Dr. Rebecca Forster

Dr. Rebecca Forster

Associate Professor
School of Communication; Communication Studies
Expertise: Media Effects; Media Psychology; Media Literacy; Content Analysis; Racial Stereotypes;
Office Location: Becket Building 111
Office Hours: By appointment only
Phone: (714) 516-4685
Scholarly Works:
Digital Commons
Education:
Max Stern Academic College of Emek Yezreel, Bachelor of Arts
Haifa University, Master of Arts
University of Arizona, Ph.D.

Biography

Dr. Rebecca (Riva) Tukachinsky Forster is an associate professor in the School of Communication. She studies media psychology, namely how individuals choose, comprehend and can ultimately be influenced by media.

Her research considers the following questions:

  • Media involvement - While watching a movie, reading a novel, or following a celebrity, many individuals experience powerful emotions and some even develop long-lasting, meaningful emotional connections with characters and media personae as if they were part of their social milieu. What leads to these experiences and how do they contribute to persuasion?
  • Identity and well-being – Belonging to an esteemed group is an important component of people’s personal identity and sense of self-worth. What role does media consumption play in how individuals experience their identity and relate to other social groups? For instance, how do media relate to endorsement of ethnic/racial stereotypes, health stigmatization, psychological well-being, and intergroup dynamics?

Dr. Tukachinsky Forster teaches classes in the domain of media effects and mass communication theory, media literacy, education-entertainment (i.e., using entertainment programs to promote health and pro-social outcomes) and media research methodologies. She enjoys combining teaching and research. She offers students an opportunity to engage in research in the classroom, invites them to work with her on projects that she leads, and mentors students on their own research projects in undergraduate senior seminars, undergraduate and graduate independent studies, and as part of her graduate student advising. Students that worked with Dr. Tukachinsky Forster presented their work at the Chapman University Student Research Symposium and the National Communication Association convention, and published in academic journals such as the International Journal of Communication, Psychology of Popular Media, The Communication Review, and Journal of Media Psychology.

Here are just a few examples of her recent research projects:

  • When media figures disappoint us – What happens when our favorite celebrity makes political statements we disagree with – do we change our mind? Dismiss it? Cancel the celebrity? The answer depends on different factors, Dr. Tukachinsky Foster’s research with her student shows (see here). Her current research looks at cancel culture, hate watching, and celebrity star power going wrong.
  • When actors don’t walk the talk - Adults know the difference between an actor and a fictional character, and realize that actors only do their job playing characters that aren’t real. Right? Think again. Dr. Tukachinsky Foster’s research shows that viewers project negative attributes of a fictional character’ onto the actor that plays that character and this diminishes the actor’s subsequent persuasive power. Read the study here.
  • Celebrity crush explained – Did you ever have a crush on a celebrity? If yes, you are in a good company. Over 80% of college students and more than two thirds of adults in the U.S. did at least once. Drs. Forster Tukachinsky investigates why this happens and what are the consequences (for good or for bad) of these experiences. Read all about this in her book. Her recent work looks into how people can even feel jealous when their celebrity crush engages in a romantic relationship (see here).
  • Media and Intergroup Relationships – Ample research, including that by Dr. Tukachinsky Forster, demonstrates that diversity in mainstream media has important implications for both members of the dominant group (see research on the effects on Whites)  as well as the members of the marginalized groups (read here about effects on Black and Latinx individuals). Her work with senior seminar students examined the psychological predictors of media users’ interest in diversity in the media (see here) and the effect of media representations (see here a publication with senior seminar students about visual framing of police use of deadly force).

Dr. Tukachinsky Forster believes that this knowledge should be used to promote positive social outcomes. To this end, in 2014 Dr. Tukachinsky Forster began working with students on offering a bilingual (English/Spanish) media literacy program to the community. Students participate in a service learning course in which they work with parents/caregivers and children to deliver interactive workshops. The class offers research-backed tips on healthy media habits and provides various resources for helping parents to instill in children lifelong positive media habits and help their children grow to be sophisticated, critical and savvy media consumers. Please visit their website.

Recent Creative, Scholarly Work and Publications

Tukachinsky Forster, R. (2023). The Oxford Handbook of Parasocial Experiences: Falling in love with media figures. Oxford University Press.
Journeay, J. M., Vendemia, M. A., & Forster, R. (R.) T. (2023). Relational effects of romantic partner’s perceived parasocial romantic attachment with pornography. Journal of Media Psychology: Theories, Methods, and Applications. Advance online publication.
Tukachinsky Forster, R., *Neuville, C., *Foucaut, S., *Morgan, S., *Poerschke, A. & *Torres, A . (2022). Media users as allies: personality predictors of dominant group members’ support for racial and sexual diversity in entertainment media. The Communication Review, Advance online publication https://doi.org/10.1080/10714421.2022.2033577
Tukachinsky Forster, R. & *Downey, S. (2022). Losing parasocial friendships over celebrity politics: A cognitive discrepancies approach. Psychology of Popular Media. Advance online publication http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/ppm0000385
Tukachinsky Forster, R. (2022). The green side of parasocial relationships: An exploratory investigation of parasocial jealousy. Psychology of Popular Media, Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1037/ppm0000413
Tukachinsky Forster, R., Walter, N., & Brooks, J. J. (2022). Narrative persuasion across the isle or lack thereof: Effects of discordant character persuasion. Psychology of Popular Media. Advance online publication https://doi.org/10.1037/ppm0000446
Tukachinsky Forster, R. & Mastro, D., & Dragojevic, M. (2022). Dominance and negativity in intergroup interactions on television: A content analysis. Western Journal of Communication. Advance online publication https://doi.org/10.1080/10570314.2022.2146462
Tukachinsky Forster, R., Vendemia, M., *Journey, M., & *Downey, S. (2022). Mixing parasocial friendship with buisness: The effect of sponsorship disclosure timing in vlogs. Journal of Media Psychology. Advance online publication https://doi.org/10.1027/1864-1105/a000362
Tukachinsky Forster, R. (2021). Parasocial romantic relationships: Falling in love with media figures. Lexington Press.
Tukachinsky, R. & Erickson, S. (2021). How media users form romantic relationships with characters. In: K. Shackleford (Ed.), Real characters: The psychology of parasocial relationships with media characters (pp. 167-191). Fielding Graduate University Press.
Tukachinsky, R. & Vendaima, M. (2021). News exposure and COVID-19 recuitionary behaviors. Communication Reports. https://doi.org/10.1080/08934215.2021.1907428
Henderson, L., Tukachinsky Forster, R., Kalili, L., & Guillory, S. (2021). Visual framing effects of news coverage of police use of deadly force on intergroup relationships. Howard Journal of Communication, 34(2), 65-77. https://doi.org/10.1080/08934215.2021.1907428
Tukachinsky, R. (2020). Playing a bad character but endorsing a good cause: Actor-character fundamental attribution error and persuasion. Communication Reports, 33, 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1080/08934215.2019.1691618
Walter, N., & Tukachinsky, R. (2020). A meta-analytic examination of the continued influence of misinformation in the face of correction: How powerful is it, why does it happen, and how to stop it? Communication Research, 47(2), 155–177. https://doi.org/10.1177/0093650219854600
Tukachinsky, R., Walter, N., & Saucier, C. (2020). Antecedents and effects of parasocial relationships: A meta-analysis. Journal of Communication, 70(6), 868–894. https://doi.org/10.1093/joc/jqaa034
Tukachinsky, R., *Inaba, H., *Kraus, K., *Stewart, D., & *Williams, M. (2019). Sex, likes and Instagram: Celebrity self-presentation on Instagram images. In C. Madere, Star power: The media effects created by celebrities, (pp. 165-179). Rowman & Littlefield. [Original research]
Tukachinsky, R., *Brogan-Freitas, E., & *Urbanovich, T. (2019). Promoting support for public health policies through mediated contact: Can narrator perspective and self-disclosure curb ingroup favoritism? International Journal of Communication, 13, 4553–4571.
Tukachinsky, R. & Stever, G. (2018). Theorizing development of parasocial engagement. Communication Theory. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1093/ct/qty032
Walter, N., Tukachinsky, R., Pelled, A., & Nabi, R. (2019). Meta-analysis of anger and persuasion: An integration of three models. Journal of Communication, 69(1), 73-93 https://doi.org/10.1093/joc/jqy054
Walter, N., & Tukachinsky, R. (2019). A meta-analytic examination of the continued influence of misinformation in the face of correction: How powerful is it, why does it happen, and how to stop it? Communication Research. Advance online publication: https://doi.org/10.1177/0093650219854600
Tukachinsky, R., & Eyal, K. (2018). The psychology of marathon television viewing: Antecedents and viewer involvement. Mass Communication and Society, 21(3). Advance online publication https://doi.org/10.1080/15205436.2017.1422765
Tukachinsky, R., & Dorros, S. (2018). Parasocial romantic relationships, romantic beliefs, and relationship outcomes in U.S. adolescents: Rehearsing love or setting oneself up to fail?. Journal of Children and Media, 12(4). Advance online publication https://doi.org/10.1080/17482798.2018.1463917
Tukachinsky, R., & O’Conner, C.* (2017). Involvement with media content. In P. Roessler (Ed.), International encyclopedia of media effects. Wiley Publications. [Peer-reviewed]
Tukachinsky, R. (online publication July 2017, in print 2018). Media portrayals and effects: African Americans. In H. Giles & J. Harwood (Eds.), Oxford encyclopedia of intergroup communication. Oxford Press University. [Peer-reviewed]
Tukachinsky, R., Mastro, D., & Yarchi, M. (2017). Effects of media representations of ethnic minorities on Black and Latino viewers’ self- and majority-group perceptions. Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media, 61(3), 538-556.
Liang, J., & Tukachinsky, R. (2017). Narrative persuasion 2.0: Transportation in participatory websites. Communication Research Reports, 34(3), 201-210.
Tukachinsky, R., & Sangalang, A. (2016). The Effect of Relational and Interactive Aspects of Parasocial Experiences on Attitudes and Message Resistance. Communication Reports, 1-14.
Tukachinsky, R. (2015). When actors don’t walk the talk: Parasocial relationships moderate the effect of actor-character incongruence. International Journal of Communication, 9, 3394–3410.
Tukachinsky, R. (2015). When actors don’t walk the talk: Parasocial relationships moderate the effect of actor-character incongruence. International Journal of Communication, 9, 3394–3410.
Tukachinsky, R. H., & Mastro, D. (2015). Journal of Social Issues. Special Issues on the topic of: Media representations of race and ethnicity: Implications for identity, intergroup relations, and public policy.
Tukachinsky, R. (2013). Parasocial relationships. In M. S. Eastin (Ed.), Encyclopedia of media violence. (pp. 278-282). Sage Publications.
Tukachinsky, R. (2014). Experimental manipulation of psychological involvement with media. Methods and Measures in Communication, 8, 1-33.
Tukachinsky, R., & Tokunaga, R. S. (2013). The effects of engagement with entertainment, Communication Yearbook, 37, 287-322.
Mastro, D., & Tukachinsky, R. H. (2012). Cultivation of perceptions of marginalized communities. In M. Morgan, J. Shanahan & N. Signorielli (Eds.), The cultivation differential (pp. 38-60). Peter Lang Publishing.
Mastro, D., & Tukachinsky, R. H. (2011). Exemplar versus prototype-based processing of media content and the influence on racial/ethnic evaluations. Journal of Communication, 61, 916-937.
Tukachinsky, R. H. (2011). Para-romantic love and para-friendships: Development and assessment of a multiple-parasocial relationships scale. American Journal of Media Psychology, 3(1/2), 73-94.
Tukachinsky, R., Mastro, D., & King, A. (2011). Is a picture worth a thousand words: The effects of race-related visual versus verbal race-related exemplars on attitudes and support for social policies. Mass Communication and Society, 14(6), 720-742.

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