Updated on Jul 12, 2024

Education Background

Michigan State University

I am a Ph.D. candidate at Michigan State University. Continuing...

July 2021 - now

Peking University

September 2018 - July 2020

Xiamen University

September 2014- June 2018

I got my Master's degree at Peking University and majored in Communication studies. My thesis was Rethinking Intersubjectivity: The Ethical Reconciliation and Dilemma of Retouching, which achieved the Excellent Master Thesis at Peking University.

Click for further information (in Chinese).

I earned my Bachelor's degree at Xiamen University, specializing in Advertising.

University of Michigan

Certificate in Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) Program

2022

Publications

Zhan, E. S., Zheng, Q., Dong, C., Thorson, E. (2025). Does AI Knowledge Influence Trust in Government? The Moderating Role of AI Knowledge in Response to AI-Generated “Caring” Crisis Responses. 1–24. International Journal of Strategic Communication. https://doi.org/10.1080/1553118X.2025.2471527

Dong, C., Harrison, V., Zheng, Q. (2024). When controversy meets controversy, what do you see? Understanding the visual communication of cannabis companies’ corporate social advocacy on Instagram. Public Relations Review, 50(1), 102417. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2023.102417

Zheng. Q., Dong, C.,* Y., Zhang. (2023). When relational transparency backfires: Examining the various impacts of authentic leadership on employee trust during the Covid-19 pandemic. Corporate Communications: An International Journal, 29(3), 430-450. https://doi.org/10.1108/CCIJ-05-2023-0066

Zheng, Q. (2023). Restoring trust through transparency: Examining the effects of transparency strategies on police crisis communication in Mainland China. Public Relations Review, 49(2), 102296. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2023.102296

Dong. C., Song, B., Cheng, Y., Zheng, Q. (2023). Tracking CSR communication research within the Chinese context:
A systematic literature review. International Journal of Business Communication, 61(2), 385-413. https://doi.org/10.1177/23294884231156508

Dong, C., Zheng, Q, Morehouse, J. (2023). What do we know about Government Public Relations (GPR)? A review of GPR in Public Relations literature. Public Relations Review, 49(1), 102284. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2022.102284

Zheng, Q. (2021). Wandering between the nation and individuals: The articulation of multi-ideologies in Shen Pao’s medical advertisements. Modern Advertising, 07, 34-41. (In Chinese, cited: 2)

Zheng, Q. (2020). Probing the reorientation from photography ethics to photo retouching ethics research based on literature review. Advertising Panorama, 04, 53-61. (In Chinese)

Zheng, Q., & Zhang, X. (2019). Research on interaction and immersion of variety shows from the perspective of interactive narratology in the Digital Era. News Knowledge, 05, 23-26. (In Chinese, cited: 10)

Zheng, Q. (2019). The game between rationality and emotion in the public sphere: The origin and analysis of Public Emotion Research. Young Journalist, 24, 32-33. DOI: 10.15997/j.cnki.qnjz.2019.24.011(In Chinese, cited:11)

Conference presentations

Dong, C., Zheng, Q., Morehouse, J. (2025, June 12-16). Understanding the manifestation and impact of care ethics at workplace in the public sector: A multilevel care model highlighting generational differences. Paper presented at 75th Annual Conference of the International Communication Association (ICA). Denver, US.

Ren, B, & Zheng, Q. (2025, March). Strategies, psychological reactions, or beyond? Mapping emotions in public relations literature through computational modeling. Paper presented at 28th International Public Relations Research Conference (IPRRC), Orlando, US.

Zheng, Q. (2024, November). When being justice unto themselves: Exploring the role of morally-founded communication strategies from federal law enforcement organizations to influence public engagement. Paper presented at National Communication Association 110th Annual Convention (NCA). New Orleans, US. (Presenter)

Morehouse, J., Dong, C., Zheng, Q. (2024, November). The impact of employee relationships and engagement on ethical communication strategies: Examining antecedents to care-based humanization and empathy. Paper presented at National Communication Association 110th Annual Convention (NCA). New Orleans, US.

Zhan E. S., Zheng, Q., Dong, C., Thorson, E. (2024, July). Does AI-generated caring message increase trust in government? The pivotal role of AI knowledge in government crisis responses. Paper presented at 107th Annual Conference of Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC), Philadelphia, PA. (Presenter)

Zheng, Q., Zhan E. S., Dong, C., Thorson, E., Hu, J., M. (2024, July). Can AI chatbots support me? Exploring the roles of governmental agent type and (non)verbal person-centered communication strategies during natural disasters. Paper presented at 107th Annual Conference of Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC), Philadelphia, PA. (Presenter)

Morehouse, J., Dong, C., Zheng, Q. (2024, July). Individual-level antecedents in care-based relationship management: Assessing factors to ethical public relations in the government sector. Paper presented at 31th edition of International Public Relations Research Symposium (BledCom), Lake Bled, Slovenia.

Zhang, X. & Zheng, Q. (2024, June). “Online for you, offline for us:” Understanding political implications of transregional news repertoires during the US-China tensions. Paper presented at 74th Annual Conference of the International Communication Association (ICA), Gold Coast, Australia. (Presenter, ICA Top Student Paper Award)

Zheng, Q., Zhang, .H-X (2024, March). Should campus police adopt moral-founded strategies to foster public engagement? A computer-assisted approach. Paper presented at 27th International Public Relations Research Conference (IPRRC), Orlando, US. (Presenter; University of Miami School of Communication Top Student Paper Award)

Dong, C., Zheng, Q., Morehouse, .J. (2024, March). Cultivating empathetic government communicators: A gender-informed multi-level framework. Paper presented at 27th International Public Relations Research Conference (IPRRC), Orlando, US. (Presenter)

Zheng, Q., Dong, C.* (2023, November). When relational transparency backfires: Examining the various impacts of authentic leadership on employee trust during the Covid-19 pandemic. Paper presented at the 109th National Communication Association Annual Convention (NCA), National Harbor, Maryland. (Presenter)

Zheng, Q., Dong, C.*, Alade, F. (2023, August). Debunking misinformation to facilitate caregivers’ COVID-19 vaccine intentions: Integrating message concreteness and corrective information source. Paper presented at the 106th Annual Conference of Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC), Washington, DC. (Presenter)

Zheng, Q., Xu, D., Duan, Q-T*. (2023, May). Act real after a data Breach: An exploratory investigation of the role of authenticity in Chinese crisis management. Paper presented at the 73rd Annual International Communication Association Conference (ICA), Toronto, Canada. (Presenter)

Dong, C., Harrison, V., Zheng, Q., Vandenberg., M. (2023, May). When controversy meets controversy, what do you see? Understanding the visual communication of cannabis companies’ corporate social advocacy on Instagram. Paper presented at the 73rd Annual International Communication Association Conference (ICA), Toronto, Canada.

Zheng, Q. & Zhang, X*. (2022, August). Mourning as collective actions: Examining how mourning frames and dynamics materialize on the Chinese "Online Wailing Wall" during the Covid-19 Pandemic. Paper presented at 105th Annual Conference of Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC), Detroit, Michigan. (Presenter; AEJMC III Student Top Research Paper Award)

Zheng, Q & Dong C*. (2022, March). Restoring trust through transparency: Examining the effects of transparency strategies on police crisis communication in Mainland China. Paper presented at 25th International Public Relations Research Conference (IPRRC), Orlando, US. (Presenter; Koichi Yamamura International Strategic Communication Award)

Zhang, X., & Zheng, Q. (2019, June). Data and Interaction: The Enlightenment of Digital Advertising on Media Development. paper presented at The Shenzhen Forum: Communication Innovation, New Media & Digital Journalism (NCA’s forum), Shenzhen, China. (In Chinese)

Invited Chapters

Zheng, Q., Lee, H., Tong, Z. (2023). “Beside the golden door” immigrants and immigration-related debates in advertising and Public Relations. In A., Kononova, T., Mastin, S., McFarlane-Alvarez (Eds). Different together:diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in advertising and public relations. Kendall Hunt. https://he.kendallhunt.com/product/different-together-diversity-equity-inclusion-and-belonging-advertising-and-public

Lee, H., & Zheng, Q. (Upcoming). Nation branding, public diplomacy, and global advertising and public relations. In A., Kononova, T., Mastin, S., McFarlane-Alvarez (Eds). Different together:diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in advertising and public relations. Kendall Hunt.

Previous Research Engagement

Peking University

Digital Advertising Management for Chinese Central Television (2019.4-2019.10)

Led the focus group for renewing the advertising system for traditional media, headquarters of Chinese Central Television, in Beijing.

Textbook Creative Communication Management (2018.9-2019.6)

Supported compiling and revising the textbook about programmatic advertising systems in China.

Xiamen University

How journalists deal with emergencies and incidents (2017.9-2017.12)

Independently worked on analyses

Education Background

Michigan State University

Peking University

Xiamen University

University of Michigan

Publications

Dong, C., Harrison, V., Zheng, Q. (2024). When controversy meets controversy, what do you see? Understanding the visual communication of cannabis companies’ corporate social advocacy on Instagram. Public Relations Review, 50(1), 102417. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2023.102417

Zheng. Q., Dong, C.,* Y., Zhang. (2023). When relational transparency backfires: Examining the various impacts of authentic leadership on employee trust during the Covid-19 pandemic. Corporate Communications: An International Journal, 29(3), 430-450. https://doi.org/10.1108/CCIJ-05-2023-0066

Zheng, Q. (2023). Restoring trust through transparency: Examining the effects of transparency strategies on police crisis communication in Mainland China. Public Relations Review, 49(2), 102296. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2023.102296

Dong. C., Song, B., Cheng, Y., Zheng, Q. (2023). Tracking CSR communication research within the Chinese context:
A systematic literature review. International Journal of Business Communication, 61(2), 385-413. https://doi.org/10.1177/23294884231156508

Dong, C., Zheng, Q, Morehouse, J. (2023). What do we know about Government Public Relations (GPR)? A review of GPR in Public Relations literature. Public Relations Review, 49(1), 102284. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2022.102284

Zheng, Q. (2021). Wandering between the nation and individuals: The articulation of multi-ideologies in Shen Pao’s medical advertisements. Modern Advertising, 07, 34-41. (In Chinese, cited: 2)

Zheng, Q. (2020). Probing the reorientation from photography ethics to photo retouching ethics research based on literature review. Advertising Panorama, 04, 53-61. (In Chinese)

Zheng, Q., & Zhang, X. (2019). Research on interaction and immersion of variety shows from the perspective of interactive narratology in the Digital Era. News Knowledge, 05, 23-26. (In Chinese, cited: 10)

Zheng, Q. (2019). The game between rationality and emotion in the public sphere: The origin and analysis of Public Emotion Research. Young Journalist, 24, 32-33. DOI: 10.15997/j.cnki.qnjz.2019.24.011(In Chinese, cited:11)

Conference presentations

Ren, B, & Zheng, Q. (2025, March). Strategies, psychological reactions, or beyond? Mapping emotions in public relations literature through computational modeling. Paper presented at 28th International Public Relations Research Conference (IPRRC), Orlando, US.

Dong, C., Zheng, Q., Morehouse, .J. (2024, March). Cultivating empathetic government communicators: A gender-informed multi-level framework. Paper presented at 27th International Public Relations Research Conference (IPRRC), Orlando, US. (Presenter)

Zheng, Q., Xu, D., Duan, Q-T*. (2023, May). Act real after a data Breach: An exploratory investigation of the role of authenticity in Chinese crisis management. Paper presented at the 73rd Annual International Communication Association Conference (ICA), Toronto, Canada. (Presenter)

Zhang, X., & Zheng, Q. (2019, June). Data and Interaction: The Enlightenment of Digital Advertising on Media Development. paper presented at The Shenzhen Forum: Communication Innovation, New Media & Digital Journalism (NCA’s forum), Shenzhen, China. (In Chinese)

Invited Chapters

Lee, H., & Zheng, Q. (Upcoming). Nation branding, public diplomacy, and global advertising and public relations. In A., Kononova, T., Mastin, S., McFarlane-Alvarez (Eds). Different together:diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in advertising and public relations. Kendall Hunt.

Previous Research Engagement

Peking University

Xiamen University

Honors and Scholarships (Selected)

2024 Advertising Graduate Student Fellowship for Productivity Award, Michigan State University

2024 Bonnie B. Reece Graduate Scholarship, Michigan State University

2023 Outstanding Ph.D. Student, Michigan State University

2022 Janet L. Loria Graduate Student Scholarship, Michigan State University

2018-2019 Chinese National Scholarship for graduates, Peking University (1%)

2016-2017 Chinese National Scholarship for undergraduates, Xiamen University (1%)

2019 Honorary Graduate of Peking University, Peking University

2019 Outstanding Student of Peking University, Peking University

Xiamen Shu-dou Wang & Wen-Jing Wang Scholarship, Foundation for Xiamen Education (2018, 2017, 2016)

Wen-Qing Scholarship (Top Three Scholarships), Xiamen University (1%, 10 out of 4300)

Mao-yuan Pan Scholarship, Xiamen University (1%)

Outstanding Student of Xiamen University, Xiamen University

Education Background

Michigan State University

Peking University

Xiamen University

University of Michigan

Publications

Dong, C., Harrison, V., Zheng, Q. (2024). When controversy meets controversy, what do you see? Understanding the visual communication of cannabis companies’ corporate social advocacy on Instagram. Public Relations Review, 50(1), 102417. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2023.102417

Zheng. Q., Dong, C.,* Y., Zhang. (2023). When relational transparency backfires: Examining the various impacts of authentic leadership on employee trust during the Covid-19 pandemic. Corporate Communications: An International Journal, 29(3), 430-450. https://doi.org/10.1108/CCIJ-05-2023-0066

Zheng, Q. (2023). Restoring trust through transparency: Examining the effects of transparency strategies on police crisis communication in Mainland China. Public Relations Review, 49(2), 102296. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2023.102296

Dong. C., Song, B., Cheng, Y., Zheng, Q. (2023). Tracking CSR communication research within the Chinese context: A systematic literature review. International Journal of Business Communication, 61(2), 385-413. https://doi.org/10.1177/23294884231156508

Dong, C., Zheng, Q, Morehouse, J. (2023). What do we know about Government Public Relations (GPR)? A review of GPR in Public Relations literature. Public Relations Review, 49(1), 102284. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pubrev.2022.102284

Zheng, Q. (2021). Wandering between the nation and individuals: The articulation of multi-ideologies in Shen Pao’s medical advertisements. Modern Advertising, 07, 34-41. (In Chinese, cited: 2)

Zheng, Q. (2020). Probing the reorientation from photography ethics to photo retouching ethics research based on literature review. Advertising Panorama, 04, 53-61. (In Chinese)

Zheng, Q., & Zhang, X. (2019). Research on interaction and immersion of variety shows from the perspective of interactive narratology in the Digital Era. News Knowledge, 05, 23-26. (In Chinese, cited: 10)

Zheng, Q. (2019). The game between rationality and emotion in the public sphere: The origin and analysis of Public Emotion Research. Young Journalist, 24, 32-33. DOI: 10.15997/j.cnki.qnjz.2019.24.011(In Chinese, cited:11)

Conference presentations

Ren, B, & Zheng, Q. (2025, March). Strategies, psychological reactions, or beyond? Mapping emotions in public relations literature through computational modeling. Paper presented at 28th International Public Relations Research Conference (IPRRC), Orlando, US.

Dong, C., Zheng, Q., Morehouse, .J. (2024, March). Cultivating empathetic government communicators: A gender-informed multi-level framework. Paper presented at 27th International Public Relations Research Conference (IPRRC), Orlando, US. (Presenter)

Zheng, Q., Xu, D., Duan, Q-T*. (2023, May). Act real after a data Breach: An exploratory investigation of the role of authenticity in Chinese crisis management. Paper presented at the 73rd Annual International Communication Association Conference (ICA), Toronto, Canada. (Presenter)

Zhang, X., & Zheng, Q. (2019, June). Data and Interaction: The Enlightenment of Digital Advertising on Media Development. paper presented at The Shenzhen Forum: Communication Innovation, New Media & Digital Journalism (NCA’s forum), Shenzhen, China. (In Chinese)

Invited Chapters

Lee, H., & Zheng, Q. (Upcoming). Nation branding, public diplomacy, and global advertising and public relations. In A., Kononova, T., Mastin, S., McFarlane-Alvarez (Eds). Different together:diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in advertising and public relations. Kendall Hunt.

Previous Research Engagement

Peking University

Xiamen University

Honors and Scholarships (Selected)

2024 Advertising Graduate Student Fellowship for Productivity Award, Michigan State University

2024 Bonnie B. Reece Graduate Scholarship, Michigan State University

2023 Outstanding Ph.D. Student, Michigan State University

2022 Janet L. Loria Graduate Student Scholarship, Michigan State University

2018-2019 Chinese National Scholarship for graduates, Peking University (1%)

2016-2017 Chinese National Scholarship for undergraduates, Xiamen University (1%)

2019 Honorary Graduate of Peking University, Peking University

2019 Outstanding Student of Peking University, Peking University

Xiamen Shu-dou Wang & Wen-Jing Wang Scholarship, Foundation for Xiamen Education (2018, 2017, 2016)

Wen-Qing Scholarship (Top Three Scholarships), Xiamen University (1%, 10 out of 4300)

Mao-yuan Pan Scholarship, Xiamen University (1%)

Outstanding Student of Xiamen University, Xiamen University

Dong. C., Song, B., Cheng, Y., Zheng, Q. (2023). Tracking CSR communication research within the Chinese context:
A systematic literature review. International Journal of Business Communication, 61(2), 385-413. https://doi.org/10.1177/23294884231156508