- President's Chair Professor of Communication Studies at the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information (WKWS... morePresident's Chair Professor of Communication Studies at the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information (WKWSCI), Nanyang Technological University (NTU). I also serve as a Joint Professor in the NTU LKC School of Medicine and an honorary Professor at the University of Melbourne. As a Fellow of the International Communication Association (ICA), I specialize in strategic and health communication. My research projects aim to contribute to bettering health across communities. I lead research teams examining the impact of media and communication on human health and disease related behaviors, and the interface with technology, AI and science. My scholarship also involves COVID-19, AMR, One-Health, Dengue and Future Food issues, supported by various grants.edit
Cyberbullying has become a critical social issue, which severely threatens children and adolescents’ physical and psychological health. The current research systematically examined the predictors of cyberbullying from the social cognitive... more
Cyberbullying has become a critical social issue, which severely threatens children and adolescents’ physical and psychological health. The current research systematically examined the predictors of cyberbullying from the social cognitive and media effects approach. Specifically, this study identified 16 predictors of cyberbullying perpetration and victimization and examined the magnitude of the effects of these predictors by meta-analyzing 81 empirical studies, which represented a total sample of 99,741 participants and yielded 259 independent correlations. The results revealed that risky information and communications technology (ICT) use, moral disengagement, depression, social norms, and traditional bullying perpetration were the main predictors of cyberbullying perpetration, while risky ICT use and traditional bullying victimization were the major contributors of cyberbullying victimization. According to the moderator analyses, country of the sample, sampling method, age, and m...
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Chapter 1: Introduction to IMC and Communication Models and Processes -- Chapter 2: Marketing Communication and Consumer Behaviour -- Chapter 3: Marketing Communication Strategy and Planning -- Chapter 4: Positioning and Objectives --... more
Chapter 1: Introduction to IMC and Communication Models and Processes -- Chapter 2: Marketing Communication and Consumer Behaviour -- Chapter 3: Marketing Communication Strategy and Planning -- Chapter 4: Positioning and Objectives -- Chapter 5: Advertising -- Chapter 6: Public Relations -- Chapter 7: Direct Marketing -- Chapter 8: Sales Promotions -- Chapter 9: Electronic and Social Media (ESM) -- Chapter 10: Media Decisions -- Chapter 11: Responsible Marketing Communication.
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... They note that perceived dis-crimination may evoke one or several emotions including sadness, depres-sion, anxiety, aggression, and anger (Dion, 2001; Mays & Cochran, 2001). Dion contends that perceiving oneself as a target of... more
... They note that perceived dis-crimination may evoke one or several emotions including sadness, depres-sion, anxiety, aggression, and anger (Dion, 2001; Mays & Cochran, 2001). Dion contends that perceiving oneself as a target of discrimination is a psychoso-cial stressor. ...
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Research Paper Series (National University of Singapore. Faculty of Business Administration); 1999-0421-2
The world decided in December 2015 to take actions to reduce global warming. To contribute toward this goal, this research examines possible policy levers for inclusion in the climate change ratification plan. A case study of the measures... more
The world decided in December 2015 to take actions to reduce global warming. To contribute toward this goal, this research examines possible policy levers for inclusion in the climate change ratification plan. A case study of the measures taken by the Republic of Singapore, a low-lying 719.2 km2 island without natural resources in Asia, is conducted. Being vulnerable to climate change impact and yet having to balance her people’s needs and economic progress with limited resources, the measures taken by this small country could offer policy insights for small states and states without access to alternative energy sources. This research analyzes the online policy documents posted by eleven organizations to answer the main research question of identifying policy levers as theoretical constructs to form a framework that can be used to study climate change policies. A qualitative data analysis software, QSR NVivo 10, is used to classify the proposed nodes developed by the researchers usi...
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Research Interests: Business and Advertising
While social media has been increasingly used for communication of infectious disease outbreaks, little is known about how social media can improve strategic communication across various stages of the health crisis. The Crisis and... more
While social media has been increasingly used for communication of infectious disease outbreaks, little is known about how social media can improve strategic communication across various stages of the health crisis. The Crisis and Emergency Risk Communication Model (Reynolds & Seeger, 2005; CERC) outlines strategies across different crisis phases and can guide crisis communication on social media. This research therefore investigates how social media can be utilized to implement and adapt the CERC model, by examining the strategic uses of Facebook in communicating the recent Zika epidemic by health authorities in Singapore. Zika-related Facebook posts of three main Singapore health agencies published within the one year period from January 2016 to December 2016 were thematically analysed. Results suggest that Facebook was used to communicate the crisis strategically, which supported and added to the CERC model. Novel uses of Facebook for outbreak communication were demonstrated, inc...
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1 Associate Professor, Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 2 Research Fellow, Centre of Social Media Innovations for Communities, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 3... more
1 Associate Professor, Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 2 Research Fellow, Centre of Social Media Innovations for Communities, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 3 Senior Research Fellow, Centre of Social Media Innovations for Communities, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 4 Research Engineer, Centre of Social Media Innovations for Communities, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 5 Research Assistant, Centre of Social Media Innovations for Communities, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 6 Professor, Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
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... best in their target market. The joint influence of both these factors (English ac-cent and spokesperson race) should provide cues for creating more potent advertising. Through this study, marketers should become more aware of how... more
... best in their target market. The joint influence of both these factors (English ac-cent and spokesperson race) should provide cues for creating more potent advertising. Through this study, marketers should become more aware of how spokesperson's race and accents influences ...
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... Shalini Chandra, Yin-Leng Theng, May 0'Lwin and Schubert Foo Shou-Boon Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and ... Face-to-face communication is undoubtedly the richest medium of communication as it allows rapid mutual feedback... more
... Shalini Chandra, Yin-Leng Theng, May 0'Lwin and Schubert Foo Shou-Boon Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and ... Face-to-face communication is undoubtedly the richest medium of communication as it allows rapid mutual feedback and simultaneous communication of ...
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PurposeThis paper aims to examine motivations for young consumers' internet use, how these motivations relate to children's privacy concerns and, subsequently, children's willingness to disclose personally identifiable... more
PurposeThis paper aims to examine motivations for young consumers' internet use, how these motivations relate to children's privacy concerns and, subsequently, children's willingness to disclose personally identifiable information.Design/methodology/approachThe strengths of three common internet usage motives (information seeking, entertainment, and socializing) in predicting disclosure behavior are examined via survey research with a sample of children aged 10‐12.FindingsTwo of the motives – information seeking and socializing – are found to influence privacy concerns, which in turn, are shown to affect willingness to disclose information. Information‐seeking motivations were positively related to privacy concerns, while socializing motivations were negatively related to privacy concerns. Direct incentives are also found to increase disclosure.Originality/valueThe findings suggest that the uses and gratifications theory is useful for understanding children's privacy...
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ABSTRACT In this paper, we report on a longitudinal study that investigates the effects of video-game play on intergenerational perceptions amongst youths and the elderly after participating in a program involving regular interaction... more
ABSTRACT In this paper, we report on a longitudinal study that investigates the effects of video-game play on intergenerational perceptions amongst youths and the elderly after participating in a program involving regular interaction sessions over two months. Each pair of participants, consisting of one youth and one elderly, was randomly assigned to either the video-game condition (n = 38, 19 from each age group) or the non-video-game condition (n = 36, 18 each). Attraction, intergroup anxiety, attitudes, and game enjoyment were measured through pre-test and post-test surveys to investigate changes in perceptions. Results showed that participants in the video-game condition reported more positive changes in intergroup anxiety and attitudes, compared to participants in the non-video-game condition. Mediation analyses showed that specific attraction towards their interaction partner mediated the effects of video-game play on attitudes and intergroup anxiety towards the general members of the other age group. In addition, the results showed that game enjoyment played an important role in developing positive intergenerational perceptions only for the elderly, but not for the youth participants in the video-game condition. We discuss implications with respect to options to enhance intergenerational perceptions and communication for youth and elderly cohorts in today’s hyper-ageing society.
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... Border trade was also legalized in connection with Thailand, China, India, and Bangladesh. ... Unless Myanmar bucks the trend, this is likely to accelerate as the nation develops. ... For example, for an average Burmese family,... more
... Border trade was also legalized in connection with Thailand, China, India, and Bangladesh. ... Unless Myanmar bucks the trend, this is likely to accelerate as the nation develops. ... For example, for an average Burmese family, shopping for a TV set is an important occasion that is ...
Businesses are beginning to use virtual worlds as an innovative means for collaboration and learning among virtual team members, with the intention of harnassing increasing flow of ideas from individuals, and higher levels of productivity... more
Businesses are beginning to use virtual worlds as an innovative means for collaboration and learning among virtual team members, with the intention of harnassing increasing flow of ideas from individuals, and higher levels of productivity within the company. Virtual worlds have ...
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IAMCR OCS, IAMCR 2011 - Istanbul. ...
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Within the Cambodian educational sector, ICT discourse has brought about new challenges and opportunities. The policy response from the government has been aimed at increasing access to education through ICTs, promoting a life-long... more
Within the Cambodian educational sector, ICT discourse has brought about new challenges and opportunities. The policy response from the government has been aimed at increasing access to education through ICTs, promoting a life-long learning approach to education, ...
The objective of this study was to assess adolescents’ receptivity to the use of new interactive media for dissemination of sensitive health messages. We propose a conceptual framework based on the Extended Parallel Process Model (EPPM)... more
The objective of this study was to assess adolescents’ receptivity to the use of new interactive media for dissemination of sensitive health messages. We propose a conceptual framework based on the Extended Parallel Process Model (EPPM) to design a game-based HIV/AIDS intervention for adolescents. Amongst key findings, we found that Game Play led to changes in attitudes and intentions.
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Summary of studies included in the systematic review. (PDF 402 kb)
Infectious diseases have a huge health and economic burden globally. Vaccination has been found to be a crucial health intervention for diseases. The study aims to compare the drivers of vaccine uptake for influenza and dengue, and to... more
Infectious diseases have a huge health and economic burden globally. Vaccination has been found to be a crucial health intervention for diseases. The study aims to compare the drivers of vaccine uptake for influenza and dengue, and to understand the key drivers within each of the diseases in predicting vaccine uptake intentions. Data were collected from 1000 Singaporeans and Singapore permanent residents between the ages of 21 and 70 through face to face surveys. Overall, intention to get vaccinated was low for both diseases. Comparing the means between the knowledge and perceptions regarding influenza and dengue and their vaccine uptake intentions, perceived susceptibility was significantly higher for influenza than dengue; and perceived severity, knowledge of the disease, and benefits of the vaccine were significantly higher for dengue. Looking at the key drivers within the diseases, perceived susceptibility towards the diseases and benefits of the vaccine were positively associat...
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Sri Lanka has witnessed a series of dengue epidemics over the past five years, with the western province, home to the political capital of Colombo, bearing more than half of the dengue burden. Existing dengue monitoring prevention... more
Sri Lanka has witnessed a series of dengue epidemics over the past five years, with the western province, home to the political capital of Colombo, bearing more than half of the dengue burden. Existing dengue monitoring prevention programs are exhausted as public health inspectors (PHIs) cope with increasing workloads and paper-based modes of surveillance and education, characterizing a reactive system unable to cope with the enormity of the problem. On the other hand, the unprecedented proliferation and affordability of mobile phones since 2009 and a supportive political climate have thus far remained unexploited for the use of mobile-based interventions for dengue management. To conduct a needs assessment of PHIs in Colombo with respect to their dengue-related tasks and develop a new mobile-based system to address these needs while strengthening existing systems. One-on-one in-depth interviews were conducted with 29 PHIs to a) gain a nuanced, in-depth understanding of the current ...
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This article focuses on a novel social media-based system that addresses dengue prevention through an integration of three components: predictive surveillance, civic engagement and health education. The aim was to conduct a potential... more
This article focuses on a novel social media-based system that addresses dengue prevention through an integration of three components: predictive surveillance, civic engagement and health education. The aim was to conduct a potential receptivity assessment of this system among smartphone users in the city of Colombo, the epicenter of the dengue epidemic in the island country of Sri Lanka. Grounded in Protection Motivation Theory (PMT) and using a convenience sampling approach, the cross-sectional survey assessed perceived severity (PSe), perceived susceptibility (PSu), perceived response efficacy (PRE), perceived self-efficacy (PSE) and intention-to-use (IU) among 513 individuals. The overall receptivity to the system was high with a score of >4.00 on a five-point scale. Participants belonging to younger, better educated and higher income groups reported significantly better perceptions of the efficaciousness of the system, were confident in their ability to use the system, and p...
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ABSTRACT The literature on dieting and eating disorders has primarily focused on female consumers in Western cultures. The current research utilizes a model combining the Theory of Planned Behavior and Social Identity/Self-Categorization... more
ABSTRACT The literature on dieting and eating disorders has primarily focused on female consumers in Western cultures. The current research utilizes a model combining the Theory of Planned Behavior and Social Identity/Self-Categorization theories to examine the differences in dieting intention drivers among male versus female adolescents in Asia as a guide for target segmentation in health communications. We used a pen and paper survey of over 500 male and female adolescents to test an augmented model of dieting intentions in order to identify various gender-specific motivational variables. We found that there are a number of theory-based antecedents within each gender which can help to develop gender-specific health communication programs. The findings can be useful in targeting promotion of healthy eating patterns and nutrition approaches to male versus female adolescents.
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Situated at the southern tip of Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore is a newly industrialized country and is fast developing into an international center for finance, transport and communication. The general trend for the Singapore advertising... more
Situated at the southern tip of Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore is a newly industrialized country and is fast developing into an international center for finance, transport and communication. The general trend for the Singapore advertising industry is towards globalization and liberalization, resulting in a small number of large agencies, some specialized local agencies, and a growing number of independent media buying houses.
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ABSTRACT Applying the health belief model, this study examined young adults' intention to adopt preventive behaviors against influenza infection in developing countries (Thailand and Cambodia) and developed countries (the USA and... more
ABSTRACT Applying the health belief model, this study examined young adults' intention to adopt preventive behaviors against influenza infection in developing countries (Thailand and Cambodia) and developed countries (the USA and Singapore). Self-efficacy was the only variable significantly related to behavioral intention in the developing countries. In contrast, perceived threat, expected benefits, and media attention were significant predictors in the developed countries. Trust in information sources also had a consistent impact across the variable significantly related to behavioral intention in the developing countries. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed