Dr. Rimal’s areas of expertise are in risk perception and risk communication. He studies how individuals process health information, particularly information dealing with various risk factors. Dr. Rimal's research also focuses on the influence of societal norms on individuals' behaviors. He is currently working on a number of projects designed reduce HIV infection in various countries in Africa, including Malawi, Uganda, and Ethiopia.

health communication, risk communication, risky behaviors, health communication, health promotion, normative influences, health message design, new technology in health promotion, risk

Advisor to the Master's Thesis of the Year (Sarah Gibson, Advisee), Joint International & National Communication Association, 2007 Ex-officio Chair, Health Communication Division, International Communication Association Ex-officio Chair, Health Communication Division, National Communication Association Top-Four Paper Awards, Health Communication Division, International Communication Association annual conferences in 2008, 2004, 2003 (two papers), 2002, 2001, 2000, 1994. Top-Four Paper Awards, Health Communication Division, National Communication Association annual conferences in 2004, 2002. Nathan Maccobby Award for Excellence in Communication Research, Stanford University, 1995 Editorial and Review Board Membership Journals Social Influence, Journal of Health and Mass Communication, The Open Communication Journal, Human Communication Research, Journal of Communication (2005), Communication Monographs (2005), Health Communication. Federal Government Review Boards Risk, Prevention, and Health Behavior (RPHB2) Study Section, National Institutes of Health, 2001-2003 Psychosocial Risk and Disease Prevention (PRDP) Study Section, National Institutes of Health, 2003-2007 Editor
Guest Co-Editor, Communication Theory Special Issue on Communication and Normative Influences, 2006

Publications, last three years
Rimal, R. N., Brown, J., Mkandawire, G., Folda, L., & Creel, A. H. (in press). Audience segmentation as a social marketing tool in health promotion: Use of the risk perception attitude (RPA) framework in HIV prevention in Malawi. American Journal of Public Health. Adams, S., Crawford, A., Rimal, R., Lee, J., Janneck, L., & Sciamanna, C. (in press). The effects of a computer-tailored message on secondary prevention in Type 2 Diabetes: A randomized trial. American Journal of Medical Quality. Rimal, R. N., & Lapinski, M. L. (2009). Why health communication is important in public health. (Editorial) Bulletin of the World Health Organization. 87, 247-248. Rimal, R. N., & Juon, H. S. (in press). Use of the risk perception attitude (RPA) framework to understand attention paid to breast cancer information and prevention behaviors among immigrant Indian women. Journal of Applied Social Psychology. Lapinski, M. L., Rimal. R. N., Klein, K. A., Shulman, H. C. (2009). Risk perceptions of people living with HIV/AIDS: How similarity affects optimistic bias. Journal of Health Psychology, 14, 251-257. Rimal, R. N., Böse, K., Brown, J., Mkandawire, G., & Folda, L. (2009). Extending the purview of the risk perception attitude (RPA) framework: Findings from HIV/AIDS prevention research in Malawi. Health Communication. 24, 210-218. Smith, R. A., & Rimal, R. N. (2009). The impact of social capital on HIV-related actions as mediated by personal and proxy efficacies in Namibia. AIDS and Behavior, 13, 133-144. Ho, L., Gittelsohn, G., Sharma, S., Rimal, R., Rosecrans, A., Treuth, M., & Harris, S. B. (2008). An integrated multi-institutional diabetes prevention program improves knowledge and healthy food acquisition in northwestern Ontario First Nations. Health Education & Behavior, 35. 561-573. Ho, L., Gittelsohn, G., Sharma, S., Cao, X., Treuth, M., Rimal, R., Ford, E., & Stewart, B. (2008). Food related behavior, physical activity, and dietary intake in First Nations – a population at high risk for diabetes. Ethnicity & Health. 13, 335-349. Rimal, R., & Creel, A. H., Bose, K., Mkandawire, G., & Folda, L. (2008). Applying social marketing principles to understand the effects of the Radio Diaries program in reducing HIV/AIDS stigma in Malawi. Health Marketing Quarterly, 25,119-146. Rimal, R. (2008). Modeling the relationship between descriptive norms and behaviors: A test and extension of the theory of normative social behavior (TNSB). Health Communication, 23, 103-116. Rimal, R. (2008). Media campaigns and perceptions of reality. The Blackwell International Encyclopedia of Communication, 10. 4706-4711. Rimal, R., & Lapinski, M. L. (2008). Understanding the mutual influence between social norms and human communication. The Blackwell International Encyclopedia of Communication, 6. 2820-2824. Lapinski, M., Rimal, R. N., DeVries, R., & Lee, E. L. (2007). The role of group orientation and descriptive norms on water conservation attitudes and behaviors. Health Communication, 22, 133-142. Jampel, H. D., Frick, K. D., Janz, N. K., Wren, P. A., Musch, D. C., Rimal, R., & Lichter, P. R. (2007). Depression and mood indicators in newly diagnosed glaucoma patients. American Journal of Ophthalmology, 144, 238-244. Real, K., & Rimal, R. N. (2007). Friends talk to friends about drinking: Exploring the role of peer communication in the theory of normative social behavior. Health Communication, 22. 169-180. Rimal, R. N., & Morrison, D. (2006). A uniqueness to personal threat (UPT) hypothesis: How similarity affects perceptions of susceptibility and severity in risk assessment. Health Communication, 20, 209-219. Yanovitzky, I., & Rimal, R. N. (2006). Communication and normative influence: An introduction to the special issue. Communication Theory, 16. 1-6. Turner, M. M., Rimal, R. N., Morrison, D., & Kim, H. (2006). The role of anxiety in processing risk information: Testing the risk perception attitude framework in two studies. Human Communication Research. 32, 130-156.

Number of visits to this Website: since

12/9/2008

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