Lab Directors
America Edwards, PhD
Founder and Co-Director
Assistant Professor, University of Kentucky
America L. Edwards, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor in the School of Information Science at the University of Kentucky and Founder of the Social Ties Lab. Her research examines how interpersonal and family relationships are maintained, challenged, and transformed through technology, with particular attention to how communication shapes connection, resilience, and health. She specializes in theory-driven, quantitative methods and often incorporates mixed-method approaches to study disclosure, support, and conflict in digitally mediated contexts. Her work has been published in journals such as Journal of Communication, Communication Monographs, Journal of Family Communication, and Communication Education. Dr. Edwards is passionate about mentoring students and engaging communities through applied research that bridges scholarship and practice.
Hannah Jones, PhD
Co-Director
Assistant Professor, University of Kentucky
Hannah is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Kentucky. Her research lies at the intersection of interpersonal and family communication with a focus on crisis and coping. She explores how life events (such as the COVID-19 pandemic, parental/partner death, infertility, the transition to parenthood, and new rules and laws) serve as crisis points in relationships that prompt transitions that can give rise to stress and negative mental health. In turn, she explores how relational partners and families respond to these stressful events. Hannah is particularly interested in exploring the role of coping behaviors in navigating crises and how relational partners and family members can make it more challenging to navigate crises and can help each other manage and overcome difficult events. Her work has been published in journals such as Human Communication Research, Communication Research, Journal of Family Communication, Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, and Communication Methods and Measures.
The Social Ties Lab 