This past week, I had a chance to present my research along with the original Dr. Freberg (aka Mom!) at the Crisis4 Conference in Helsingborg, Sweden.
As a professor, I do go to a lot of conferences to present my research and collaborative projects I have been working on. Over the last few years, I have looked at going to more specialized or focused area conferences in my field, which is why Crisis4 really struck out to me as one I not only needed to go to, but submit my research to in order to be part of a great group of thought leaders in the field of crisis communication.
I first heard about this conference a few years ago within my crisis communications network and I remember thinking – what a cool idea to have not only a crisis conference, but have one on an international stage! I also want to thank Dr. Tim Coombs (a true visionary and leading scholar in the field of crisis communication) for encouraging me to submit to the conference.
Crisis4 was held at Lund University in Helsingborg, which is located in a relatively sized city in southern Sweden. We had representatives and presentations from all over Europe and around the world. Mom and I presented our research looking at crisis communications and hazard/outrage using the Riverside Situational Q-sort. This research methodology is a great one to use, especially in crisis communications, where people do gauge their attitudes and insides based on first impressions on a situation.
What were some of the main themes coming out of the conference? Well, there were several presentations and speakers who really did resonate with me and made me think about where the crisis communication field was going and what our research could do for practitioners and researchers, which was encouraging. Furthermore, what I did also take away was the growing need to not only collaborate on research, but branch out to extend our research and insights outside of the field of communication into other areas like psychology, sociology, and even neuroscience.
With that being said, it was really fun for me to have Mom at the conference so she could provide her own perspective on what psychology and neuroscience researchers are approaching various similar topics in crisis communication (ex. flashbulb memories, social media interactions and credibility, and coping strategies to name a few) that were highlighted at the conference.
Along with the conference, there were other lessons and main takeaways I was able to bring back with me to Louisville. Here are some of them:
- International research conferences are extremely important for professors:I believed this while as a graduate student and I believe it more to this day. International travel and presenting your research abroad allows you to gain so much experience and perspective on your field. Having the opportunity to get feedback, comments, and insight on your work from the international community is huge – plus, it does allow you to distinguish yourself from others in the field as well.
- Networking with great professionals: It was fun for me to spend some time to chat with fellow professionals and realize what you do in research (and in teaching) not only gets read, but incorporated into classes. I had some great conversations with attendees and fellow presenters at the conference who mentioned they have used my research work for their classes for their students, but they were also familiar with what I was doing for my classes (particularly in my social media class). How cool!
- Getting to know your surroundings: In both places, I felt really comfortable with my surroundings as well as the exchanges and interactions I had with everyone. I was pretty surprised when Mom and I were around town and when we would order coffee, we would be spoken first in Danish or Swedish, but then English when they realized we were visiting. We also got a chance to learn about the vast history of some of the main attractions and universities in the area – which was a great highlight for me.
- Talk to fellow attendees and professionals on where they go for conferences: This is how I found out about Crisis4! Talk to fellow colleagues in your field and see where they are going to present your work. It’s key to make sure to go to the major conferences in your field, but you also want to branch out a bit to connect with those who are specializing in the same area as you are. Thank you again Tim for this great recommendation!
- Letting your students know about your travels can help with teaching: This is something I think is SO important to communicate and share with your students. Many students think professors just teach and that’s it. However, when I was preparing for my trip, I let all of my students know where I was going and what I would be doing. I will be sharing the same lessons and notes I took at the conference with my graduate crisis communication class at UofL. Plus, I will also be bringing some stroopwafels to the class as well for them to experience the traditional Dutch cookie.
- Allowing yourself to embrace the culture also teaches you some valuable lessons: I throughly enjoyed my time in Sweden and in Denmark. I had a chance to really explore a lot of the country during this trip through my travels. Not only were both places beautiful, but it also connected me on a personal level as well. Most of my family has come from southern Sweden, and there were a lot of questions answered for me during this trip. Another big plus for me was to be able to do this with Mom. We have presented together at conferences before, but this was an opportunity for us to travel, see where our ancestors came from, and explore the beautiful cities and countries around us. This was a very special trip for me and one I will always remember.
Overall, I not only had a great time at the conference presenting our research and hearing from some of the leading thought leaders in the field, but I thoroughly enjoyed being in the country where my ancestors lived and were from.
So, if you are interested or are doing crisis communication research, I would strongly recommend looking at this conference for 2017. I would like to thank everyone who was part of Crisis4 and Lund University for being such incredible hosts and welcoming all of us to Helsingborg. I look forward to hearing more updates and will wait in anticipation for where Crisis5 will focus on and where it will be held.
Hope you all are having a great day!
Best Wishes,
