John Leach

John Leach serves as a Lecturer in the Department of Communication at the University of Maryland's College of Arts and Humanities while completing his Ph.D. under Dr. Kang Namkoong.

• B.A. in Communication Analysis & Practice from The Ohio State University
• M.A. in Mass Communication from Texas Tech University

His research specializes in health communication with focus on emerging media's effects on body image, eating disorders, and occupational health. He employs quantitative methodologies and champions McDonald's ω for reliability assessment across investigations into immersive narratives and science communication. Current departmental research involvement spans media effects, corporate social responsibility, and health communication initiatives.

Leach's 2022 publication examined communication apprehension differences between synchronous and asynchronous online presentational speaking formats, analyzing 178 student responses to inform course design adaptations for digital learning environments.

He actively contributes to funded research projects across five domains while teaching COMM 107: Communication Principles and Practice and COMM 400: Research Methods in Communication, having presented findings at International Communication Association and Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication conferences.