Communications expert to discuss ‘friendship in the digital age’

Tiffany Petricini to present "Friendship in the Digital Age" at Lecture Series

Penn State Shenango’s final Lecture Series event will feature Assistant Teaching Professor Tiffany Petricini, program coordinator for the campus’s corporate communications major. Petricini will present research in her lecture titled "Friendship in the Digital Age: Togetherness in Lonely Times" on March 24.

Credit: Brooke Doerfler

SHARON, Pa. — Texting, video chatting, commenting, and “liking” have become mainstays of modern friendships, a topic Assistant Teaching Professor Tiffany Petricini will explore at Penn State Shenango’s next Lecture Series "Friendship in the Digital Age: Togetherness in lonely times" at 5:30 p.m. March 24. The event is free and open to the public, but registration is required at shenango.psu.edu/lectureseries.

“I’ve studied how social media has altered our friendships and our sense of connection,” said Petricini. “While we can now maintain relationships that span time zones and continents, we also lose fundamentals like human presence, and navigating barriers and conflict.”

Petricini continued, “Local Facebook groups that came about during the pandemic like ‘Shenango Valley Good Samaritans’ was an awesome way we were able to be together during a lonely time. It demonstrates that humans are driven to create connected communities.”

Petricini is the program coordinator for the campus’ corporate communication major and has authored an upcoming book “Friendship and Technology: A Philosophical Approach to Computer Mediated Communication,” highlighting her research on how participatory media impacts friendships and connections.

Registration is required for 2021-22 Lecture Series, available at shenango.psu.edu/lectureseries. Location information will be provided upon registration. Questions about the Lecture Series can be directed to Melissa Fowler at 724-983-2825.

Contact

Melissa Fowler

Academic Affairs Administrative Support Coordinator, Penn State Shenango

Work Phone
724-983-2825