Benjamin Johnson, Ph.D.

Interim Director - STEM Translational Communication Center
Associate Professor - Department of Advertising

Office: 3208 Weimer Phone: 352-273-2183 Email: benjaminkjohnson@ufl.edu

Bio

Benjamin Johnson (PhD, The Ohio State University) is an associate professor of advertising at the University of Florida. His research is focused on why and how people select and share persuasive messages in new media settings, especially as it relates to psychological processes such as impression management, social comparison, and self-regulation. Dr. Johnson is an editor of Media Psychology and is an author of over 45 peer-reviewed publications in high-profile communication journals.

Areas of Expertise

Consumer Psychology, Data, Numeracy and Coding, Media Psychology and Media Effects, Pop Culture, Social Media

Education

Ph.D., Ohio State University, 2014
M.A., Michigan State University, 2007
B.S., University of Indianapolis, 2005

News

Benjamin Johnson Comments on Social Media and Mental Health (May 18, 2023)
Just Think About It: Identity Shift and Online Brand Engagement (May 10, 2023)
Benjamin Johnson Named UFCJC STEM Translational Communication Center Interim Director (April 17, 2023)
Two UFCJC Students Present at Spring 2023 UF Undergraduate Research Symposium (April 7, 2023)
UFCJC Doctoral Student, Faculty Member and Alumna are Authors of Technology, Mind & Behavior Journal’s “Most Read Article of 2022” (February 23, 2023)
All News About Benjamin Johnson

Publications

Refereed Journal Articles

Johnson, B. K., & Rosenbaum, J. E. (2023). Sharing brands on social media: The roles of behavioural commitment and modality in identity shift. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 47(3), 995-1010. DOI: 10.1111/ijcs.12880

Mueller, S., Morton, C. R., Johnson, B. K., Sharma, B., & Morris, J. D. (2023). Like the dad in the ad: Testing a conceptual model for new fathers’ responses to dadvertisements. International Journal of Advertising. DOI: 10.1080/02650487.2022.2091377

Kryston, K., Ulusoy, E., Grady, S. M., Johnson, B. K., Rosenbaum, J. E., & Eden, A. (2022). Seeking spoilage: The impact of content challenge, self-control, and traits on spoiler selection. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media. DOI: 10.1080/08838151.2022.2110593

Cohen, E. L., Banjo, O., Ferchaud, A., & Johnson, B. K. (2022). Editors' introduction to the special issue: “This is (not) fine”: The psychology of popular media during 2020 crises. Psychology of Popular Media, 11(3), 249. DOI: 10.1037/ppm0000421

Meier, A., & Johnson, B. K. (2022). Social comparison and envy on social media: A critical review. Current Opinion in Psychology, 45, article 101302. DOI: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2022.101302

Lee, S. S., & Johnson, B. K. (2022). Are they being authentic? The effects of self-disclosure and message sidedness on sponsored post effectiveness. International Journal of Advertising, 41(1), 30-53. DOI: 10.1080/02650487.2021.1986257

Sharma, B., Lee, S. S., & Johnson, B. K. (2022). The dark at the end of the tunnel: Doomscrolling on social media newsfeeds. Technology, Mind, and Behavior, 3(1), article 4. DOI: 10.1037/tmb0000059

Grady, S. M., Eden, A., Johnson, B. K., & Reinecke, L. (2022). Media use and avoidance experiences during social distancing. Technology, Mind, and Behavior, 3(1), article 1. DOI: 10.1037/tmb0000041

Ahn, S., Johnson, B. K., Krcmar, M., & Reinecke, L. (2021). Overcoming obstacles and leveraging opportunities. Media Psychology, 24(1), 1-5. DOI: 10.1080/15213269.2021.1875846

Carr, C. T., Kim, Y., Valov, J. J., Rosenbaum, J. E., Johnson, B. K., Hancock, J. T., & Gonzales, A. L. (2021). An explication of identity shift theory: Getting our shift together. Journal of Media Psychology, 33(4), 202-214. DOI: 10.1027/1864-1105/a000314

Lee, S. S., Vollmer, B. T., Yue, C., & Johnson, B. K. (2021). Impartial endorsements: Influencer and celebrity declarations of non-sponsorship and honesty. Computers in Human Behavior, 122, 106858. DOI: 10.1016/j.chb.2021.106858

Johnson, B. K., Bradshaw, A. S., Davis, J., Diegue, V., Frost, L., Hinds, J., Lin, T., Mizell, C., Quintana, D., & Wang, R. (2021). Credible influencers: Sponsored YouTube personalities and the effects of warranting cues. Journal of Media Psychology. DOI: 10.1027/1864-1105/a000310

Petropoulos Petalas, D., Konijn, E. A., Johnson, B. K., Veldhuis, J., Bij de Vaate, N. A., Burgers, C., Droog, E., Międzobrodzka, E., Balint, ., & Van de Schoot, R. (2021). Plurality in the measurement of social media use and mental health: An exploratory study among adolescents and young adults. Social Media + Society, 7(3), article 12. DOI: 10.1177/20563051211035353

Johnson, B. K., Eden, A., Reinecke, L., & Hartmann, T. (2021). Self-control and need satisfaction in primetime: Television, social media, and friends can enhance regulatory resources via perceived autonomy and competence. Psychology of Popular Media. DOI: 10.1037/ppm0000286

Johnson, B. K. (2021). Look up, look down: Articulating inputs and outputs of social media social comparison. Journal of Communication Technology, 4(1), 28-53. DOI: 10.51548/joctec-2021-003

Dienlin, T., Johannes, N., Bowman, N. D., Masur, P. K., Engesser, S., Kümpel, A. S., Lukito, J., Bier, L. M., Zhang, R., Johnson, B. K., & , . (2021). An agenda for open science in communication. Journal of Communication, 7(1), 1-26. DOI: 10.1093/joc/jqz052

Eden, A. L., Johnson, B. K., Reinecke, L., & Grady, S. M. (2020). Media for coping during COVID-19 social distancing: Stress, anxiety, and psychological well-being. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, article 577639. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.577639

Neo, R. L., & Johnson, B. K. (2020). Online products and consumers: Partisan ratings and mechanisms for affective polarization. Telematics and Informatics, 54, article 101467. DOI: 10.1016/j.tele.2020.101467

Johnson, B. K., Neo, R. L., Heijnen, M. E., Smits, L., & Van Veen, C. (2020). Issues, involvement, and influence: Effects of selective exposure and sharing on polarization and participation. Computers in Human Behavior, 104, article 106155. DOI: 10.1016/j.chb.2019.09.031

Johnson, B. K., Udvardi, A., Eden, A., & Rosenbaum, J. E. (2020). Spoilers go bump in the night: Impacts of minor and major reveals on horror film enjoyment. Journal of Media Psychology. DOI: 10.1027/1864-1105/a000252

Book Chapters

Slater, M. D., Johnson, B. K., Silver, N. A., & Ewoldsen, D. R. (2021). Stories enlarge the experience of self: Evidence for the temporarily expanded boundaries of the self (TEBOTS) model. In The Oxford handbook of entertainment theory (pp. 251-265). . DOI: 10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190072216.013.14

Johnson, B. K. (2020). Selective exposure. In International encyclopedia of media psychology. . DOI: 10.1002/9781119011071.iemp0262

Johnson, B. K. (2020). Need for affect. In International encyclopedia of media psychology. . DOI: 10.1002/9781119011071.iemp0250

Johnson, B. K. (2020). Self-control: Self-regulation and impulse control. In International encyclopedia of media psychology. . DOI: 10.1002/9781119011071.iemp0252

Woods, K., Slater, M. D., Cohen, J., Johnson, B. K., & Ewoldsen, D. R. (2018). The experience of narrative in the permanently online, permanently connected environment: Multitasking, self-expansion, and entertainment effects. In Permanently online, permanently connected: Living and communicating in a POPC world (pp. 116-128). Routledge.

Johnson, B. K. (2017). Seeking and avoiding of media: Intergroup approaches. Oxford Univ. Press. DOI: 10.1093/acrefore/9780190228613.013.452

Knobloch-Westerwick, S., Westerwick, A., & Johnson, B. K. (2015). Selective exposure in the communication technology context. (pp. 407-424). John Wiley & Sons.

Rosenbaum, J. E., Johnson, B. K., Stepman, P. A., & Nuitjen, K. C. (2013). “Looking the part” and “staying true”: Balancing impression management on Facebook. In Social networking and impression management: Self-presentation in the digital age (pp. 35-59). Rowman & Littlefield.

Courses

Syllabi from the current and three previous semesters:

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