Alice Veksler

Dr. Alice Veksler is a Professor in the Department of Communication at Christopher Newport University (CNU), serving as Chair of the department and Director of both the Health Communication Research Laboratory and the minor program in Health, Medical, and Wellness Studies. She holds a PhD in Communication Studies (Arizona State University), an MA in Communication Studies (San Diego State University), and an MPH in Public Health (Old Dominion University).

Her research focuses on health communication and the impact of interpersonal interactions on stress, particularly exploring Communicatively Restricted Organizational Stress (CROS) and its health implications for healthcare workers, faculty, and other populations. She integrates physiological measures with communication theory to study stress physiology, social support mechanisms, and relational maintenance in digital contexts. Recent work addresses stress in nursing and the psychological effects of pandemic-related social media use.

Dr. Veksler has received notable awards including the Rose B. Johnson Award (2019) and Western States Communication Association's Top Paper Award (2018). Her publications span journals like Journal of Occupational Medicine and Toxicology and Behavioral Sciences, with authored textbooks on interpersonal communication principles.

In teaching, she covers Health & Medical Communication, Stress and Human Interaction, and Quantitative Methods. She actively collaborates on grants exploring structural support for diverse faculty and has presented at international conferences including the International Communication Association and National Communication Association.

Her lab, the Health Communication Research Laboratory, focuses on translational research to improve individual and community health outcomes through communication interventions. She advocates for evidence-based strategies to mitigate stress in organizational and healthcare settings.