Margaret J Pitts

Interests

Research

Positive Social ScienceCommunication and AgingCommunication SavoringInternational SojourningIntercultural IdentityHealth Communication

Teaching

Qualitative Research MethodsInterpersonal CommunicationIntercultural Communication

Courses

Scholarly Contributions

Books

• Worthington, A., Fisher, C., Krieger, J., Fowler, C., Pitts, M. J., & Nussbaum, J. (2024). Health communication, language, and social action across the life span.. Peter Lang. doi:https://doi.org/10.3726/b21965
• Socha, T. J., & Pitts, M. J. (2012). The positive side of interpersonal communication. Peter Lang New York, NY.

Chapters

• Pitts, M. J. (2024). Positive communication as social action: Compassion and communication savoring. In Health communication, language, and social action across the life span(pp 3-23). Peter Lang.
• Pitts, M. J. (2019). Howie Giles, dragons, and the intergenerational making of legends. In Language, communication, and intergroup relations: A celebration of the scholarship of Howard Giles. Routledge.
• Pitts, M. J., & Gallois, C. (2019). Social Markers in Language and Speech. In Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Psychology.
• Pitts, M. J., Kim, S., Meyerhoffer, H., & Jiao, J. (2019). Savoring as positive communication. In The Routledge handbook of positive communication: Contributions of an emerging community of research on communication for happiness and social change(pp 98-107). Routledge.
• Zhang, Y. B., & Pitts, M. J. (2019). Interpersonal accommodation. In Language, communication, and intergroup relations: A celebration of the scholarship of Howard Giles. Routledge.
• Pitts, M. J. (2018). Acculturation Strategies. In The International Encyclopedia of Intercultural Communication. Wiley & Sons. doi:10.1002/9781118783665.ieicc0006
• Pitts, M. J. (2018). Howie Giles, dragons, and the intergenerational making of legends. In Language, Communication, and Intergroup Relations: A Celebration of the Scholarship of Howard Giles(pp 176--179). Taylor and Francis.
• Pitts, M. J., Kim, S., Meyerhoffer, H., & Jiao, J. (2018). Communication Savoring as Positive Interpersonal Communication. In The Routledge handbook of positive communication: Contributions of an emerging community of research on communication for happiness and social change. Routledge Handbooks Online. doi:10.4324/9781315207759-11
• Zhang, Y. B., & Pitts, M. J. (2018). Interpersonal accommodation. In Language, Communication, and Intergroup Relations: A Celebration of the Scholarship of Howard Giles(pp 192--216). Taylor and Francis.
• Pitts, M. J., & Hummert, M. L. (2014). Life span communication methodology. In Handbook of life span communication.
• Pitts, M. J. (2013). Qualitative field methods in communication. In Readings in communication research methods: From theory to practice(pp 137--148). Cognella Academic Press.
• Pitts, M. J., & Socha, T. J. (2013). Positive communication in creating healthy lives, healthy relationships, and healthy institutions. In Positive communication in health and wellness(pp 1--24). Peter Lang.
• Socha, T. J., & Pitts, M. J. (2013). Coda: Apples and positive messages: Towards healthy communication habits and wellness. In Positive communication in health and wellness(pp 299--304). Peter Lang.
• Socha, T. J., & Pitts, M. J. (2013). Coda: Positive interpersonal communication as child’s play. In The positive side of interpersonal communication(pp 323--324). Peter Lang.
• Socha, T. J., & Pitts, M. J. (2013). Toward a conceptual foundation for positive interpersonal communication. In The positive side of interpersonal communication(pp 1--15). Peter Lang.
• Pitts, M. J. (2011). Dancing with the spirit: Communicating family norms for positive end-of-life transition. In Family communication, connections, and health transitions: Going through this together(pp 377--404). Peter Lang.
• Giles, H., & Pitts, M. J. (2008). 2. Social Psychology and personal relationships: Accommodation and relational influence across time and contexts. In Handbook of applied linguistics volume 2: Interpersonal communication. De Gruyter Mouton. doi:10.1515/9783110211399.1.15
• Pecchioni, L., Krieger, J. C., Sparks, L., Pitts, M. J., & Ota, H. (2008). Investigating cancer and ageing from a cultural perspective. In Cancer communication and aging(pp 239--257). Hampton Press.
• Pitts, M. J., Krieger, J. L., & Nussbaum, J. F. (2005). Finding the Right Place: Social Interaction and Life Transitions Among the Elderly. In Health Communication in Practice: A Case Study Approach(pp 233-242). doi:10.4324/9781410612779-19
• Pitts, M. J., & Kundrat, A. L. (2004). Exploring social support and social identity within a multigenerational community of women. In Language matters: Communication, culture, and identity(pp 267--295).

Journals/Publications

• Jiao, J., Pitts, M. J., & Segrin, C. (2024). Autonomy and overparenting: Are parents of emerging adults being responsive?. Family Process. doi:10.1111/famp.12969
• Jiao, J., Pitts, M., & Segrin, C. (2024). Autonomy and overparenting: Are parents of emerging adults being responsive?. Family Process, 63(3). doi:10.1111/famp.12969
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  Recognizing the various negative consequences of overparenting for the child such as poor mental health and relationship quality and delayed transition to full adulthood, this study examined to what extent parents of emerging adults were being responsive and tailoring their parenting practices to meet their child's characteristics, such as need for autonomy and trait autonomy. Survey data from 256 parent-emerging adult child dyads were used for analyses. The results showed that parent-reported overparenting was not associated with child-reported autonomy features. Nevertheless, parents engaged in lower levels of tangible assistance and higher levels of advice/affect management if they perceived their child as high in autonomy need or trait autonomy. Collectively, these findings suggest that parents might practice overparenting out of their own desires and needs rather than taking into account their child's developmental needs and traits. Practical recommendations for family therapists are offered.
• Fanari, A., Cooper, R., Dajches, L., Beck, G., & Pitts, M. (2023). Transferable Resilience Practices: Communication and Resilience of U.S. Military Spouses during the Initial Stages of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Journal of Family Communication, 23(1), 1-21. doi:10.1080/15267431.2022.2149528
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  This study uses the communication theory of resilience as a sensitizing framework to explore how U.S. military spouses transferred resilience practices acquired during military deployment to early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic. Data from 27 in-depth interviews with U.S. military spouses showed that the military experience shaped participants’ appraisal of the pandemic and helped them to discursively enact resilience through previously developed practices. Six major themes emerged: (a) crafting normalcy through the military lifestyle and experience; (b) affirming identity through military anchors; (c) invoking military mantras as alternative logics; (d) foregrounding productive action through flexibility and planning; (e) maintaining communication networks through (i) technology, (ii) family and community support, and (iii) intentional communication with partner; and (f) downplaying negative feelings by generating positive emotions. Findings contribute to the communication theory of resilience by showing how individuals with a history of resilience can transfer already-built resilience practices from one context (deployment) to another (COVID-19).
• Fowler, C., Jiao, J., & Pitts, M. (2023). Frustration and ennui among Amazon MTurk workers. Behavior Research Methods, 55(6), 3009-3025. doi:10.3758/s13428-022-01955-9
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  Academics are increasingly turning to crowdsourcing platforms to recruit research participants. Their endeavors have benefited from a proliferation of studies attesting to the quality of crowdsourced data or offering guidance on managing specific challenges associated with doing crowdsourced research. Thus far, however, relatively little is known about what it is like to be a participant in crowdsourced research. Our analysis of almost 1400 free-text responses provides insight into the frustrations encountered by workers on one widely used crowdsourcing site: Amazon’s MTurk. Some of these frustrations stem from inherent limitations of the MTurk platform and cannot easily be addressed by researchers. Many others, however, concern factors that are directly controllable by researchers and that may also be relevant for researchers using other crowdsourcing platforms such as Prolific or CrowdFlower. Based on participants’ accounts of their experiences as crowdsource workers, we offer recommendations researchers might consider as they seek to design online studies that demonstrate consideration for respondents and respect for their time, effort, and dignity.
• Pitts, M. J., Fanari, A., Cooper, R. A., Jiao, J., & Kim, S. (2023). The Grounded Model of Communication Savoring: Theory Development and Age Cohort Study. American Journal of Qualitative Research, 7(3), 139-159. doi:10.29333/ajqr/13399
• Beck, G., Cooper, R. A., Dajches, L., Fanari, A., & Pitts, M. J. (2022). Transferable Resilience Practices: Communication and Resilience of U.S. Military Spouses during the Initial Stages of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Journal of Family Communication, 23(1), 1-21. doi:10.1080/15267431.2022.2149528
• Cooper, R., & Pitts, M. (2022). Caregiving spouses’ experiences of relational uncertainty and partner influence in the prolonged relational transition of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 39(5). doi:10.1177/02654075211058084
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  Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias cause gradual cognitive and communicative decline over a period of several years creating a prolonged transitional period in the lives of people with the disease and their spouse. Relational turbulence theory served as a lens to examine 18 in-depth interviews with caregiving spouses regarding their experiences of relational uncertainty, and interference and facilitation from their partner throughout this prolonged relational transition. Counterintuitively, the experience of relational uncertainty was greatly influenced by the certainties of relational change and termination (death) that shifted the temporal focus of uncertainty to the future. Communicative symptoms and aggressive behavior were a main source of interference. Despite the impairment of the disease, caregiving spouses recognized their partners’ expressions of gratitude, moments of recognition, and simple expressions of love as facilitation.
• Cooper, R., Pitts, M., & Harwood, J. (2022). “That's when the relationship shifted”: Relational and communicative turning points in Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. Personal Relationships, 29(1). doi:10.1111/pere.12412
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  This study investigated the relational turning points experienced by caregiving spouses across the trajectory of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. Data were collected using a modified version of the retrospective interviewing technique which facilitated close analysis of relational turning points and the role of communication in shaping and managing these turning points. Caregiving spouses described nine relational turning points across the disease trajectory. The turning points coalesced under four broad changes in the marital relationship: my spouse has dementia, from spouse to caregiver, my spouse is gone, and transcending dementia through love. Participants used five communication strategies to manage their relationships: having open and intimate conversations, avoiding confrontation, avoiding bringing attention to symptoms, engaging in daily conversations and activities, and communicating love and affection. Findings reveal the specific turning points that mark relational change across the disease trajectory and caregiving spouses' strategies to maintain their relationship through this prolonged end-of-life transition.
• Cooper, R. A., & Pitts, M. J. (2021). Caregiving spouses’ experiences of relational uncertainty and partner influence in the prolonged relational transition of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 39(5), 1434-1459. doi:10.1177/02654075211058084
• Cooper, R. A., Harwood, J., & Pitts, M. J. (2021). “That's when the relationship shifted”: Relational and communicative turning points in Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. Personal Relationships, 29(1), 217-235. doi:10.1111/pere.12412
• Jiao, J., Jiao, J., Kim, S., Kim, S., Pitts, M., & Pitts, M. J. (2021). Promoting subjective well-being through communication savoring. Communication Quarterly, 69(2), 152-171. doi:10.1080/01463373.2021.1901758
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  The broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions articulates the merit of positive emotions in promoting well-being. Using an online two-group posttest-only randomized experimental design, this st...
• Aubrey, J. S., Pitts, M. J., Lutovsky, B. R., Jiao, J., Yan, K., & Stanley, S. J. (2020). Investigating Disparities by Sex and LGBTQ Identity: A Content Analysis of Sexual Health Information on College Student Health Center Websites. Journal of health communication, 1--10.
• Kenski, K., Pavlich, C. A., Pitts, M. J., & Smith, S. A. (2020). Focus Group Discussions as Sites for Public Deliberation and Sensemaking Following Shared Political Documentary Viewing. Journal of Public Deliberation, 13(2). doi:10.16997/jdd.282
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  This study examines the potential that shared political documentary viewing coupled with public deliberation via focus group discussion has for political sensemaking and civic engagement. Specifically, we examine college students’ perceptions of sensemaking, future civic engagement, and benefits of participating in group discussion following the shared viewing of D’Souza’s political documentary 2016: Obama’s America. Focus group participants reported that engaging in discussion served to clarify, affirm, and reinforce some initial impressions while opening their eyes to new insights and information. Focus group participation triggered a desire to seek out and hear additional diverse points of view and offered participants the opportunity to diffuse negative emotions and reflect upon media content. Participants reported that they enjoyed participating in this form of guided discussion, reported increased confidence in their abilities to engage in public political deliberation, and reported feeling a call to future civic action. Our findings show that political documentary viewing coupled with focus group discussions can be a productive site for public deliberation that can lead to enhanced sensemaking and positive future civic behaviors including intentions to extend discussions to personal networks and to research issues raised in the discussion or documentary. We address implications for deliberative pedagogy and focus groups as public deliberation.
• Pitts, M. J. (2020). Epilogue: The Language Opportunities for the 21st Century. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 39(4), 567--574.
• Pitts, M. J. (2019). A Spotlight on Contemporary Language and Social Psychology Research: Selected Proceedings From the 16th International Conference on Language and Social Psychology. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 38(4), 400--408.
• Pitts, M. J. (2019). A spotlight on contemporary language and social psychology research: Selected proceedings from the 16th International Conference on Language and Social Psychology (Special Issue Introduction). Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 38, 400-408. doi:10.1177/0261927X19865295
• Pitts, M. J. (2019). The Language and Social Psychology of Savoring: Advancing the Communication Savoring Model. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 38(2), 237-259. doi:10.1177/0261927x18821404
• Pitts, M. J. (2019). The language and social psychology of savoring: Advancing the communication savoring model. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 38(2), 237--259.
• Pitts, M. J. (2019). The language and social psychology of savoring: Advancing the communication savoring model. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 38, 44-68. doi:10.1177/2329488415589101
• Pitts, M. J., Kim, S., Meyerhoffer, H., & Jiao, J. (2019). Communication Savoring as Positive Interpersonal Communication. The Routledge Handbook of Positive Communication: Contributions of an Emerging Community of Research on Communication for Happiness and Social Change.
• Stanley, S. J., Yan, K., Jiao, J., Lutovsky, B. R., Aubrey, J. S., & Pitts, M. J. (2019). Communicating about sex when it matters: a content analytic investigation of sexual health information on college student health center websites. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 47(5), 591--610.
• Stanley, S., Yan, K., Jiao, J., Lutovsky, B. R., Pitts, M. J., & Stevens Aubrey, J. L. (2019). Communicating about sex when it matters: A content analytic investigation of sexual health information on college student health center websites.. Journal of Applied Communication, 47, 591-610. doi:DOI: 10.1080/00909882.2019.1675895
• Smith, S. A., Patmos, A., & Pitts, M. J. (2018). Communication and teleworking: A study of communication channel satisfaction, personality, and job satisfaction for teleworking employees. International Journal of Business Communication, 55, 44-68.
• Stanley, S. J., & Pitts, M. J. (2019). “I’m Scared of the Disappointment”: Young Adult Smokers’ Relational Identity Gaps and Management Strategies as Sites of Communication Intervention. Health communication, 34, 904-911. doi:10.1080/10410236.2018.1440507
• Stanley, S. J., & Pitts, M. J. (2019). “I’m Scared of the Disappointment”: Young Adult Smokers’ Relational Identity Gaps and Management Strategies as Sites of Communication Intervention. Health communication, 904-911.
• Brooks, C. F., & Pitts, M. J. (2017). Critical pedagogy, internationalisation, and a third space: cultural tensions revealed in students’ discourse†. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 38(3), 251-267. doi:10.1080/01434632.2015.1134553
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  ABSTRACTSet within the context of a global pursuit towards the internationalisation of higher education, this paper critically examines student discourse in a globally connected classroom between learners in the USA and Singapore. It makes salient some of the cultural assumptions and tensions that undergird students’ discourse in collaborative international exchanges. We argue that technological innovation can enhance campus internationalisation efforts by providing opportunities for groups of students to intersect and interact across cultures. Such opportunities for social connection can bring about a transformative third space wherein domestic students and their international peers can engage in meaningful and productive dialogic exchanges. However, as this analysis suggests, the mere opportunity for connection will not necessarily manifest outcomes consistent with ideals of internationalisation and may instead result in superficial exchanges and reified stereotypes. Specifically, findings from this stu...
• Pitts, M. J., Kenski, K., Smith, S. A., & Pavlich, C. A. (2017). Focus Group Discussions as Sites for Public Deliberation and Sensemaking Following Shared Political Documentary Viewing. Journal of Public Deliberation, 13(2), 6. doi:https://www.publicdeliberation.net/jpd/vol13/iss2/art6
• Pitts, M., & Brooks, C. (2017). Critical pedagogy, internationalisation, and a third space: cultural tensions revealed in students’ discourse†. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 38(3). doi:10.1080/01434632.2015.1134553
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  Set within the context of a global pursuit towards the internationalisation of higher education, this paper critically examines student discourse in a globally connected classroom between learners in the USA and Singapore. It makes salient some of the cultural assumptions and tensions that undergird students’ discourse in collaborative international exchanges. We argue that technological innovation can enhance campus internationalisation efforts by providing opportunities for groups of students to intersect and interact across cultures. Such opportunities for social connection can bring about a transformative third space wherein domestic students and their international peers can engage in meaningful and productive dialogic exchanges. However, as this analysis suggests, the mere opportunity for connection will not necessarily manifest outcomes consistent with ideals of internationalisation and may instead result in superficial exchanges and reified stereotypes. Specifically, findings from this study demonstrate several tensions in US students’ discourse, revealing ways in which they simultaneously reject and represent American identity, challenge and reify national stereotypes, and pursue open-mindedness while maintaining ‘strong convictions'. Finally, as a practical application of findings, we suggest training students to self-reflect through critical examination of their own and others’ discourse as a means for pushing beyond the superficial towards genuine cultural learning.
• Stanley, S. J., Kim, S., & Pitts, M. J. (2017). Gender Norms and Discourses Informing College Mens' Perceptions of Heteronormative Sexual Health Responsibilities and HPV Prevention. Communication Quarterly, online first. doi:10.1080/01463373.2017.1356338
• Stanley, S. J., Kim, S., & Pitts, M. J. (2017). Gender Norms and Discourses Informing College Men’s Perceptions of Heteronormative Sexual Health Responsibilities and HPV Prevention. Communication Quarterly, 1--20.
• Brooks, C. F., & Pitts, M. J. (2016). Communication and identity management in a globally-connected classroom: An online international and intercultural learning experience. Journal of International and Intercultural Communication, 1--17.
• Castonguay, J., Filer, C. R., & Pitts, M. J. (2016). Seeking help for depression: Applying the health belief model to illness narratives. Southern Communication Journal, 81(5), 289--303.
• Pitts, M. J. (2016). Sojourner reentry: a grounded elaboration of the integrative theory of communication and cross-cultural adaptation. Communication Monographs, 83(4), 419--445.
• Pitts, M. J., & Brooks, C. F. (2016). Critical pedagogy, internationalisation, and a third space: cultural tensions revealed in students’ discourse. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 1--17.
• Pitts, M. J., Stanley, S. J., & Kim, S. (2016). College Males’ Enduring and Novel Health Beliefs about the HPV Vaccine. Health Communication, 32, 995-1003. doi:10.1080/10410236.2016.1196421
• Pitts, M. J., Stanley, S. J., & Kim, S. (2017). College Males' Enduring and Novel Health Beliefs about the HPV Vaccine. Health Communication, 995-1003. doi:DOI: 10.1080/10410236.2016.1196421
• Pitts, M. J., & Harwood, J. (2015). Communication accommodation competence: The nature and nurture of accommodative resources across the lifespan. Language \& Communication, 41, 89--99.
• Pitts, M. J., & Pitts, M. J. (2015). Practicing the Four Seasons of Ethnography Methodology while Searching for Identity in Mexico. The Qualitative Report, 17(40), 1-21. doi:10.46743/2160-3715/2012.1722
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  Experienced ethnographers express with much heart that "doing" ethnography is as much about learning and experiencing other cultures as it is about your own; it is as much about others as it is about selves (see for example, Ellis, 2007; Gonzalez, 2000; Goodall, 2000). It is about the interconnection between others and selves. I have come to know not only this tenet of ethnography, but also to understand it in an experiential manner. This is the account of an experience that resulted in an understanding of the doing (the methodology) and the being (the ontology) of ethnography. Simply, we become ethnographers by doing ethnography. My purpose in writing this is to mark what might otherwise be unremarkable moments in fieldwork in order to share with emergent ethnographers the smaller, but crucial, ethnographic moments that underlie a larger ethnographic text. In this sense, it is a "confessional tale," an explicit attempt to "demystify fieldwork or participant-observation by showing how the technique is practiced in the field" (Van Maanen, 1988, p. 73). I frame this narrative as I experienced it, in Gonzalez's (2000) Four Seasons of Ethnography. I intend to evoke the experience of the Four Seasons of Ethnography by exposing my own struggles and success with the methodology. At the forefront of this narrative are the daily methodological and ontological complexities of conducting fieldwork. Narrative descriptions of place and identity in Mexico City form the background. Thus, the central focus of this account is on the process and experience of the Four Seasons of Ethnography. More importantly, this text makes transparent a process not generally available to emergent ethnographers about the experience of doing ethnography, and how it can sometimes take five years to find out what the important thing is that you have to say. The experience began with a guided introduction to Gonzalez's (2000) Four Seasons of Ethnography methodology during a cultural immersion in Mexico City in the summer of 2002. Gonzalez (now de la Garza) facilitated the study; Mexico City guided my experience. The purpose of the cultural immersion was to experience the Four Seasons approach by investigating an aspect of Mexican culture. I chose to focus on the connections between place and identity (see Basso, 1996, for an excellent work on this matter). Through the process of the Four Seasons methodology, I found, however, that as I was focusing intently on Mexican identity, my own identity was focusing intensely on me. That is, despite my attempts to focus solely on the "other," my identity became increasingly salient to me as I progressed through the Four Seasons methodology. The Four Seasons of Ethnography Surprisingly, in the decade since its publication, there have been no major ethnographic works reporting on the adoption and significance of the Four Seasons approach. It deserves attention as a rigorous, socially important, and humanly sensitive approach to ethnography. The Four Seasons is an ontologically-based methodology that centers on the awareness of the researcher as human instrument and the natural cycles of knowledge and ethnographic research. This methodology offers an alternative to traditional, linear approaches to ethnography in favor of a more organic process nested in indigenous meanings and natural cycles. Organic, "or natural," as Gonzalez (2003) describes it, means "finding its order from the signs and signals provided in one's environment ... requir[ing] a development of attention to the small details of one's everyday contexts, rather than simply to one's ideas, intentions, or desires" (p. 503). This approach necessitates sensitivity to self and other, but also to the natural process of (re)discovery (Gonzalez, 2000). As such, natural experiences are guides in how the research is done and what it will look like when it is complete (Gonzalez, 1998). The Four Seasons includes all phases from preparing to enter the field (spring), to "experiencing" data (summer), creating meaning (autumn), and finally writing up reports (winter). …
• Fowler, C., Fisher, C., & Pitts, M. J. (2014). Older adults’ evaluations of middle-aged children’s attempts to initiate discussion of care needs.. Health Communication.
• Pitts, M. J., Fowler, C., & Fisher, C. (2014). Adult children’s use of politeness to initiate conversations with aging parents about later life health care. Journal of Language and Social Psychology.
• Pitts, M. J., Fowler, C., Fisher, C. L., & Smith, S. A. (2014). Politeness Strategies in Imagined Conversation Openers About Eldercare. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 33(1), 29--48.
• Fisher, C. L., Fowler, C., Pitts, M. J., & Smith, S. A. (2013). Politeness Strategies in Imagined Conversation Openers About Eldercare. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 33(1), 29-48. doi:10.1177/0261927x13506708
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  In the United States, many adult children and their aging parents reach the point when it is necessary to address future care needs of the parent. Given that the prevailing culture values independence over interdependence, discussing future care needs can be face threatening. Therefore, an examination of how adult children approach such conversations and manage face needs is an important first step toward understanding what makes these conversations effective and supportive. We use politeness theory to illuminate ways in which adult children incorporate facework in imagined messages (“openers”) to initiate a conversation with their aging parent about eldercare. Openers were thematically coded for politeness strategies and messages. Imagined openers featured complex “strings” of positive and negative politeness strategies. Implications are addressed.
• Fowler, C., Fisher, C. L., & Pitts, M. J. (2013). Older Adults’ Evaluations of Middle-Aged Children’s Attempts to Initiate Discussion of Care Needs. Health Communication, 29, 717-727. doi:10.1080/10410236.2013.786278
• Pitts, M. J., & Tufts, K. A. (2013). Implications of the Virginia Human Papillomavirus Vaccine Mandate for Parental Vaccine Acceptance. Qualitative health research, 23(5), 605--617.
• Adams Tufts, K., & Pitts, M. J. (2012). Implications of the Virginia Human Papillomavirus Vaccine Mandate for Parental Vaccine Acceptance. Qualitative Health Research, 23(5), 605-617. doi:10.1177/1049732312470871
• Pitts, M. J. (2012). Practicing the Four Seasons of Ethnography Methodology while Searching for Identity in Mexico.. The Qualitative Report, 17(Art. 79), 1--21.
• Pitts, M. J., & Watson, B. M. (2012). Epilogue Trends and Forecasts in Language and Social Psychology Scholarship. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 31(4), 437--446.
• Stewart, C. O., Pitts, M. J., & Osborne, H. (2011). Mediated intergroup conflict: The discursive construction of “illegal immigrants” in a regional US Newspaper. Journal of language and social psychology, 30(1), 8--27.
• John, B. S., Pitts, M. J., & Tufts, K. A. (2010). Disconnects between news framing and parental discourse concerning the state-mandated HPV vaccine: implications for dialogic health communication and health literacy.. Communication & medicine, 7(1), 75-84. doi:10.1558/cam.v7i1.75
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  In 2007, Virginia became the first state in the US to mandate the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine. In 2009, the mandate required that parents of girls entering sixth grade (ages 11-12) vaccinate their daughters or sign the 'opt-out' waiver. This investigation is the first to explore how both the news media and parents framed and responded to the newly-mandated HPV vaccine. This research reveals disjoints between news media framing and parental framing. Implications of these gaps for parental healthcare decision-making are addressed and suggestions are offered for constructing a more dialogic, community-based approach that can increase health literacy regarding the HPV vaccine.
• Stewart, C., Pitts, M. J., & Osborne, H. (2010). Mediated Intergroup Conflict: The Discursive Construction of “Illegal Immigrants” in a Regional U.S. Newspaper. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 30, 8-27. doi:10.1177/0261927x10387099
• Kaplan, M. S., Nussbaum, J. F., Becker, J. C., Fowler, C., Pitts, M. J., & others, . (2009). Communication barriers to family farm succession planning. Journal of extension, 47(5), 1--9.
• Pitts, M. J. (2009). Identity and the role of expectations, stress, and talk in short-term student sojourner adjustment: An application of the integrative theory of communication and cross-cultural adaptation. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 33(6), 450--462.
• Pitts, M. J., & Harwood, J. (2009). Reflections on Language and Social Psychology Research From ICLASP11, Tucson, Arizona. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 28(4), 337--342.
• Pitts, M. J., Fowler, C., Kaplan, M. S., Nussbaum, J., & Becker, J. C. (2009). Dialectical tensions underpinning family farm succession planning. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 37(1), 59--79.
• Pitts, M. J., Raup-Krieger, J. L., Kundrat, A. L., & Nussbaum, J. F. (2009). Mapping the processes and patterns of family organ donation discussions: Conversational styles and strategies in live discourse. Health communication, 24(5), 413--425.
• St, J., Pitts, M., & Tufts, K. A. (2009). Disconnects between news framing and parental discourse concerning the state-mandated HPV vaccine: implications for dialogic health communication and health literacy.. Communication \& medicine, 7(1), 75--84.
• Pitts, M. J. (2008). Cultural Diversity and Families: Expanding Perspectives. Journal of Family Communication, 8(1), 96-100. doi:10.1080/15267430701573615
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  Book Review
• Pitts, M. J., Fowler, C., Kaplan, M., Nussbaum, J. F., & Becker, J. C. (2008). Dialectical Tensions and Praxis Underpinning Family Farm Succession Planning. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 37, 59-79.
• Pitts, M. J., Giles, H., Antos, G., & Ventola, E. (2008). Social psychology and personal relationships: Accommodation and relational influence across time and contexts. The handbook of interpersonal communication, 15--31.
• Jackson, R. L., Warren, J. R., Pitts, M. J., & Wilson, K. B. (2007). It is not my responsibility to teach culture!”: White graduate teaching assistants negotiating identity and pedagogy. Whiteness, pedagogy, and performance. New York: Routledge.
• Kundrat, A. L., Pitts, M. J., & Raup-Krieger, J. L. (2007). Mapping Family Organ Donation Discussions: Topic Initiation, Persuasive Appeals, and Reasoning in Live Discourse. Health Communication, 24, 413-425.
• Pitts, M. J., & Miller-Day, M. (2007). Upward turning points and positive rapport-development across time in researcher—participant relationships. Qualitative Research, 7(2), 177--201.
• Pitts, M. J., & Nussbaum, J. F. (2006). Integrating the Past and Paving the Future Examining Current Trends and Extending Boundaries of Language and Social Psychology Research. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 25(3), 197--202.
• Hecht, M. L., Jackson, R. L., & Pitts, M. J. (2005). Culture: Intersections of intergroup and identity theories. Intergroup communication: Multiple perspectives, 21--42.
• Nussbaum, J. F., Pitts, M. J., Huber, F. N., Krieger, J., & Ohs, J. E. (2005). Ageism and Ageist Language Across the Life Span: Intimate Relationships and Non-intimate Interactions. Journal of Social Issues, 61(2), 287--305.
• Pitts, M. J., Krieger, J. L., & Nussbaum, J. F. (2005). Finding the right place: Social interaction and life transitions among the elderly. Health communication in practice: A case study approach, 233--242.

Others

• Pitts, M. J., & Gallois, C. (2019, ?). Social markers in language and speech. Invited contribution to the Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Psychology (9,500 words). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press..
• Pitts, M. J. (2018, ?). Acculturation strategies. In Y. Y. Kim (Ed.), The International Encyclopedia of Intercultural Communication (4k words). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley & Sons. DOI: 10.1002/9781118783665.ieicc0006.
  More info

  DOI: 10.1002/9781118783665.ieicc0006
• Pitts, M. J. (2018, ?). Qualitative methods. Invited contribution to the Encyclopedia of Intergroup Communication (10k words). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press..
• Pitts, M. J., & Socha, T. (2013). Positive communication in health and wellness.
• Harwood, J., & Pitts, M. J. (2009). Current Research in Language and Social Psychology: Select Papers from ICLASP, Tucson, AZ.
• Pitts, M. J. (2005). The role of communication in cross-national adjustment and identity transitions among student sojourners.
• Pitts, M. J. (2001). Cultural Identity and Patterns of Social Support Among United States American Students Abroad.