"Estelle" Ranran Z. Mi, Ph.D.
Dr. Mi is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Communication, Media, and Journalism at Kean University, where she directs the Communication Research Center. She earned her Ph.D. in Mass Communication from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, with a minor in Educational Psychology. She also holds an M.A. in Communication Studies from Washington State University and a B.A. in Journalism from Zhejiang University. Dr. Mi is an Honorary Research Fellow at UW-Madison and a former Honorary Research Associate at the UW School of Medicine and Public Health, where she led NIH-funded clinical trials in data management and analysis. She collaborates with interdisciplinary experts in communication, medicine, and psychology. Her research is presented at leading conferences and published in top communication and medical journals. At Kean USA, she teaches advanced communication courses and mentors students in health communication research, fostering their academic growth and research interests.
Research Interests
Dr. Mi's research lies at the intersection of media technology and health, with a strong emphasis on behavioral change and intervention. She examines how individuals from vulnerable populations use digital technology and its implications for health and well-being.
Currently, Dr. Mi is pursuing three main lines of research. First, she investigates health communication strategies for substance use interventions, particularly how health messaging and technology influence user cognition and behavior during critical care transitions and public health crises. Her recent projects include designing cannabis warning labels, developing mobile interventions for substance use control, and improving antiretroviral medication adherence among people living with HIV.
Second, she examines mobile health (mHealth) technology usage among women, focusing on the role of smartphones and wearable devices in enhancing maternal health outcomes. Her recent work focuses on developing personalized, data-driven mHealth interventions aimed at improving healthcare access and outcomes for perinatal women.
Lastly, Dr. Mi studies problematic media use, focusing on its antecedents, dynamics, and effects on well-being. Her recent research explores how psychological factors and media affordances jointly contribute to media multitasking and task-switching behaviors, which impact emotions, productivity, and stress.
Selected Publications
Mi, R. Z., Yang, E. F., Tahk, A., Tarfa, A., Cotter, L. M., Lu, L., Yang, S., Gustafson, D. H., Westergaard, R., Shah, D. (In press). Connecting to support: How use of an mHealth app explains antiretroviral medication adherence among people with HIV and Substance use Disorders. Journal of Medical Internet Research. https://preprints.jmir.org/preprint/57774
Christy, K. R., Mi, R. Z., Tao, R., & Lu, L. (2023). Disruptive versus Non-Disruptive Advertising in Online Streaming Video Services: How Does Advertisement Placement Affect Consumer Perceptions and Ad Effectiveness? Journal of Advertising Research, 63(2), 123-138. https://doi.org/10.2501/JAR-2023-006
Mi, R. Z., Jacobsohn, G. C., Wu, J., Shah, M. N., Jones, C. M. C., Caprio, T. V., Cushman, J. T., Lohmeier, M., Kind, A. J. H., & Shah, D. V. (2022). Coaching older adults discharged home from the emergency department: The role of competence and emotion in following up with outpatient clinicians. Patient Education and Counseling, 105(12), 3446-3452. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pec.2022.08.013
Mi, R. Z., Kornfield, R., Shah, D. V., Maus, A., Gustafson, D. (2022). Intraindividual, Dyadic and Network Communication in a Digital Health Intervention: Distinguishing Message Exposure from Message Production. Health Communication, 37(4), 397-408. https://doi.org/10.1080/10410236.2020.1846273
Mi, R., Hollander, M. M., Jones, C. M., DuGoff, E. H., Caprio, T. V., Cushman, J. T., Kind, A. J. H., Lohmeier, M., & Shah, M. N. (2018). A randomized controlled trial testing the effectiveness of a paramedic-delivered care transitions intervention to reduce emergency department revisits. BMC Geriatrics, 18, Article 104. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-018-0792-5