Dr. Cassandra Hill

Contact Dr. Cassandra Hill

chill2@coastal.edu

"Stop acting so small. You are the universe in ecstatic motion." - Jalāl ad-Dīn Rūmī

Biography

As a nontraditional student, Dr. Cassandra (Carlson) Hill entered the field of communication after five years working in the non-profit sector in Western Australia. Gaining a passion for the art and science of communication processes during her time abroad, she returned to the U.S. and completed her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in communication studies in California. She went on to earn her doctorate in communication science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, with a focus on interpersonal communication and social influence. After teaching at Cal. Poly-San Luis Obispo, she joined the faculty at Coastal. Her ongoing research explores advice and decision-making communication in varied contexts, persuasion, communication advocacy, and intergenerational communication. More than anything, Dr. Hill loves interacting with her students and colleagues, and credits this for various teaching awards at CCU and elsewhere. 

Education

Ph.D. in Communication Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison
B.A & M.A. in Communication, California State University-Fullerton

Awards

• 2019 Apple teaching award
• 2018 Chair teaching award

Selected Publication

• MacGeorge, E. L., Branch, S. E., Carlson-Hill, C. L., Tian, X., Caldes, E. P., Miskovsky, M., Beatty, S., & Brinker, D. (2018). Verbal person-centeredness in interaction: Connecting micro- and macro-level operationalization. Journal of Language and Social Psychology.
• Carlson-Hill, C. L.(2018). “Advice in families.” In L. VanSwol & E. MacGeorge (eds.) The Oxford handbook of advice (pp. 135-152). Oxford, United Kingdom: Oxford University Press.
• Van Swol, L. M., Carlson-Hill, C. L., & Acosta-Lewis, E. E. (2018). Integrative complexity, participation, and agreement in group discussions. Small Group Research. 
• Van Swol, L. M., & Carlson, C. L. (2017). Language use and influence among minority, majority, and homogeneous group members. Communication Research: Intergroup Communication Special Issue.
  
• Van Swol, L. M., Prahl, A., Kolb, M., Acosta-Lewis, E., & Carlson, C. L. (2016). The language of extremity: Extreme members and how the presence of extremity affects group discussion. Journal of Language and Social Psychology. 
• Carlson, C. L. (2016). Predicting emerging adults’ implementation of parental advice: The influence of source, situation, relationship, and message    characteristics. Western Journal of Communication.
  
• Van Swol, L. M., Braun, M. T., Acosta-Lewis, E. E., Carlson, C. L., & Dimperio, G. (2015). Discussion of shared information can increase the influence of divergent group members. Communication Research. 
• Toma, C. & Carlson, C. L. (2015). How do Facebook users believe they come across in their profiles?: A meta-perception approach to investigating Facebook self-presentation. Communication Research Reports.
  
• Carlson, C. L. (2014). Seeking self-sufficiency: Why emerging adult college students receive and implement parental advice. Emerging Adulthood: Special Issue on Communication.

Teaching Areas 

Persuasion & Social Influence, Family Communication, Interpersonal Communication, Communication Theory & Methods, Intercultural Communication, Communication Studies

Research Areas

Interpersonal influence, decision-making, advice, communication advocacy