Yuan Sun, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor - Department of Advertising
Office: 3061 Weimer
Email: yuan.sun@ufl.edu
Yuan Sun, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor - Department of Advertising
Yuan Sun is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Advertising at the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications.
Her research primarily focuses on the role and impact of artificial intelligence (AI) in strategic communication, including how user trust is developed and calibrated in the context of digital health and advertising. She also studies the psychological effects of social media and advertising campaigns on prosocial behaviors.
Sun has authored or co-authored ten peer-reviewed articles that yield publications in leading academic journals, including Journal of Advertising, Health Communication and Social Media + Society, and in the proceedings of prestigious conferences of the Association of Computing Machinery such as Computer-Human Interaction (CHI), Computer-Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing (CSCW), and Human-Robot Interaction (HRI).
Before pursuing her PhD, Sun built 7 years of experience in marketing and public relations. As Director of Overseas PR for Cheetah Mobile, a Beijing-based tech company, she led international reputation management and organized campaigns promoting their AI business. She also held marketing roles at Jide Technology and COFCO Property Investment in Beijing. Earlier, she was a news assistant at The New York Times Beijing Bureau and an intern at CNN Beijing.
Areas of Expertise
Artificial Intelligence (AI), Emerging Media (gaming, VR, etc.), Health Communication, Media Psychology and Media Effects, Strategic Communication, Trust
Education
Ph.D., Pennsylvania State University Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications
M.A. in Media Studies, Pennsylvania State University Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications
B.A., Journalism and International and Public Affairs, Peking University, China.
News
- Haoran “Chris” Chu, Linjuan Rita Men and Yuan Sun Receive Page/Johnson Legacy Scholar Grant (April 4, 2025)
- UFCJC Advertising Faculty, Doctoral Students and Alumni Recognized at 2025 AAA Annual Conference (March 12, 2025)
- Study: Generative Artificial Intelligence Chatbot Can Help Diverse Communities Prepare for Florida Hurricanes (January 27, 2025)
- Yuan Sun Named to JAR Editorial Review Board and CHI 2025 International Conference Subcommittee (November 21, 2024)
- UFCJC Advertising Faculty, Doctoral Students and Alumni Recognized at 2024 AAA Annual Conference (March 19, 2024)
- All News About Yuan Sun
Publications
Refereed Journal Articles
Sun, Y., Eng, N., Vasquez, T., & Myrick, J. G. (2025). A Picture is Worth a Thousand “Likes”: Examining the Effects of Social Media Content Type and Social Norm Cues on Workout Intentions. Health Communication, 1-13. DOI: 10.1080/10410236.2025.2484024
Sun, Y. (2025). Tailoring generative AI chatbots for multiethnic communities in disaster preparedness communication: extending the CASA paradigm. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication. DOI: 10.1093/jcmc/zmae022
Sun, Y. (2024). I Am Not Your Typical Chatbot: Hedonic and Utilitarian Evaluation of Open-Domain Chatbots. International Journal of Human–Computer Interaction. DOI: 10.1080/10447318.2024.2416016
Sun, Y., Chen, J., & Sundar, S. S. (2023). Chatbot ads with a human touch: A test of anthropomorphism, interactivity, and narrativity. Journal of Business Research. DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2023.114403
Eng, N., Sun, Y., & Myrick, J. G. (2022). Who is your fitspiration? An exploration of strong and weak ties with emotions, body satisfaction, and the Theory of Planned Behavior. Health Communication, 1-13. DOI: 10.1080/10410236.2021.2012978
Shoenberger, H., Kim, E., & Sun, Y. (2021). Advertising during COVID-19: Exploring perceived brand message authenticity and potential psychological reactance. Journal of Advertising, 50(3), 253-261.
Kim, E., Shoenberger, H., & Sun, Y. (2021). Living in a material world: Sponsored Instagram posts and the role of materialism, hedonic enjoyment, perceived trust, and need to belong. Social media+ society, 7(3), 20563051211038306.
Craig, D. A., Plaisance, P. L., Schauster, E., Thomas, R. J., Roberts, C., Place, K. R., Sun, Y., Chen, J., Yetter, C., & Thomas, R. L. (2021). Moving into the media world: The moral psychology of emerging adults in Journalism and Communication. Journalism & Mass Communication Educator, 76(3), 314-337.
Eng, N., DiRusso, C., Troy, C. L., Freeman, J. R., Liao, M. Q., & Sun, Y. (2021). ‘I had no idea that greenwashing was even a thing’: Identifying the cognitive mechanisms of exemplars in greenwashing literacy interventions. Environmental Education Research, 27(11), 1599-1617.