About
Dr. Hyoungkoo Khang is a scholar of strategic communication whose research draws on evolutionary psychology to explain how people engage with media and persuasive messages. His work focuses on fundamental social motives and Good Life perspectives, and how these frameworks shape communication behavior, technology use, and decision making. A central emphasis of his research is understanding excessive engagement with AI and social media and its connections to psychological needs, meaning making, and well-being.
Dr. Khang also examines how motivation and meaning relate to identity formation among adolescents and emerging adults. By integrating evolutionary psychology with communication research, he investigates how developing selves interact with persuasive content, digital platforms, and AI-mediated environments. Across his research program, he seeks to explain not only what people do in complex media settings, but why they do it, with attention to individual differences, cultural context, and underlying psychological mechanisms.
Impact Beyond the University
Dr. Khang’s work has a strong international and cross-cultural orientation. His selection as a Korea Foundation (KF) Fellow for Field Research (2025) reflects the global relevance of his research agenda and its contribution to understanding communication processes across cultural contexts.
His scholarship has also been supported by competitive external funding awarded outside the university, including grants from the Academy of Korean Studies (2017, South Korea) and the Institute for Humane Studies (2024, United States). These awards recognize the broader significance of his work on human motivation, identity development, and media engagement in rapidly evolving technological environments.
A Passion for Teaching and Learning
Dr. Khang teaches across undergraduate and graduate curricula in strategic communication and advertising. His graduate courses include Global Communication Management and Analysis and Insights, while his undergraduate teaching includes Introduction to Advertising and Public Relations and A+PR Communication Management. Across levels, he guides students through the full process of strategic communication, from research and planning to execution and evaluation.
His teaching philosophy centers on facilitating meaningful student engagement through discussion and cultivating critical thinking skills that are essential for higher education in the digital age. Dr. Khang designs learning experiences that encourage students to question assumptions, evaluate evidence, and thoughtfully engage with communication technologies and persuasive practices. By integrating theory, research, and applied learning, he prepares students to become reflective, ethical, and adaptive leaders in contemporary communication environments.