Sonia H. Stephens, Ph.D.
Education
- Ph.D. in Texts and Technology from University of Central Florida (2012)
- M.S. in Botany and Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation Biology from University of Hawaii at Manoa (2003)
Research Interests
Scientific and Technical Communication in Digital and visual Media; Narrative Information Visualization; Visual Risk Communication; Visual Metaphor; User Evaluation of Interactive Tools; Digital Humanities
Selected Publications
Articles/Essays
- D. E. DeLorme, S. H. Stephens, R. Collini, D. W. Yoskowitz, and S. C. Hagen (2021)
“Communicating and understanding ecosystem services assessment with coastal
stakeholders: Obstacles and opportunities.” Frontiers in Communication. 6: 656884. DOI: 10.3389/fcomm.2021.656884
- T. R. Amidon, A. C. Nielsen, E. H.
Pflugfelder, D. P. Richards, and S.
H. Stephens. (2021) “Visual risk literacy in “Flatten the Curve”
COVID-19 visualizations.” Journal of
Business and Technical Communication. 35: 101–109. DOI: 10.1177/1050651920963439
- S. H. Stephens, D. E. DeLorme, and S. C. Hagen. (2020) “Coastal stakeholders’ perceptions of sea level rise adaptation planning in the northern Gulf of Mexico.” Environmental Management. 66: 407–418. DOI: 10.1007/s00267-020-01315
- D. E. DeLorme, S. H. Stephens, M. V. Bilskie, and S. C. Hagen. (2020) “Coastal decision-makers’ perspectives on updating storm surge guidance tools.” Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management. 28(2): 158–168. DOI: 10.1111/1468-5973.12291
- S. H. Stephens and D. P. Richards. (2020) “Story mapping and sea level rise: Listening to global risks at street level.” Communication Design Quarterly. 8(1): 5–18. DOI: 10.1145/3375134.3375135
- S. H. Stephens and D. E. DeLorme. (2019) “A framework for user agency during development of interactive risk visualization tools.” 28: 391–406. Technical Communication Quarterly. DOI: 10.1080/10572252.2019.1618498
- S. H. Stephens. (2018) “Using interface rhetoric to understand audience agency in natural history apps.” Technical Communication. 65(3): 280–292.
- D. E. DeLorme, S. H. Stephens, S. C. Hagen, and M. Bilskie. (2018) “Communicating with coastal decision-makers and environmental educators via sea level rise decision-support tools.” Journal of Science Communication. 17(3): A03. DOI: 10.22323/2.17030203.
- S. H. Stephens. (2019) “A narrative approach to interactive information visualization in the digital humanities classroom.” Arts and Humanities in Higher Education. 18(4): 416–429. DOI: 10.1177/1474022218759632
- D. E. DeLorme, S. H. Stephens and S. C. Hagen. (2018) “Transdisciplinary sea level rise risk communication and outreach strategies from stakeholder focus groups.” Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences. 8:13–21. DOI: 10.1007/s13412-017-0443-8
- J. D. Applen and S. H. Stephens. (2017) “Digital humanities, middleware, and user experience design for public health applications.” Communication Design Quarterly. 5(3): 24-34.
- S. H. Stephens, D. E. DeLorme and S. C. Hagen. (2017) "Evaluation of the design features of interactive sea-level rise viewers for risk communication." Environmental Communication. 11(2):248-262. DOI:10.1080/17524032.2016.1167758
- D. E. DeLorme, D. Kidwell, S. C. Hagen, and S. H. Stephens. (2016) “Developing and managing transdisciplinary and transformative research on the coastal dynamics of sea level rise: Experiences and lessons learned.” Earth’s Future. 4(5): 194–209. DOI: 10.1002/2015EF000346.
- S. H. Stephens, D. E. DeLorme and S. C. Hagen. (2015) “Evaluating the utility and communicative effectiveness of an interactive sea level rise viewer through stakeholder engagement.” Journal of Business and Technical Communication. 29(3): 314-343. DOI: 10.1177/1050651915573963
- S. H. Stephens, D. E. DeLorme and S. C. Hagen. (2014) “An analysis of the narrative-building features of interactive sea level rise viewers.” Science Communication. 36(6): 675-705. DOI: 10.1177/1075547014550371
- S. H. Stephens. (2014) “Communicating evolution with a Dynamic Evolutionary Map.” Journal of Science Communication. 13(1): A04.
- S. Stephens. (2012) “From tree to map: Using cognitive learning theory to suggest alternative ways to visualize macroevolution.” Evolution: Education and Outreach. 5(4): 603-618.
Conference Papers/Presentations
- A. Altamirano and S. H. Stephens, February 2021. “Web content audits: A powerful tool for complex website design.” Symposium on Communicating Complex Information, Norfolk, VA.
- S. Raffel and S. Stephens, July 2020. “How hurricane visualization tools affect the public’s perception of risk and preparedness.” ProComm 2020, Kennesaw, GA.
- S. H. Stephens, October 2019. “Telling the stories of nonhuman agents in the Anthropocene.” SIGDOC 2019, Portland, OR.
- S. H. Stephens, June 2019. “Using digital tools for community disaster response: Social media and the 2018 Kīlauea Volcano eruption.” Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Orlando, FL.
- S. H. Stephens, March 2019. “Using deep mapping in participatory design.” Association for Teachers of Technical Writing, Pittsburgh, PA.
- S. H. Stephens and D. P. Richards, August 2018. “Story mapping and sea level rise: Bringing a global risk home.” SIGDOC 2018, Milwaukee WI.
- S. H. Stephens and D. P. Richards, June 2018. “Connecting to community concerns through sea level rise stories.” Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Washington, DC.
- S. H. Stephens, D. E. DeLorme, R. C. Collini, and S. C. Hagen, June 2018. “An analysis of stakeholder advisory committees in coastal resiliency projects.” Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Washington, DC.
- S. H. Stephens and D. E. DeLorme, December 2017. “Benefits, challenges, and best practices for involving audiences in the development of interactive coastal risk communication tools: Professional communicators’ experiences.” American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting 2017, New Orleans, LA.
- S. H. Stephens. November 2017. "Rhetoric, agency, and risk visualization for diverse audiences." HASTAC 2017, Orlando, FL.
- S. H. Stephens, August 2017. "Designer perceptions of user agency during the development of environmental risk visualization tools." SIGDOC 2017, Halifax, Canada.
- S. Stephens and J. D. Applen, October 2016. “Rhetorical dimensions of social network analysis visualization for public health.” ProComm 2016, Austin TX.
- S. H. Stephens and D. E. DeLorme, June 2016. “Making sea level rise risk research responsive to community needs.” Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Washington, DC.
- S. H. Stephens, May 2016. “Bird identification guides as interface: Transformation and continuity.” Rhetoric Society of America, Atlanta, GA.
- M. Shelton and S. Stephens, February 2016. “Connecting scientists to citizens regarding sea level rise.” Social Coast Forum, Charleston, SC.
Courses
| Course Number | Course | Title | Mode | Date and Time | Syllabus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19539 | ENC6257 | Visual Tech Comm | Web-Based (W) | Unavailable | |
This course combines practical and theoretical approaches to
technical and professional information visualization. Students will have
hands-on practice producing effective graphics from numeric and textual data, including
charts, maps, and diagrams, as well as full-page informational graphics that blend
text and visuals to tell complex data-based stories. We will also take a deep
dive into contemporary scholarship in ethical visual technical communication,
including feminist and antiracist data visualization practices, rhetoric and
public health graphics, and decolonial approaches to mapping. The course
concludes with a project in which you will plan, research, and create a
full-page informational graphic on a technical or scientific topic of your
choice. |
|||||
| 20739 | ENG6005 | Diss Research Design in T | Face to Face (P) | M 06:00 PM - 08:50 PM | Unavailable |
Preparation for the initial stages
of dissertation development, including planning, research question development,
and methodology determination. |
|||||
| Course Number | Course | Title | Mode | Date and Time | Syllabus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 80537 | ENC4218 | Visual Technical Communication | Web-Based (W) | Unavailable | |
| This course focuses on visual technical communication in the form of charts, tables, and diagrams, as well as full-page informational graphics that blend text and visuals to tell data-based stories. We will focus on visual design principles and practice using tools to produce graphics. We will begin with an introduction to graphic design and practice producing effective graphics that complement the text elements of documents. We will then study persuasive aspects of visual design and learn to develop information graphics that inform or persuade audiences about technical or scientific topics. The course concludes with a project in which you will plan, research, and create a full-page informational graphic on a technical or scientific topic. | |||||
| 81773 | ENG6005 | Diss Research Design in T | Face to Face (P) | Tu 06:00 PM - 08:50 PM | Unavailable |
| No Description Available | |||||
No courses found for Summer 2021.
| Course Number | Course | Title | Mode | Date and Time | Syllabus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20562 | ENC6225 | User-centered Design for Tc | Web-Based (W) | Unavailable | |
ENC 6225 (Sp 21) User-Centered Design for Technical Communication This course is an introduction to user-centered design, and is oriented toward practical methods for approaching a design problem in technical communication. User-centered design is an approach to design and development that centers the needs and desires of users. It incorporates research to understand the goals and needs of both clients and users, employs techniques and heuristics for task-based usability testing, involves an iterative process of design and development, and concludes with reflective assessment of both process and product. Design problems in technical communication are broad; they can include technical systems like software applications and communication products such as web sites or publications. User-centered design can also address other issues such as community development, architecture, and wayfinding. The general goals of this course are to help you develop an appreciation for the theory and philosophy of user-centered design as it pertains to technical communication, develop skills in using and applying usability methods that are specifically applicable to user-centered design, and improve individual and collaborative skills in design-based problem solving. This will be a highly interactive course. We will begin by learning about user-centered design theory and techniques through course readings and practice exercises. We will then conduct a user-centered design project that solves a problem for an external client. |
|||||
| 19359 | ENG6808 | Narrative Info Visualization | Video Strmng (V1) COVD DL exmp | Th 06:00 PM - 08:50 PM | Unavailable |
| No Description Available | |||||
| Course Number | Course | Title | Mode | Date and Time | Syllabus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 80918 | ENC4218 | Visual Technical Communication | Web-Based (W) | Unavailable | |
This course focuses on visual technical communication in the form of charts, tables, and diagrams, as well as full-page informational graphics that blend text and visuals to tell data-based stories. We will focus on visual design principles and practice using tools to produce graphics. We will begin with an introduction to graphic design and practice producing effective graphics that complement the text elements of documents. We will then study persuasive aspects of visual design and learn to develop information graphics that inform or persuade audiences about technical or scientific topics. The course concludes with a project in which you will plan, research, and create a full-page informational graphic on a technical or scientific topic. |
|||||
| 81677 | ENG6812 | Res Methods for Texts and Tech | Video Strmng (V1) COVD DL exmp | Tu 06:00 PM - 08:50 PM | Unavailable |
| No Description Available | |||||
No courses found for Summer 2020.
Updated: Oct 6, 2021