About

Leila Bighash is an Assistant Professor of Communication at the University of Arizona. Her research program focuses on organizational processes in networks where information asymmetries are salient, often in online environments. She is particularly interested in knowledge-sharing, expertise, visibility, and signaling within these contexts. Her scholarly work examines a variety of settings, including traditional organizations and social media or online communities. Bighash has published in journals such as Communication Theory, the International Journal of Communication, Corporate Communications, and the Journal of Information Technology & Politics. She holds a Ph.D. in Communication from the University of Southern California.

Research topics

• Computer Science
• Social psychology
• Psychology
• Sociology
• Computer Security
• Political Science
• Economics
• Medicine
• Business
• Internet privacy
• Developmental psychology
• Microeconomics
• Psychiatry
• Marketing
• Clinical psychology
• Public relations

Selected publications

• How African Open Source Software Community Members Thrive: The Role of Communication Visibility and Community Identification

  SSRN Electronic Journal · 2025-01-01

  preprintOpen access1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Effects of All-Gender Workplace Facilities Signage on Adults’ Attitudes Toward Transgender and Nonbinary People and Policies

  Communication Studies · 2023-08-20 · 3 citations

  article

  ABSTRACTSignage for gender-segregated and all-gender facilities (e.g. restrooms, locker rooms) represents gender through imagery and language. Adults regularly encounter the visual cues of facilities signage, yet little research examines how they may affect adults’ conceptualization of gender and attitudes toward transgender and nonbinary (TNB) people and related policies. In this preregistered online experiment with a national sample of adults (United States), we test the differential impact of exposure to all-gender and gender-segregated facilities signage in an office workplace scenario on the attitudes of 385 participants. Exposure to all-gender facilities signage in the office environment positively predicted attitudes toward TNB people, and these attitudes were associated with attitudes toward gender-affirming policies. Unexpectedly, prior exposure to all-gender facilities in everyday life (EDL) was associated with more negative attitudes toward TNB people. Signage exposure in the experiment had no significant direct effects on binary conceptualization of gender and policy attitudes, but interaction effects between experimental condition and prior facilities exposure were found for these outcomes. Results from the experiment show a positive immediate impact of all-gender facilities cues on adults’ attitudes toward people whose identities may challenge traditional gender-related norms, but they also reveal potential limitations of all-gender facilities in shifting adults’ attitudes. Social and theoretical implications are discussed.KEYWORDS: GendertransgenderLGBTQvisual communicationattitudes AcknowledgmentsThe authors thank Paige Gillan for her graphic design work on this project. This research was funded by Washington State University’s Edward R. Murrow College of Communication.Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.Correction StatementThis article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.Additional informationFundingThe work was supported by the Washington State University [NA].Notes on contributorsTraci K. GilligTraci Gillig is an assistant professor in Washington State University’s Edward R. Murrow College of Communication. Gillig’s research interests are in the psychological, social, and structural factors influencing the mental health of youth from marginalized groups, particularly LGBTQ+ youth. She’s also interested in the effects of gender-related messaging on the attitudes and behaviors of adolescents and others.Leila BighashLeila Bighash is an assistant professor of communication at the University of Arizona. Her research program focuses on organizational processes in networks where information asymmetries are salient, often in online environments. In particular, she is interested in knowledge-sharing, expertise, visibility, and signaling.Sonia Jawaid ShaikhSonia Jawaid Shaikh is an assistant professor of corporate communication at the University of Amsterdam. Shaikh’s scholarly interests include artificial intelligence, human-computer interaction, and information exchange.

  PublisherDOI

• Network and Proximity Effects on LGBTQ Youth’s Psychological Outcomes during a Camp Intervention

  Health Communication · 2021 · 6 citations

  Senior authorCorresponding
  • Psychology
  • Clinical psychology
  • Developmental psychology

  Research has found a tendency for youth's psychological states to influence their friendship development, and vice versa. Whether this occurs among LGBTQ youth in the context of identity-affirming intervention programming has not been established. The current study provides a longitudinal assessment of self-esteem, depressive symptoms, and anxiety in a network of 238 youth ages 12 to 18 participating in a summer camp for young LGBTQ people. Results showed youth experienced significant increases in self-esteem and decreases in depressive symptoms and anxiety at camp. Peer proximity based on cabin assignment influenced youth's depressive symptoms over time. The network processes of peer selection and influence did not significantly affect psychological outcomes. Our findings highlight the impact of affirming programming on the self-esteem, depressive symptoms, and anxiety of LGBTQ youth and the influence of intervention-based proximity on youth's depressive symptoms over time.

  PublisherDOI

• How controversy leads to commitment: Predecisional distortion in reactions to premarket products through online review systems

  Computers in Human Behavior · 2021 · 14 citations

  Senior authorCorresponding
  • Computer Science
  • Psychology
  • Marketing
  PublisherDOI

• Fact or fake? Identifying ways of knowing everyday truths in research methods courses

  Communication Teacher · 2021-05-06

  article1st authorCorresponding

  This activity motivates students of communication research methods by challenging them to face their personal epistemologies. We introduce them to a set of formal ways of knowing and match these with their personal justifications for knowledge. Through this exercise, students learn that the scientific method is worthy of study not just to pass a social science focused research methods course, but also to have a deeper understanding of their personal knowledge.Courses Undergraduate Research Methods (quantitative and/or social science focus).Objectives By the end of the activity, students should be able to: identify examples of the four ways of knowing; compare and contrast the uses and relative rigor of the four ways of knowing; consume research and media reports with a skeptic’s mindset; establish interpersonal contact with classmates and the instructor; and gain motivation for learning the rest of the course material.

  PublisherDOI

• A Model of Social Eavesdropping in Communication Networks

  2020 · 3 citations

  1st authorCorresponding
  • Computer Science
  • Computer Security
  • Sociology

  Social eavesdropping is the gathering of information from the interactions of 2 or more people, without their expressed knowledge or expressed permission, by a third party who is ostensibly not the target audience. Grounded in uncertainty management, communication networks, and signaling theories, this article presents a theoretical framework for understanding when and how individuals are likely to eavesdrop on the interactions of others. Social eavesdropping can be actively premeditated or passively incidental, the latter spurred by a serendipitous encounter. Propositions derived from the model investigate how accessibility, information value, and social risk influence the likelihood of social eavesdropping.

  PublisherOA PDF

• Gendered Spaces, Gendered Friendship Networks? Exploring the Organizing Patterns of LGBTQ Youth

  UA Campus Repository (The University of Arizona) · 2019-09-22 · 6 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Research has found a tendency for youth to develop friendships with same-gender peers. Whether this is due to a preference for same-gender friends or is an outcome of communication constraints from gender-segregated physical spaces and social practices is unclear. The current study is among the first to examine the role of emerging gender-inclusive spaces in adolescent friendship network patterns. A network of 111 LGBTQ adolescents interacting in a summer camp featuring gender-inclusive housing is examined using social network analysis techniques. Exponential random graph models found that campers’ assigned cabin was significantly related to friendship ties. Notably, the probability of a friendship tie was approximately 6 times greater when campers were assigned to the same cabin. Gender identity and birth sex had no significant influence on friendship patterns, in contrast to prior studies. Our findings highlight the potential for gender-inclusive spaces to integrate youth’s friendships across gender identities.

  PublisherOA PDF

• Why are you watching? Video surveillance in organizations

  Corporate Communications An International Journal · 2018-02-13 · 19 citations

  article

  Purpose Organizations and their actors are increasingly using video surveillance to monitor organizational members, employees, clients, and customers. The use of such technologies in workplaces creates a virtual panopticon and increases uncertainty for those under surveillance. Video surveillance in organizations poses several concerns for the privacy of individuals and creates a security-privacy dilemma for organizations to address. The purpose of this paper is to offer a decision-making model that ties in ethical considerations of access, equality, and transparency at four stages of video surveillance use in organizations: deployment of cameras and equipment, capturing footage, processing and storing data, and editing and sharing video footage. At each stage, organizational actors should clearly identify the purpose for video surveillance, adopt a minimum capability necessary to achieve their goals, and communicate decisions made and actions taken that involve video surveillance in order to reduce uncertainty and address privacy concerns of those being surveilled. Design/methodology/approach The paper proposes a normative model for ethical video surveillance organizational decision making based on a review of relevant literature and recent events. Findings The paper provides several implications for the future of dealing with security-privacy dilemmas in organizations and offers structured considerations for corporation leaders and decision makers. Practical implications The paper includes implications for organizations to approach video surveillance with ethical considerations for stakeholder privacy while balancing security demands. Originality/value This paper offers a framework for decision-makers that also offers opportunities for further research around the concept of ethics in organizational video surveillance.

  PublisherDOI

• The Global Landpower Network

  2017-01-01

  articleSenior author
  Publisher

• The Global Landpower Network: Recommendations for Strengthening Army Engagement

  RAND Corporation eBooks · 2017-01-01 · 4 citations

  bookSenior author

  The U.S. Army has introduced the global landpower network (GLN) concept as a means to integrate, sustain, and advance the Army's considerable ongoing efforts to meet U.S. national security guidance emphasizing the importance of working closely with partner nations to achieve U.S. strategic objectives. This report develops the GLN concept further.

  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Mike Ananny

  University of Southern California

  4 shared

• Traci K. Gillig

  Washington State University

  3 shared

• Derek Eaton

  RAND Corporation

  2 shared

• Kristen S. Alexander

  University of Southern California

  2 shared

• Sonia Jawaid Shaikh

  2 shared

• Christina S. Hagen

  University of Southern California

  2 shared

• Poong Oh

  Nanyang Technological University

  2 shared

• Joshua Mendelsohn

  RAND Corporation

  2 shared

Education

• Ph.D., Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism

  University of Southern California

  2018