Handbook of Visual Communication: Theory, Methods, and Media

This Handbook of Visual Communication explores the key theoretical areas and research methods of visual communication. With chapters contributed by many of the best-known and respected scholars in visual communication, this volume brings together significant and influential work in the discipline.

The second edition of this already-classic text has been completely revised to reflect the metamorphosis of communication in the last 15 years and the ubiquity of visual communication in our modern mediated lifestyle. Thriteen major theories of communication are defined by the top experts in their fields: perception, cognition, aesthetics, visual rhetoric, semiotics, cultural studies, ethnography, narrative, media aesthetics, digital media, intertextuality, ethics, and visual literacy. Each of these theory chapters is followed by an exemplar study or two in the area, demonstrating the various methods used in visual communication research as well as the research approaches applicable for specific media types.

The Handbook of Visual Communication is a theoretical and methodological handbook for visual communication researchers and a compilation for much of the theoretical background necessary to understand visual communication. It is required reading for scholars, researchers, and advanced students in visual communication, and it will be influential in other disciplines such as advertising, persuasion, and media studies. The volume will also be essential to media practitioners seeking to understand the visual aspects of how audiences use media to contribute to more effective use of each specific medium.

Sheree Josephson is a presidential distinguished professor of communication at Weber State University in Ogden, Utah, where she also serves as department chair. She is an eye-tracking researcher who has published numerous scholarly journal articles, book chapters, and the book Visualizing the web: Evaluating Online Design from a Visual Communication Perspective.

James D. Kelly is the director of Journalism at Indiana University Bloomington where he teaches photojournalism and healthcare reporting. He is a former editor of Visual Communication Quarterly and researches the influence of digital imaging technology on news photo credibility and audience understanding of photojournalism ethics.

Ken Smith was publisher of the Green River Star in Wyoming prior to receiving his Ph.D. from the University of Utah. He served on the faculty at the Department of Communication & Journalism in the University of Wyoming for 26 years and was head of the department for 15 of those years.