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October 21, 2010

Three students from Geneva College will present a research project at this year’s Pennsylvania Communication Association’s (PCA) 71st annual conference, from Friday, October 22 to Sunday, October 24, 2010. The event will be held at East Stroudsburg University and the theme is Communication East and West: Exploring Local, Global and Philosophical Traditions.

Micah Yarger, Gwen Ward and former Geneva student Meghan Brownlee will be presenting their project, “Relational Dialectics as Seen through the Sitcom Reba.” Other institutions being represented include Grove City College, St. Vincent College, Penn State University, East Stroudsburg University, Elizabethtown College and Temple University.

In the spring of 2010, Geneva students taking the Communication Process class completed a research based project on relational dialectics that consisted of a paper, scholarly poster and presentation. This project was selected by the communications department to be presented at the PCA conference. “The purpose of the project and the conference is to push our research to a higher scholarly level,” says Micah Yarger.

The project explains the tensions and reasons for certain communication in close, intimate relationships as seen through the popular sitcom “Reba”. In relationships people deal with uncertainty, independence and other issues.  The students’ research proposes some theories on why people manage these issues the way they do.

“Not only does the conference provide an opportunity for students to explore local, global and philosophical traditions, it prepares students for postgraduate studies,” says Professor Jeff Schindel, the instructor of the Communication Process class.

Geneva College is a comprehensive Christian college of the arts, sciences and professional studies. Founded in the tradition of the Reformed Christian faith, Geneva prepares students to serve Christ in all areas of society: work, family and the church. Geneva College’s philosophy of education is based on the Foundational Concepts of Christian Higher Education. Geneva is a founding member of the Council for Christian Colleges & Universities (CCCU).