Dear colleagues,

The study of psychological factors in communication research boasts a rich scholarly history. Dating back over a century, this research encompasses a wide range of theories and concepts that describe and explain how individuals think, feel, and communicate about themselves. The rise of technologies, ranging from social media to large language model and artificial intelligence, has introduced new dimensions to communications studies. Meanwhile, communication researchers are faced with new challenges as research methodologies and experimental equipments continue to evolve. Given the fragmented nature of research related to media psychology within communications studies, in this special issue, we sincerely invite potential authors to submit theoretically-grounded manuscripts that will enhance our insight and understanding of the interdisciplinary field of psychology and communication. We also encourage proposals from a variety of scholarly areas and welcome all methodological approaches.

Submissions should be original research and not published or under review in another peer-reviewed publication. Empirical research papers will be appreciated but excellent qualitative research papers will also be considered. Prospective submissions types include original papers, case studies, meta-analysis and empirical reviews.

The main significant contribution of this special issue is to emphasize the importance of applying psychological research variables and methods to communications and promote the further development of media psychology research (especially in the era of social media), the area at the intersection of psychology and communication.