Kristin Shumaker

Kristin Shumaker, PhD, is a Senior Research Insights Analyst at Comcast Advertising since September 2023. With extensive experience in communication research, Kristin has served as a Classifier for SSRN since April 2019, where responsibilities include classifying scholarly abstracts and developing a taxonomy for the Communication field. From August 2013 to August 2022, Kristin worked at the University of Pennsylvania as a Communication Researcher, leading studies on neural synchrony in interpersonal communication and developing functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) as a research method. Prior roles include Research Technician Associate at the University of Michigan, where Kristin contributed to fNIRS studies and fMRI research, and production roles in theater, such as Production Stage Manager at Dell'Arte International School of Physical Theatre. Kristin holds a PhD and a Master's degree in Communication from the University of Pennsylvania, an MFA in Theatre from Virginia Tech, and a BA in Biology from Carleton College.