Allison Thorson

Allison Thorson

Professor

Program Director
Full-Time Faculty
Socials

Biography

Allison Thorson is a Professor of Communication Studies, Director of the Interdisciplinary Committee on Children and Youth, and Director of the Child and Youth Studies Minor at University of San Francisco. She also teaches in the Master of Arts in Professional Communication program. Her research focuses on how individuals and families communicatively manage and maintain individual/relational well-being in the context of — often deemed taboo — unexpected, hurtful, or non-normative events (e.g., family communication surrounding parental infidelity) and underexplored relationship types (e.g., work-spouse relationships).

Thorson teaches courses on family communication, interpersonal communication, communication and aging, dark side, and research methods. Her recent research is published in journals such as Management Communication Quarterly, Journal of Family Communication, Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, Journal of Divorce & Remarriage, Family Relations, and Communication Studies. Thorson is an executive committee member of the Central States Communication Association, active member of National Communication Association and Western States Communication Association.

Research Areas

  • Interpersonal communication
  • Family communication
  • Parent-child communication
  • Communication privacy management theory
  • Family communication patterns theory
  • Relationship maintenance
  • Shared family identity
  • Communication accommodation theory
  • Topic avoidance

Appointments

  • Program Director, Child and Youth Studies minor
  • Chair, Interdisciplinary Committee on Children and Youth
  • Committee Member, Interdisciplinary Committee on Aging

Education

  • PhD, Communication Studies, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
  • MA, Missouri State University
  • BA, University of Northern Iowa

Prior Experience

  • Interpersonal communication
  • Family communication
  • Parent-child communication
  • Communication privacy management theory
  • Family communication patterns theory
  • Relationship maintenance
  • Shared family identity
  • Communication accommodation theory
  • Topic avoidance

Awards & Distinctions

  • Central States Communication Association, Top Four Organizational Communication Interest Group Paper Award, 2021
  • Central States Communication Association, Diamond Anniversary Award for Top Competitive Paper in Organizational Communication Interest Group, 2019
  • Western States Communication Association, Top Four Interpersonal Communication Interest Group Paper Award, 2019
  • Milton Dickens Award for Exemplary Empirical Research in Communication Reports, 2016

Selected Publications