K. "Vish" Viswanath, PhD
K. "Vish" Viswanath, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor in the Department of Society, Human Development, and Health at the Harvard School of Public Health, a faculty member in the Center for Community-Based Research (CCBR) at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI), and Leader of the Health Communication Core of the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center (DF/HCC). Dr. Viswanath's research interests include mass communication and social change and health communication in both national and international contexts with particular focus on communication inequities and disparities. He is primarily interested in using a macro-social approach to the study of mass communication and public health.
K. "Vish" Viswanath, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor in the Department of Society, Human Development, and Health at the Harvard School of Public Health, a faculty member in the Center for Community-Based Research (CCBR) at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI), and Leader of the Health Communication Core of the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center (DF/HCC). Dr. Viswanath's research interests include mass communication and social change and health communication in both national and international contexts with particular focus on communication inequities and disparities. He is primarily interested in using a macro-social approach to the study of mass communication and public health.
Dr. Viswanath's current research program includes three distinct but related areas of interest. The first area is an investigation of the reasons for limited access to health information and the implications of unequal access to public and individual health. The second area of focus is the study of health and science reporting including the sociology of medical and health journalism with an interest in bridging the worlds of science and journalism to improve health communication. The third area examines the effects of mass media -- news and entertainment, on health knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors. The findings from this body of work are useful in designing: (a) strategies to enhance access to health information among the underserved, and (b) effective messages and communication systems to reduce cancer risk and promote prevention.
Before coming to Harvard, Dr. Viswanath was the Acting Associate Director of the Behavioral Research Program, Division of Cancer Control & Populations Sciences, National Cancer Institute. As Acting AD of BRP, Dr. Viswanath was responsible for 50 scientific and administrative staff and for extramural scientific developments in behavioral sciences at NCI. He was also a senior scientist in the Health Communication and Informatics Research Branch. He went to the National Cancer Institute from The Ohio State University where he was a tenured faculty member in the School of Journalism and Communication with an adjunct appointment in the School of Public Health. Dr. Viswanath was also a Center Scholar with Ohio State’s Center for Health Outcomes, Policy, and Evaluation Studies. Dr. Viswanath is also active in professional organizations. He was the Chair of the Mass Communication Division of the International Communication Association and just completed his tenure as the President of the Midwest Association for Public Opinion Research. He was the Head of the Theory and Methodology Division of the Association for Education in Journalism & Mass Communication. He is also a member of American Society for Preventive Oncology, the American Public Health Association, the American Association for Public Opinion Research & the Society for Behavioral Medicine.
Dr. Viswanath received his doctoral degree in Mass Communication from the University of Minnesota. Dr. Viswanath is currently teaching a class entitled, Health Promotion through Mass Media, from 10:30 AM to 1:20 PM on Tuesdays in Spring 1.
Dr. Viswanath's
Curriculum Vitae
