Rachael Bishop is a Ph.D. student at Penn State who earned her BA in Communication and Social Interaction from SUNY Oswego and her MA in Communication Arts and Sciences from Penn State. Her research explores the communicative choices of individuals with stigmatized identities, and the complex, consequential nature of seeking support in a variety of interpersonal relationships. Specifically, she focuses on examining the factors that lead some individuals to be vulnerable to stigmatization attempts, and others to be resilient and resist such attempts. As she explores motivations for (dis)engaging in conversations about health and identity, she emphasizes the ways in which the internalization of stigmatizing messages shapes self-perception as well as interpersonal communication practices and relational outcomes. Through her research and teaching, Rachael adopts a transdisciplinary approach to studying and advancing the social sciences and life sciences in both pedagogical and research contexts.

Advisor: Dr. Andy High