Dr. Russell B. Clayton is a Distinguished and Endowed Provost McKenzie Professor in the School of Communication at Florida State University. He is the founding director of the Cognition and Emotion Lab and a research affiliate of the Institute for Successful Longevity and the Institute on Digital Health and Innovation.
Dr. Clayton earned his B.S. in psychology (focus in neurophysiology) and M.A. in health psychology from Texas State University. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Missouri with a focus in health and strategic communication. Dr. Clayton has been on faculty in the School of Communication since 2015. He attained the rank of Professor in 2025. His research is centered on media psychology, health communication, and psychophysiological methods. He is especially interested in evaluating and optimizing persuasive health messages (i.e., drug, alcohol, tobacco, non-tobacco nicotine products) to prevent and reduce substance use in young adults. His research, spanning the subfields of health, advertising, and entertainment, has been published in the leading academic journals in the field including the Journal of Communication; Human Communication Research; Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication; Communication Monographs; Journal of Advertising; Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly; Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media; Health Communication, and Media Psychology. He teaches courses in media/communication studies and has been recognized with three University-level teaching awards including the University Distinguished Teaching award.
Dr. Clayton has been the recipient of international and national research awards and recognitions including from the International Communication Association (top paper), the National Communication Association (top paper), the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (emerging scholar award), and the American Academy of Advertising (research fellowship award). His research has been recognized in the popular press including by Good Morning America, Time, Wall Street Journal, U.S. News & World Report, and CBS, among several other outlets.
Dr. Clayton has served on, or is currently serving on, the editorial board for many of the leading academic journals in the discipline including: Journal of Communication; Media Psychology; Health Communication; Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media; Journal of Media Psychology; Journal of Current Issues in Research and Advertising, and Communication Research Reports.
** If you are a current or prospective student and are interested in learning more about research or working in a media psychology research lab, please feel free to email Dr. Clayton (rclayton at fsu.edu) anytime.**
Education
- Ph.D. 2015; University of Missouri
- M.A. 2012; Texas State University
- B.S. 2010; Texas State University
Research Interests
Media Psychology; Health Communication; Tobacco Messaging; Persuasion; Psychophysiology; Experimental Methods
Teaching Interests
Introduction to Media Psychology; Introduction to Mass Media; Quantitative Research Methods; Mass Communication Theory and Effects; Psychology of Advertising; Media Psychophysiology
Publications & Research