The Health Communication Concentration

The Health Communication Concentration (HCC) is an interdisciplinary concentration housed within the Department of Society, Human Development, and Health. HCC prepares students who are interested in health communication to apply rigorous, theory-based research and methods to health and risk communication and to apply and evaluate health communication technologies.

Through coursework and practical experience, HCC provides a rich mix of conceptual, analytical, and applied competencies to understand the role of mass media institutions in public health, to be a critical consumer of health communication literature, and to obtain skills in using communication to promote public health policy and practice.

What students gain from the Health Communication Concentration:

• The theoretical, methodological, and practical background to communicate effectively with the public, the press, and policymakers on classic and emerging public health issues.

• An understanding of how knowledge, cultural norms, beliefs, and attitudes learned from communications influence health behaviors.

• An understanding of the role of communication in health policies, advocacy, and community mobilization in addressing health conditions.