
Katherine Rafferty, Ph.D., M.A.
Associate ScholarDr. Rafferty is an associate teaching professor at Iowa State University and previously worked as a health communication specialist for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia. She conducts research that lies at the intersection of interpersonal and health communication, with a focus on how patients and families manage and cope with chronic illness and end-of- life care. She is primarily a qualitative scholar but has also used quantitative methods to examine research questions about family health communication. Dr. Rafferty earned her Ph.D. in communication at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. More information about her current research can be found at http://www.familyhealthcomm.com.
Research Authored
Hidden Epidemic: Nearly 70% of Abortions Are Coerced, Unwanted or Inconsistent With Women’s Preferences
Nearly 70% of women with a history of abortion describe their abortions as inconsistent with their own values and preferences, with one in four describing their abortions as unwanted or coerced, according to the study published in the medical journal Cureus.
The Effects of Abortion Decision Rightness and Decision Type on Women’s Satisfaction and Mental Health
Perceived pressure to abort is strongly associated with women attributing more negative mental health outcomes to their abortions. The one-third of women for whom abortion is wanted and consistent with their values and preferences are most likely over-represented in studies initiated at abortion clinics.
#AbortionChangesYou: A Case Study to Understand the Communicative Tensions in Women’s Medication Abortion Narratives
Our study is one of the first to analyze women’s narratives after having had a medication abortion. Using relational dialectics theory, we conducted a case study of the nonpartisan website, Abortion Changes You.
Charlie Gard’s Case and Parental Advocacy for Chronically Ill Children
"My biggest issue is this: a parent is a caregiver and then of course the health professionals are the caregivers, but you know, who gets the final say?" -Mother whose daughter has osteosarcoma This essential question was posed by the mother of
Q&A with the Scholars: Discussing Chronic Illness and End-of-Life Care
Katherine Rafferty, Ph.D., M.A., is a lecturer at Iowa State University and previously worked as a Health Communication Specialist for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia. In this interview, she discusses some of her research and findings