Debbie Dougherty

Debbie S. Dougherty is a professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Missouri. She is the former editor-in-chief of the Journal of Applied Communication Research.

Education and career
Dougherty received her B.A. at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo in 1990. She has an M.A. from the University of the Pacific. After her 1992 graduation, Dougherty continued to teach and coach at University of the Pacific until 1995. She received her Ph.D. in Communication at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in 2000. She has been a professor at the University of Missouri since 2014.

From 2018 to 2020 Dougherty served as editor for the Journal of Applied Communication Research.

Research
Dougherty’s research focuses on the relationship between power and work, sexual harassment as a cultural phenomenon, and social class and communication. She speaks in the media about harassment policies, and institutional reviews of research plans.

Awards and honors
In 2019 Dougherty received the Gerald Philips National Communication Association Applied Communication Award from the National Communication Association and the Kay Award from the Central States Communication Association.