S. S. (2006). To vary or not? The effects of ad variation on the Web. Youngstown, NY: Cambria Press.
• Sundar, S. S. (2006). Agency and on-line media. In J. J. Arnett (Ed.), Encyclopedia of children, adolescents, and the media (pp. 635-636). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
• Marathe, S. S., & Sundar, S. S. (2006). Human-computer interaction (HCI). In J. J. Arnett (Ed.), Encyclopedia of children, adolescents, and the media (pp. 389-392). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
• Hu, Y., & Sundar, S. S. (2006). Computer-mediated communication (CMC). In J. J. Arnett (Ed.), Encyclopedia of children, adolescents, and the media (pp. 200-202). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
• Hutton, E., & Sundar, S. S. (2006). Internet use, positive uses. In J. J. Arnett (Ed.), Encyclopedia of children, adolescents, and the media (pp. 444-446). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
• Stavrositu, C., & Sundar, S. S. (2006). Internet use, psychological effects. In J. J. Arnett (Ed.), Encyclopedia of children, adolescents, and the media (pp. 446-448). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
• Sundar, S. S., & Oliver, M. B. (2005). Student-friendly journals and journal-friendly curricula. Journalism & Mass Communication Educator, 60(1), 6-12.
• Sundar, S. S., & Kim, J. (2005). Interactivity and persuasion: Influencing attitudes with information and involvement. Journal of Interactive Advertising, 5(2), 6-29. Article retrievable from: http://www.jiad.org/article59
• Sundar, S. S. (2004). Theorizing interactivity’s effects. The Information Society, 20(5), 387- 391.
• Diao, F., & Sundar, S. S. (2004). Orienting responses and memory for Web advertisements: Exploring effects of pop-up window and animation. Communication Research, 31(5), 537-567.
• Sundar, S. S. (2004). Loyalty to computer terminals: Is it anthropomorphism or consistency? Behaviour & Information Technology, 23(2), 107-118.
• Sundar, S. S., & Kalyanaraman, S. (2004). Arousal, memory, and impression-formation effects of animation speed in Web advertising. Journal of Advertising, 33(1), 7-17.
• Sundar, S. S., Kalyanaraman, S., & Brown, J. (2003). Explicating website interactivity: Impression-formation effects in political campaign sites. Communication Research, 30(1), 30-59.
• Sundar, S. S. (2003). Why we should NOT teach technology. Journalism & Mass Communication Educator, 57(4), 297-301.
• Sundar, S. S. (2003). News features and learning. In J. Bryant, D. Roskos-Ewoldsen & J. Cantor (Eds.), Communication and emotion: Essays in honor of Dolf Zillmann (pp. 275-296). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
• Sundar, S. S., & Wagner, C. B. (2002). The world wide wait: Exploring physiological and behavioral effects of download speed. Media Psychology, 4, 173-206.
• Sundar, S. S., & Nass, C. (2001). Conceptualizing sources in online news. Journal of Communication, 51(1), 52-72.
• Sundar, S. S. (2000). Multimedia effects on processing and perception of online news: A study of picture, audio, and video downloads. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 77(3), 480-499.
• Sundar, S. S., & Nass, C. (2000). Source orientation in human-computer interaction: Programmer, networker, or independent social actor? Communication Research, 27(6), 683-703.
• Lievrouw, L. A., Bucy, E., Finn, T. A., Frindte, W., Gershon, R., Haythornthwaite, C., Köhler, T., Metz, J. M., & Sundar, S. S. (2000). Building the subdisciplines: An overview of communication and technology research. Communication Yearbook 24, 271-295.
• Sundar, S. S. (1999). Exploring receivers’ criteria for perception of print and online news. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 76(2), 373-386.
• Sundar, S. S., Narayan, S., Obregon, R., & Uppal, C. (1998). Does Web advertising work? Memory for print vs. online media. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 75(4), 822-835.
• Sundar, S. S. (1998). Effect of source attribution on perception of online news stories. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 75(1), 55-68.
• Sundar, S. S., & Rawlins, B. L. (1997). Watchdog or lapdog? The effect of US foreign policy on The New York Times’ coverage of Central America. The Journal of International Communication, 4(1), 67-80.
• Zillmann, D., Gibson, R., Sundar, S. S., & Perkins, Jr., J. W. (1996). Effects of exemplification in news reports on the perception of social issues. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 73(2), 427-444.
• Schooler, C., Sundar, S. S., & Flora, J. (1996). Effects of the Stanford Five-City Project media advocacy program. Health Education Quarterly, 23(3), 346-364.
• Riffe, D., Aust, C. F., Jones, T. C., Shoemake, B., & Sundar, S. S. (1994). The ‘shrinking foreign newshole’ of the New York Times. Newspaper Research Journal, 15(3), 74-88.
• Zillmann, D., Rockwell, S., Schweitzer, K., & Sundar, S. S. (1993). Does humor facilitate coping with physical discomfort? Motivation & Emotion, 17(1), 1-21.
• Zillmann, D., Perkins, Jr., J. W., & Sundar, S. S. (1992). Impression-formation effects of printed news varying in descriptive precision and exemplifications. Medien Psychologie, 4, 168-185.
• Riffe, D., Hedgepeth, J. K., Ziesenis, E. B., Chandler, S. B., Howard, T. B., Sundar, S., & Woodrum, R. H. (1992). The influence of journals on curriculum and instruction. Journalism Educator, 47(3), 54-60.
• Sundar, S. S. (1991). Techno-ethics: As a matter of fax. Journal of Mass Media Ethics, 6(1), 24-34.
• Sridhara, B. A., Sundar, S. S., & Chaluvaraju, D. (1988). Status of small newspapers in developing societies...A case study of Shimoga district. ICCTR Journal, 1(1), 3-21.