About
Dr. Jones has been a faculty member at Clemson University since 2002. Prior to joining the Public Health Sciences department in 2016, she was Associate Professor in Communication Studies, where she also served as department chair from 2011-2015. From 1994-1999, she worked as the communications consultant for the Georgia Division of Public Health, Cancer Control Section, advising local and state program staff on communication strategies and program administration in their breast and cervical screening programs. She has three children, one of whom has Prader-Willi Syndrome, a rare, randomly-occurring genetic spectrum disorder, which has provided context and inspiration for much of her recent work. Externally Funded Research Activity:
Mindfulness Interventions to Address Depression, Substance Misuse, and Physical Inactivity. (2018-2022). Co-Principal Investigator (L. Shi, PI). Greenville Health Authority. Amount: $558,972.
Using Patient Characteristics to Design Tailored Motivational Interviewing (MI) Approaches for Counseling Patients with Uncontrolled Hypertension: An Intervention Design and Feasibility Study. Principal Investigator (M. Jindal, Co-PI). Private donor. Amount: $10,751.
Improving Patient Communication for the 21st Century: Revising the Patient Needs Assessment Protocol (2017). Co-Principal Investigator (R.R. Sinclair, PI). Private donor. Amount: $19,938.
Enhancing mHealth Technology in the PCMH Environment to Activate Chronic Care Patients (2016-2018). Co-Investigator/Collaborator (R. Gimbel, PI). Department of Defense. For more information, see her College Profile.
Visit Dr. Jones' Faculty Profile.
How their research is transforming health care
Dr. Jones' current research interests are in persuasion, motivation, and interpersonal communication about health; tailored health message design and evaluation; agenda setting, media advocacy, social marketing, and media effects related to health; patient-provider communication; response to trauma; and communication and support needs in families of children with multiple or significant special needs. She has a broad range of experience, having conducted research in skin cancer education and primary prevention, effects of breast cancer communication on knowledge and behaviors, media coverage of disability and genetic syndromes, paid and non-paid campaign strategies of candidates in local political races, and theory building in public relations academic scholarship.
Health research keywords
Public Health, persuasion, motivation, interpersonal communication about health, tailored health message design and evaluation, agenda setting, media advocacy, social marketing, and media effects related to health, patient-provider communication, response to trauma
