A native of
the Philadelphia area, Elaine joined the Communication Department
at La Salle in the fall of 2000. She earned her M.A. and Ph.D. from
Penn State University and her B.A. from Ursinus College where she
graduated with Phi Beta Kappa honors. Prior to La Salle, Elaine
taught as a lecturer at both Penn State and Ursinus and served as
a teaching/research assistant while pursuing her graduate degrees.
She also has worked as a team facilitator and in the fields of public
relations and corporate communication.
Elaine's teaching areas include: interpersonal communication;
communication theory; small group communication; research methods;
communication ethics; and the communication of sex, gender and
sexuality. Her current research explores competitiveness within
friendships and communication patterns among women with eating
disorders.
Elaine is co-authoring a textbook with Marianne Dainton (also
of the Communication Department) -- "Applying Communication
Theory for Professional Life." She also recently co-authored
a book chapter on maintaining friendships throughout the lifespan
and published an article in Communication Yearbook examining current
research on relationship maintenance behaviors.
Elaine is an active member in the field of human communication
and is a member of the National Communication Association (NCA)
and the International Association for Relationship Research (IARR).
Outside of the classroom, Elaine enjoys working out, reading,
watching movies, going to the theater, and spending time with
her husband.
