Julie Apker
Associate Professor of Communication
Office:
(269) 387-3140Location:
321 Sprau Tower, Mail Stop 5318Mailing address:
School of CommunicationWestern Michigan University
1903 W Michigan Ave
Kalamazoo MI 49008-5318 USA
Education:
- Ph.D., Communication Studies, University of Kansas, 2000
- M.A., Communication Studies, University of Kansas, 1994
- B.A., Communication-Public Relations, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, 1991
Teaching interests:
- Health and organizational communication
- Health professional roles and relationships
- Professional identity
Bio:
Dr. Julie Apker is an associate professor in the School of Communication at Western Michigan University.
Apker’s program of research investigates communication in health organizations, bridging health communication and organizational communication in the following areas:
- Professional communication patterns and strategies that affect patient safety.
- Development and negotiation of caregiver roles, particularly communicative behaviors that affect bedside care delivery and caregiver identity.
- Communicative and organizational stressors that contribute to outcomes such as quality of work life, job satisfaction, and retention.
- Supportive communication that helps minimize or prevent job-related stressors and enhances team dynamics.
- Qualitative research methods (e.g., focus groups, personal interviews, observations).