Editor Introduction: Reflections about Family Communication

ABSTRACT

This essay examines the current state of theorizing and scholarship in family communication practices. It lays out a vision for the future of family communication research and scholarship along with exploring some of the issues advanced by previous editors of the journal. Finally, the essay identifies what authors can expect from the new editor of the Journal of Family Communication when submitting research manuscripts for publication consideration.

It is a tremendous honor and privilege to be named the next editor of the Journal of Family Communication. I appreciate all of the time, energy, and mentoring provided by Jordan Soliz in helping to transition the home of the journal to Kent State University. He is an incredible role model for how to run the editorial office with responsiveness, rigor, supportiveness, speed, quality, and attention to detail. It is clear to me that he was an expert at “engaging in dialogue with authors before, during, and after the submission to facilitate a review process that benefits all parties involved” (Soliz, 2015, p. 1). My hope is to continue to exemplify these same qualities and attributes that authors have come to expect when submitting, revising, and having their research published within the Journal of Family Communication.

Trends and themes

As I take over the reigns of the journal, considering the current state of research and theorizing about family communication illuminates opportunities and considerations for the future. In the new second edition of Engaging Theories in Family Communication, Braithwaite, Suter, and Floyd (2018) conducted a content analysis related to the state of research in family communication. These authors examined research published in 21 different family and communication-based journals from 2004 through 2015, focusing on scholarship about family communication practices. Overall, 486 articles were published during this timeframe, an average of 40.5 articles a year with “the greatest number of articles [published] in the Journal of Family Communication” (p. 9). What an accomplishment it is that the Journal of Family Communication is THE premiere place where authors go for an in-depth study and understanding of family interaction practices.

I hope authors will continue to send their best research to the journal. I know how important it is for scholars in navigating career entry, transition, tenure, and promotion decisions to receive a quick turnaround time about their research, from initial submission to decision. Most editorial decisions will occur within a 2–3 month period of time. While time is an important consideration, securing informed, instructive, and ethical reviews is critical for me as the editor of the journal. I commit to trying to get three reviews for every manuscript, with scholars collectively who have topical, theoretical, and methodological expertise related to the submission in question. When there are any delays in the editorial review process, it is usually in securing three high-quality reviewers for a manuscript submission. I appreciate the generosity and service provided by members of the discipline in shaping the future scholarship of the journal through the peer review process.

The Brathwaite et al. (2018) review also finds that the vison advanced by previous editors of the journal, such as Loreen Olson (editor from 2012 through 2014), to “help us broaden the paradigms of our scholarship” to include more rhetorical/critical research in the journal, is trending in the right direction (Olson, 2012, p. 2). For example, among articles published in the area of family communication from 1990 to 2003 versus 2004–2015, the proportion of articles reflecting the postpositive paradigm decreased (from 76.1% to 58.9%) whereas the proportions of articles published in the interpretive (20.4–27.2%) and the critical paradigms (3.5–12.9%) both increased. I value voice and diversity reflected within the paradigmatic commitments of scholarship published by the Journal of Family Communication. Because of the different topics, family types, methods of inquiry, and theories related to the study of family communication, my editorial board will continue to grow. The board should be a good reflection of the varied scholars whose work pushes the boundaries of our understanding of family communication. To that end, I encourage any junior (or senior) scholars who would like to be more involved in reviewing manuscripts and shaping the work of the journal to reach out to me.

The Journal of Family Communication has always been a place where authors are expected to engage in theorizing when considering the applications and insights generated by their own scholarship. This trend will continue under my editorship. The Braithwaite et al. (2018) article analysis finds that most scholarship published from 2004 to 2015 in the area of family communication (or 81.7%) incorporates theory in some way, shape, or form. The theories that seem to be most centrally reflective in this corpus of articles, included, “Communication privacy management theory (34), family communication patterns theory (20), relational dialectics theory (29), narrative theories (21) (reporting several different narrative theories here), [and] systems theories (14) …” (p. 10). I encourage authors to continue to push theoretical boundaries in work submitted to the journal. Family communication scholars have more to say about the role of theory in understanding experience and vice versa. I encourage data-based submissions that question, debate, refine, and expand our understanding of communication theory and family in light of changes in technology, globalization, definitions of the family, and contextual considerations that intersect with family life. For example, exploring how communication within families is central to navigating work/life balance issues, healthcare and aging processes, and identity work within and among family members will continue to be critical to understanding multiple lived experiences.

Looking back and beyond

Seventeen years ago, Tom Socha opened the Journal of Family Communication for submissions. His reflections and insights in our first issue of the journal are timeless and still relevant today as I think about issues that require more attention by scholars going forward. As founding editor he called us to think about the intersections between family communication scholarship and individuals with expertise in other contexts, like media, politics, society, race, ethnicity, and culture. He notes that we should expand greater effort to break down disciplinary silos and not “walk along separate paths” (Socha, 2001, p. 3). More work could be done to realize this vision. For example, producing scholarship that provides more insight into how families communicate about and make sense of the “electronic media soup” (Socha, 2001, p. 4), requires more collaborative scholarly teams working at the intersections of mediated and family communication. Some scholars might bring deep understanding of family interaction systems to a team whereas others might contribute deeper expertise about media use and effects in society. Too often we do not work in inter-connected ways. Family is central to societal functioning and global dialogues because it helps shape the lens through which we see the world.

In addition to greater intra-disciplinary collaboration, more inter-disciplinary collaborations are warranted among family communication scholars. Cross fertilization of theory and context is a key way to move family communication as an area forward with greater notoriety. Medved (2009) notes that “Reaching across disciplines is vital to expanding our thinking and theorizing” (p. 1). Scholars from sociology, psychology, and family studies are often interested in communication-based issues and problems that impact the family. Sometimes, people from disciplines other than communication lack the depth of knowledge to frame a study in ways that appropriately acknowledge and build off the contributions of communication scholarship. More inter-disciplinary thinking can help these problems. The most frequently desk rejected scholarship comes from people who work from outside the communication discipline and who most certainly could make deeper contributions by working with someone from within the discipline. Changing this trend requires us as scholars to reach out to colleagues in other departments at our institutions and collaborate. We might also attend a wider array of conferences outside of the communication discipline, where friendships, associations, and inter-disciplinary authorship teams can be fostered and developed.

Socha (2001) also contended in this inaugural issue that “understanding the role of ethnicity in family communication is among the most important concerns on the horizon” and “that the foundations of racism begin and can be perpetuated in family discourse at home” (p. 5). Medved (2009) called our attention this theme as well, stating that:

Not only do we live in a world where intra and interdisciplinary boundaries take on new meaning, we also live in times during which issues, problems, and politics of family life meld and blur among and between national and cultural boarders. (p. 1)

The need for a better understanding of communication in the global society and an understanding of how families across the globe communicate is still an important under-developed theme for future research to explore. Media and technology make it easy for families to be more mobile and communicate more effectively across the globe. One does not have to look further than their own primary country of residence to see interculturally diverse families encountering unique interaction issues while engaging in the pursuit of daily life.

In this issue, Soliz and Phillips, discuss at length the need to place issues of diversity more centrally in our research practices and not marginalize issues of sample diversity to mere reflections within the limitations sections of research studies. These authors contend that our understanding of communication theory and practice is muted when the assumptions of mostly white, middle-class families are not challenged and explored further in research. Their provocative piece invites us to frame our future research with more diverse samples. Soliz and Phillips call for editors in our field to work more collaboratively with scholars who speak and write English as a second language and may need more support for their research to be published within our journals. As an editor, I am committed to enhancing the global understanding of family communication practices reflected within the Journal of Family Communication. I invite more international scholars to consider the Journal of Family Communication as an outlet for their own family communication-based research.

As an editor, I will continue the practice of publishing special issues and soliciting invited essays, like the one by Soliz and Phillips in this issue. I invite any scholars interested in seeing the journal build an issue around a specific focus or theme to get in contact with me. Special issues take advanced planning and notice to be successful. I intend to have any special issues planned out for my entire editorship relatively soon. While some ideas may not warrant an entire special issue, I plan to continue to feature invited essays on topics and issues from both seasoned and emerging scholars. Invited essays help to crystalize our practices as a discipline and explore them further in ways that will enhance future research.

In closing, I look forward to serving as your editor for the Journal of Family Communication. I am tremendously grateful for the support of my institution (Kent State University), my Director (Beth Graham) and my Dean (Amy Reynolds) who have provided a range of resources enabling me to effectively serve in this role as editor. I am also grateful for my editorial assistant (Shawn Starcher, Doctoral Candidate, Kent State University) who eagerly joined me on this journey in February of 2017 when I officially began accepting manuscripts for review. I hope you will consider the Journal of Family Communication as we work together to place communication in the center of understanding the intersections between families and social systems.