Dr Jenny Hou

Faculty of Creative Industries, Education & Social Justice,
School of Communication
Biography
As a Study Area Coordinator for Professional Communication, I was awarded a PhD in Strategic Public Relations by the University of Queensland. My research interests include strategic communication in the digital age, transmedia storytelling in disaster risk communication, social media and community engagement, and the interrelationship between public relations and journalism. My work has appeared in top-tiered journals such as Public Relations Review, Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly, Public Relations Inquiry, Journal of Business & Technical Communication, Social Semiotics, Communication Research and Practice, Asia Pacific Public Relations Journal, and PRism. I am also the co-editor of the forthcoming Routledge book "The Global Foundations of Public Relations: Humanism, China and the West". Prior to joining QUT, I have taught in universities in New Zealand, Ireland, Hong Kong and China. In 2017, I was awarded Public Relations Educator Fellowship by the prestigious Plank Centre for Leadership in Public Relations. In 2019 and 2021, I was awarded the Arthur W. Page Centre Legacy Scholar Grants. I have also won grants from European Commission, Australia Government CRC Fight Food Waste Program, and NSW Department of Industry.Personal details
Positions
- Senior Lecturer in Professional Communication
Faculty of Creative Industries, Education & Social Justice,
School of Communication
Qualifications
- Doctor of Philosophy (University of Queensland)
Professional memberships and associations
International Communication Association (ICA) International Association of Media and Communication Research (IAMCR) International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) Public Relations Institute of Australia (PRIA)
Teaching
My teaching experience spans all levels ranging from undergraduate, postgraduate and executive MBA levels. Currently, I'm the Study Area Coordinator for Professional Communication and teaching the following units at QUT: CWB102 Influence and Persuasion (undergraduate) CWB103 Interpersonal and Intercultural Negotiation (undergraduate) CCN102 Social Media Storytelling (postgraduate)
Experience
Research grant projects (Real-world engagement):
- 2021-2022: The road less travelled: Toward building an agent-based approach to ethics of care for public communication (Chief Investigator) — funded by The Arthur W. Page Center Legacy Scholar Grant, USA.
- 2020 - 2021: Beyond the swipe or click: Evaluating the multi-layered influence of social media campaigns on food waste reduction in Australia (Principal Chief Investigator) — Funded by Australian Government CRC Fight Food Waste Program and NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA), Australia.
- 2019 - 2021: The re-enchantment of strategic narratives and authentic storytelling in disaster risk communication: A case study of “Resilient Queensland Stories” (Principal Chief Investigator) — Funded by The Arthur W. Page Center Legacy Scholar Grant, USA.
- 2018 - 2019: Information for impact: Enabling education providers to address exploitation of international students in accommodation and at work (Chief Investigator) — Funded by NSW Government StudyNSW Partner & Department of Industry, Australia.
- 2018 - 2020: Examining the intersection of public relations and journalism professions in the digital age (Chief Investigator) — Funded by NSW Department of Industry (Techvouchers Scheme) and Public Address Ltd, Australia.
- 2017: The real implications of fake news (Chief Principal Investigator) — funded by The Plank Center for Leadership in Public Relations in partnership with Burson Marsteller New York, USA.
- 2016 - 2017: An interdisciplinary approach to risk communication and crisis management: Key issues, strategies, and evaluation of messaging effectiveness (Principal Chief Investigator) — Funded by European Commission Erasmus+ Scholarship in partnership with University of Limerick Kemmy Business School, Ireland.
Selected publications
- Hou J, (2021) The articulation of 'agency': How can public relations scholarship and institutional theory enrich each other?, Public Relations Inquiry, 10 (1), pp. 97-117.
- Chaidaroon S, Hou J, (2021) Global public relations: Multi-paradigmatic perspectives, key approaches and future directions. In C Valentini, Public relations, De Gruyter Mouton, pp. 399-413.
- Peng A, Hou J, KhosraviNik M, Zhang X, (2021) 'She uses men to boost her career': Chinese digital cultures and gender stereotypes of female academics in Zhihu discourses, Social Semiotics.
- Hou J, Zhu Y, (2020) Social capital, guanxi and political influence in Chinese government relations, Public Relations Review, 46 (1).
- Hou J, (2020) Public relations as community empowerment: Transmedia storytelling, audience engagement and collaborative resilience building in disasters, Presented at: Asia Pacific Public Relations Research and Education Network Symposium, pp. 22-24.
- Hou J, (2020) Understanding Public Relations: Theory, Culture and Society, by Lee Edwards, Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly, 97 (2), pp. 553-555.
- Hou J, (2019) Unlocking the power of digital storytelling for community resilience building in disaster risk communication: A case study from Australia, Presented at: 2019 International Association of Media and Communication Research (IAMCR) Conference, pp. 93-94.
- Hou J, (2019) Exploring the multiple realities of corporate media relations in transitional China: revealing stereotypes, myths, and misperceptions, Communication Research and Practice, 5 (1), pp. 39-56.
- Hou J, Macnamara J, (2017) Beyond a 'spectator sport': Social media for university engagement and community building, Asia Pacific Public Relations Journal, 18, pp. 102-119.
- Hou J, (2016) The emerging 'field' of public relations in China: Multiple interplaying logics and evolving actors' inter-relations, Public Relations Review, 42 (4), pp. 627-640.
QUT ePrints
For more publications by Jenny, explore their research in QUT ePrints (our digital repository).
Awards
- Type
- Funding Award
- Reference year
- 2021
- Details
- Australia Government CRC Fight Food Waste Funding
- Type
- Funding Award
- Reference year
- 2021
- Details
- Arthur W. Page Centre Legacy Scholar Grant (USA)
- Type
- Fellowships
- Reference year
- 2020
- Details
- Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA)
- Type
- Academic Honours, Prestigious Awards or Prizes
- Reference year
- 2017
- Details
- Public Relations Educator Fellowship of The Plank Centre for Leadership in Public Relations (USA)
- Type
- Academic Honours, Prestigious Awards or Prizes
- Reference year
- 2016
- Details
- European Commission Erasmus+ Scholarship
Supervision
Current supervisions
- Food porn or food saving? Investigating the role of TikTok in reducing food waste in Australia
PhD, Principal Supervisor
Other supervisors: Professor Greg Hearn