ACADEMIC BIO + SCHOLASTIC PERSONALITY
Victoria is an ethnographic researcher who blends her undergrad studies and work experience of urban design, community development and communication theory to better understand user experience, and culture of places.
focus Areas
- Organizational Communication
- Technical Communication
- Political Communication
- Mass Media
research areas
- Organizational culture
- Urban communication
- Dissemination of information
- Health Literacy
PERSONAL METHODOLOGY
Victoria reporting her findings to Sona Andrews, Provost of Portland State University, First Stop Portland Board, industry leaders and former Oregon Secretary of State.
Research Motivation
Victoria is the first member of her family born in the United States, and the daughter of political refugees who escaped communist Romania after being inspired by the primetime drama, "Dallas". Early on Victoria was hyperaware of her surroundings and observant of human behavior as a way to better adapt but also used observation as survival tool. Most of her childhood involved exploring the city by foot which led to her fascination of how place is created and designed based upon shared values, assumptions and processes. Victoria's interest in how place is created and experienced has led her into ethnographic research to better understand how to better onboard people and reduce uncertainty/anxiety in new experiences whether they be in the workplace, public spaces or new communication technologies.
As a communication researcher with an urban planning background, Victoria studies how information and messages are transmitted and interpreted in both the analog and digital realm, and how those messages create culture. Her main area of research explores the intersection between urbanism, technology and mass media (journalism) regarding how information and symbolic cues communicate shared values and cultural norms and influence civic engagement.
Currently Victoria is working on a media project called "The City is The Message".
RESEARCH / WRITING EXAMPLES
User EXperience research
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Ethnographic research
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