One of the things I have noticed – being in academia now for a few years as both as a doctoral student and an assistant professor – is there are certain conferences in which we are encouraged to go to in our field on a regular basis. Some have their preferences and others go to them all.
However, I have always felt there needs to be some cases where you go to conferences that are either outside of your field, ones that focus on a specialization specifically, or discuss a key area from a different perspective. All three of these options allow for further exploration into research and key insights to take away from others, as well as gaining new perspectives and connections.
We can’t afford to just stay in our comfort zone when it comes to conferences. We have to be willing to expand our network and presence outside of our own specialized field.
Why am I bringing this up? Because is what I am currently doing. I worked on a paper these past few months with Sabrina Page on a bridge paper that connects two areas together from a different perspective. We had a chance to visit and head to Dublin to present at the Bullies, Bullied, and Bystanders Conference.
[slideshare id=62932770&doc=irelandpresentation-160610133324]
The paper we presented on discussed from a crisis communications perspective why cyberbullying (specifically mobile platforms and apps) is becoming an epidemic. We tied in current research and articles from both areas into this paper, as well as discussed some key trends we are seeing among certain applications (ex. YikYak, Snapchat, Instagram, etc).
What I thought was great about this conference was the fact we were pretty much the only researchers from communication. Everyone was either from Psychology, Public Health, Education, or Social Work. However, in each of the presentations, each presenter said there needed to be 1) stronger communication regarding the awareness of this issue, 2) collaboration with researchers from outside disciplines to brainstorm ideas to address this challenge, and 3) engage in proactive conversations and work with those who specialize in reputation management and PR.
The opportunities that can arise by going outside our own respective discipline boundaries can be enormous. I was hearing some of the same conversations, ideas, and perspectives on this one particular subject and it was very similar to what is happening in other communication conferences. By being able to bridge among the key disciplines and offer to be a resource, you are able to expand your own network as well.
Overall, it was a great event and we appreciate the hospitality and support the staff and faculty members at Dublin City University gave us during our time at the conference!
Hope you all are having a great day!
Best Wishes,
