Communication Department Faculty
S Mo Jones-Jang
Associate Professor
S Mo Jones-Jang
Ph.D.
Contact
St. Mary's Hall S353
Telephone: 617-552-0394
Email: s.mo.jang@bc.edu
ORCID 0000-0003-3935-7421
Courses
Persuasion
Social Media
Research Methods
Research Interests
Science Communication
AI
Misinformation
Political Communication
Department
Profile
Mo is an associate professor in the department of communication. He received a PhD in Communication at the U of Michigan. He is a social scientist, studying how people process information and change their perceptions and behaviors in the context of health, science, and technology. His recent research agendas involve AI and misinformation. For instance, his work explores how people evaluate AI’s unfair decisions and failures and how AI fact-checkers can moderate people’s motivational biases. Additionally, Mo is currently working on a funded project (sponsored by National Science Foundation) to examine how we rebuild trust in science in the age of misinformation.
Mo’s research program has been well-received by the field. He published 50+ peer-reviewed articles in important venues such as Scientific Reports, Journal of Communication, Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, New Media and Society, Global Environmental Change. His work has been widely cited, earning more than 900 citations per year. He is a PI recipient of national funders such as National Science Foundation ($250k) and National Endowment for Humanities ($89k) as well as a top paper awardee of national/international conferences, including International Communication Association (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015) and National Communication Association (2015, 2019, 2021). He received the Provost’s Breakthrough Star Award at the U of South Carolina.
He has traveled to over 45 countries and loves to try international food. He is a baseball and Celtics fan, and plays golf (handicap = 13). He does pilates and quit cola, ramen, and cakes to manage his diabetes condition.
Publications
Jones-Jang, S. M., & Park, Y. J. (2023). How do people react to AI failure? Automation bias, algorithmic aversion, and perceived controllability. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 28(1), zmac029 https://doi.org/10.1093/jcmc/zmac029
Jones-Jang, S. M. (2023). Can we blame social media for polarization? Counter-evidence against filter bubble claims during the COVID-19 pandemic. New Media & Society, online first, https://doi.org/10.1177/14614448221099591
Handley-Miner. I. J., Pope M., Atkins, R.K., Jones-Jang, S. M., McKaughan, D. J., Phillips, J., Young, L. (2023). The intentions of information sources can affect what information people think qualifies as true. Scientific Reports, 13, 7718 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-34806-4
Jones-Jang, S. M. Mortensen, T., & Liu, J. (2021). Does media literacy help identification of fake news? Information literacy helps, but other literacies don’t. American Behavioral Scientist, 65, 371-388. *Top 1 most cited article in the Journal
Jones-Jang, S. M., Kim, D., & Kenski, K. (2021). Perceptions of mis- or disinformation exposure predict political cynicism: Evidence from a two-wave survey during the 2018 U.S. midterm elections. New Media and Society, 23(10), 3105-3125. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444820943878
Jones-Jang, S. M., Heo, Y., McKeever, R., Kim, J., Moscowitz, L., & Moscowitz, D. (2020). Good news! Communication findings may be underestimated: Comparing effect sizes with self-reported and logged smartphone data, Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 25,346-363.
Appointments, Awards, and Grants
Grant awarded by National Science Foundation via The SOS:DCI Division, 2024-2027, $259k
Grant awarded by Korean Foundation: 2023~2024, $50k
Grant awarded by Schiller Institute Grants, 2023~2024 & 2021~2022, $50k
Grant awarded by National Endowment for the Humanities, 2018~202, $89k
Provost’s Breakthrough Star Award, University of South Carolina, 2019
Top Paper awarded by National Communication Association, 2015, 2019, 2021
Top Paper awarded by International Communication Association, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015
Editorial Positions
Journal of Communication
Mass Communication & Society
Science Communication
Professional Activities
Television journalist
Seoul Broadcasting System