Alexandra G. Murphy is the dean of the College of Communication. Murphy is a professor of Communication and previously was associate dean. She teaches undergraduate and graduate courses that focus on cultural and political issues within organizations such as organizational communication and culture, multiculturalism in the workplace, power and politics in organizations, and assessment and intervention in organizations.
She received her BA and MA from the University of Utah, and her PhD from the University of South Florida. Her research centers on organizational communication and culture, focusing on the risks that can occur in organizational and social contexts when taken-for-granted communication practices are unquestioningly reproduced and institutionalized. In particular, she has a strong interest in organizational and social contexts where lives are on the line.
Murphy has worked on organizational development issues and improving communication among airline crews and medical staff in hospital emergency rooms. She has also worked extensively on public health communication programs for HIV/AIDS education in Kenya, Africa.
Her work has been published in Communication Monographs, Text and Performance Quarterly, Management Communication Quarterly, Journal of Applied Communication Research, and Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, as well as edited books.