Professional Summary
After working for ten years as a professional writer, communications director, and marketing manager for engineering consulting firms in Denver and Missouri, Bryan came to UC in 1989. Since then he has taught graduate and undergraduate courses in professional writing. In 1995, he became associate dean of the College of Arts and Science of Arts & Sciences. In 1997, he became dean of UC's University College. He returned to the English Department in 2004.
Education
PhD: University of Denver Denver, Colorado, 1989 (English, Creative Writing - Fiction)
MA: University of Southern Mississippi Hattiesburg, Mississippi, 1975 (English, Creative Writing - Fiction)
BA: University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, Indiana, 1973 (English - Irish Studies)
Research and Practice Interests
Bryan's scholarship has focused on the ethical choices that professional writers face in the workplace. He is the ethics columnist for "Intercom," the monthly magazine of the Society for Technical Communication, a professional association that advances the arts and sciences of technical communication for its 20,000 members. Bryan also conducts research on document design, especially as the design of visual fields affects comprehension and navigation through print and electronic documents.
Research Support
2001 University College, University of Cincinnati KnowledgeWorks Foundation Type:Grant
1999 University College, University of Cincinnati Ohio Department of Education Type:Grant
1995 English Department, University of Cincinnati Ohio Board of Regents Equipment Grant Type:Grant
1994 University of Cincinnati Taft Summer Research Grants Type:Grant
1991 -1992 University of Cincinnati Provostal Support Grant for Instructional Materials Type:Grant
1991 University of Cincinnati Taft Summer Research Grants Type:Grant
Abbreviated Publications
Book Chapter
"Role Play: Distance Learning and the Teaching of Writing." And Now, a Word from our Sponsor. Ed. Jonathan Alexander and Marcia Dickson. Hampton Press, 2006.
"Electronic Learning Communities—Issues and Practices." Yours, Theirs, Mine: Just Who Owns Those Distance Courses?. Ed. Sorel Reisman et al. US Distance Learning Association: Information Age Publishing, Inc., 2003.
"Electronic Learning Communities—Issues and Practices." A Different Practice: Spanning the Digital Divide Through Distance Learning. Ed. Sorel Reisman et al. US Distance Learning Association: Information Age Publishing, Inc., 2003.
"Advances in Health Care Research." The Differences between Stages of Change and Advertisement Acceptance of College Students. Madison, WI: Omnipress, 2001.
"Instructor’s Resource Manual for Technical Communication." The Devil Is in the Details--But So Are the Saints. Ed. Rebecca Burnett. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing Company, 1994.
"A Publications Management Source Book." Culture and Anarchy: What Publications Managers Should Know About Us and Them. Ed. O.J. Allen and L.H. Deming. Amityville, NY: Baywood Publishing Co., 1994.
Review
O’Hair, O’Hair, and O’Rourke. "Business Communication (1st ed.)." (1997).
Kitty Locker. "Business and Administrative Communication (3rd ed.)." (1993).
"Alligator Gar." Mississippi Review. (1974).
Essays
Bryan, John. "Seven types of distortion: a taxonomy of manipulative techniques used in charts and graphs." Journal of Technical Writing and Communication (1995): 127, 79.
"Hard Life, Hard Decisions." Intercom 54 (2007).
"Evolution of a Disclaimer." Intercom 53 (2006).
"Weighing Science." Intercom 52 (2005).
"Hostile Takeover." Intercom 52 (2005).
"An Ethical Gamble." Intercom 51 (2004).
"The ‘P’ Word." Intercom 51 (2004).
"Graphs on Steroids." Intercom 50 (2003).
"Off Hours: The Writer Who Went Out to the Cold." Intercom 50 (2003).
"Alienation." Intercom 50 (2003).
"In the Company of Lawyers." Intercom 52 (2002).
"In the Gyres." Intercom 47 (2000).
"No Good Deed Goes Unpunished." Intercom 46 (1999).
"On the Coding Edge." Intercom 45 (1998).
"Only A Specter of Truth." Intercom 45 (1998).
"The Need to Know." Intercom 43 (1996).
"The Double-Blind Bind." Intercom 42 (1995).
"Even Klutzes Can Do It." Intercom 42 (1995).
"Unpredictable Results." Intercom 41 (1994).
"Rendering What May Be." Intercom 41 (1994).
"Fred Is Dead—But Has a Great Resume." Intercom 38 (1993).
Peer Reviewed Publications
Bryan, John. "Down the slippery slope: ethics and the technical writer as marketer." Technical Communication Quarterly (1992): 73, 88.
"Authorship and Responsibility: The Problem of Special Knowledge." 1993 Proceedings of the Society for Technical Communication (1993).
Presentations
Paper Presentations
(05-2005. ) The Center for Access and Transition: Outreach to Diverse Communities .San Antonio, TX.
(11-2002. ) “Associate Dean to Dean: Transitioning Within a Single Institution .San Francisco, CA.
(11-2002. ) Contingent Employees at the University of Cincinnati .San Francisco, CA.
(10-2002. ) Text, Eyes & Videotape: Seeing Usability Research in a New Light .Cincinnati, OH.
(06-2002. ) Writing PBL .Baltimore, MD.
(03-2002. ) Spanning the Digital Divide with Distance Learning .Columbus, OH.
(01-2002. ) After the Police Have Left .Washington, D.C..
(03-2001. ) The Differences between Stages of Change and Advertisement Acceptance of College Students .Santa Fe, NM.
(1995. ) How Students Learn Decision-Making in a Computer-Networked Course: An Ethnographic Study .Washington, D.C..
(04-1994. ) Getting Past the Bog of First Principles in Teaching Ethics .Milwaukee, WI.
(10-1993. ) Opportunity and Involvement as Aspects of Audience Analysis: A Model from Advertising Research .Montreal, Canada.
(10-1993. ) Reading and Writing for the 21st Century: An Overview of Computers in the English Classroom .Cincinnati, OH.
(06-1993. ) Authorship and Responsibility: The Problem of Special Knowledge .Dallas, TX.
(11-1992. ) Seven Types of Graphic Violence; or, Distortion in the Design of Charts and Graphs .New Orleans, LA.
(11-1992. ) Ethical Issues We Face as Teachers .New Orleans, LA.
(04-1992. ) Hearing Ethical Questions in a Noisy Job .Lexington, KY.
(04-1992. ) Ethical Issues We Face as Teachers .Lexington, KY.
(10-1991. ) Responding to Ethical Dilemmas When the Mortgage is Still Due .Oak Ridge.
(04-1991. ) Graphic Violence: Distortion in the Design of Charts and Graphs .Akron, Ohio.
(03-1991. ) Audience Analysis: A Primitive Form of Market Research .Boston, MA.
(12-1990. ) Down the Slippery Slope: Ethics and the Technical Writer as Marketer .Chicago, IL.
(10-1990. ) Listening and Writing: The Marketing of a Technical Proposal .Oak Ridge.
(04-1990. ) A Case for Case Studies in Teaching of Business Writing .Detroit, MI.
Keywords
Professional writing: communication ethics; promotional writing; document design; web-design & desktop-publishing applications.