Research Statement

I am a communication practitioner and academician, exploring the intersection of gender,

stereotypes and leadership roles within the popular culture of sport and entertainment.

Research Interests

Through my research interests that include gender, stereotypes, organizational leadership, sport

and popular culture, I am able to show students the connections between empirical research and

its relevance to working in the communications industry while contributing to the existing body

of scholarly research.

Conducting such research while serving as an academic facilitator and practitioner allows me to

use this opportunity to contribute thought leadership through innovative practices, ultimately

strengthening the communications field and emerging leaders.

My primary area of research is centric to women’s issues. I have long been interested in this area,

as a result of working in the male dominated industry of sports. I’ve been studying these themes

for twenty years. My master’s thesis: An Assessment of Gender Communication Styles in

Athletic Administration at the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association used the survey

method to evaluate beliefs in order to find if a relationship exists between gender communication

styles and stereotypes and the lack of gender equity in athletic administration. Through a textual

analysis of eight films, my dissertation: Reel Women: Depictions of Females in the Sports Film

Genre analyzed the roles of women in sports fiction films, determining if film producers

construct female characters that depict stereotypes. Findings from my master’s thesis led me to

study the role that media play in creating perspectives, scenarios and amplifying stereotypes

about women in sports in the workplace.

Contributing to Industry and the Academy

From my own practical experiences, I have encountered a myriad of challenges in the workplace

based on gender and have found through conducting research I have been able to offer practical

solutions to solving problems in the sports media and communication industry.

Studying trends to include the role that media (both traditional and new) play in developing

gender archetypes and stereotypes and how they impact hiring practices and communication in

the workplace have allowed me to work with organizations to better streamline their

organizational communications and operations. This ultimately contributes to not only filling a

void of the body of scholarly work in this area but also amending practices in the field of

communication.

Research Agenda

These two research studies have created a baseline for my work that have included book chapters

and lecture and training series on women’s representation in sports. I have successfully

contributed to multiple books spearheaded and edited by colleagues across the academy.

However, I am now interested in taking some of the work I have produced and expounding upon

it to develop articles and target submissions to journals and conference presentations that cover

pop culture and sports. A new area of interest is exploring how I can tailor some of these ideas

to better contribute to the development of scholars and practitioners from the HBCU community.

While I believe my work has been instrumental in streamlining overall practices in gender equity

in the business of sports, I believe that Black women are still not benefitting at the same rate as

their counterparts. Subsequently, I am also interested in writing a book that features a collection

of research based narratives about Black women’s experiences in the sports industry.

In the future, my hope is to develop both text books and nonfiction career self-help books as well

as organizational communication training manuals that offer best practices for emerging

communicators in the areas of sports, public relations and leadership.

Articles & Essays

  • The Learning Bubble (2020) Under Review

Presentations

  • WISE National President Summit (September 2020)

Book Chapters

  • Working Title: Post, Like, Share: The Impact of ICT on Communication Practitioners in the Entertainment Industry. In Nwokeafor, C (Ed.) Media, Mass Communication & ICT
    and the Transformation of Society: A Paradigm Shift Approach. Expected 2021

  • In Flo Jo Fashion: The cultural appropriation of sportswomen apparel. In Fuller, L. (Ed.)(2020) Uniformly Discussed: Sportswomen apparel around the world. Palgrave McMillan. Preorder available

  • Onwumechili, C., Totty, T. & Malin, L (2018). Nigeria. In The Palgrave International Handbook of Football and Politics (pp.403-421)

Articles & Essays

  • The Learning Bubble (2020) Under Review

Presentations

  • WISE National President Summit (September 2020)

Book Chapters

  • Working Title: Post, Like, Share: The Impact of ICT on Communication Practitioners in the Entertainment Industry. In Nwokeafor, C (Ed.) Media, Mass Communication & ICT
    and the Transformation of Society: A Paradigm Shift Approach. Expected 2021

  • In Flo Jo Fashion: The cultural appropriation of sportswomen apparel. In Fuller, L. (Ed.)(2020) Uniformly Discussed: Sportswomen apparel around the world. Palgrave McMillan. Preorder available

  • Onwumechili, C., Totty, T. & Malin, L (2018). Nigeria. In The Palgrave International Handbook of Football and Politics (pp.403-421)

Articles & Essays

  • The Learning Bubble (2020) Under Review

Presentations

  • WISE National President Summit (September 2020)