Mary Beth Oliver is a Distinguished Professor of Media Studies at the Penn State College of Communications, where she is also the co-director of the Media Effects Research Laboratory.

Education and career

Oliver received her B.A. from

Virginia Tech Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also ...

in communication studies in 1986. She then attended the

University of Wisconsin-Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...

, where she received her M.A. and Ph.D. in 1988 and 1991, respectively. Both of her graduate degrees were in communication arts.

Career

From 1991 to 1998, Oliver taught at Virginia Tech, before leaving her position as an associate professor there in 1998 to become an associate professor at the Penn State College of Communications. In 2004, she became a full professor at the Penn State College of Communications, where she became a distinguished professor in 2010. She has been the co-director of the Media Effects Research Laboratory since 2002. In the spring of 2013, she served as a visiting professor at the

University of Mannheim The University of Mannheim (German: ''Universität Mannheim''), abbreviated UMA, is a public research university in Mannheim, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Founded in 1967, the university has its origins in the ''Palatine Academy of Sciences'', ...

in Mannheim, Germany.

Research

Oliver's research focuses on multiple subjects in the field of

media psychology Media psychology is the branch and specialty field in psychology that focuses on the interaction of human behavior with media and technology. Media psychology is not limited to mass media or media content; it includes all forms of mediated communi ...

, including the relationship between media and social cognition, and that between media and emotion. She has published studies about stereotyping in the media and positive media psychology, among other topics, and she is a supporter of the

positive psychology Positive psychology is the scientific study of what makes life most worth living, focusing on both individual and societal well-being. It studies "positive subjective experience, positive individual traits, and positive institutions...it aims t ...

movement. For example, she has researched the emotional responses people have to watching sad movies, and has noted that society expects men not to cry in such situations. She has also argued that seeing sad movies may help people feel better if they see them with a close friend, regardless of the movie itself.

Honors and awards

Oliver has been a fellow of the International Communication Association since 2014, and was a

Fulbright Scholar The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...

in 2006.

References

External links

Faculty page
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Oliver, Mary Beth Living people Pennsylvania State University faculty Virginia Tech faculty Virginia Tech alumni Media studies writers University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni Year of birth missing (living people)