Research Interests 

Communicated sense-making, meaning making, everyday storytelling, decision making, adoptive families

Publications 

Warner, C., Jordan, E., Richards, S. K., & Miller-Day, M. (2025). Children are (still) communicators too: Assessing and advocating for child-focused communication scholarship. Communication Studies. https://doi.org/10.1080/10510974.2025.2591901 

Manuscripts Under Review

Taladay-Carter, C., Nabi, A., Richards, S., Hornberger, B., Shadoan, S., Smith, H., Szelag, R., Stahl, H., Wahed, K. H., & Kaur-Gill, S. (Under 1st review). The graduate classroom as a site for critical reflexivity in (un)learning culture in health communication: A collaborative autoethnography. Submitted to Communication Education.

Selected Presentations 

Richards, S.K. & Hornberger, B. (2026). Narrating Adoption Online: Communicated Narrative Sense-Making in TikTok Videos Posted by Adoptees [Paper presentation]. National Communication Association 112th Annual Convention, New Orleans, LA, United States. *Top Student Paper, Family Communication Division. 

Richards, S.K. & Koenig Kellas, J. (2026). Everyday Storytelling: The Characteristics, Meanings, and Impacts of College Students Storytelling and Storylistening  [Paper presentation]. National Communication Association 112th Annual Convention, New Orleans, LA, United States.

Koenig Kellas, J. Taladay-Carter, C., Richards, S.K., Eslinger, E., Gosch, H., Lukas, L., Noble, K. (2026). Drawing Meaning Over Time: Narrative Mapping as Analysis in Family Caregivers’ Stories of Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy [Paper presentation]. National Communication Association 112th Annual Convention, New Orleans, LA, United States.

Richards, S. K. (2026). Why We Tell Stories: Expanding the Role of Story Function in Communicated Narrative Sense-Making Theory [Paper presentation]. International Association for Relationship Research Biennial Convention, Glasgow, Scotland.

Koenig Kellas, J., Taladay-Carter, C.,  Lukas, L., Richards, S.K., Eslinger, E., Gosch, H., & Noble, K. (2026). Coloring outside the lines: Introducing an arts-based method for analyzing cancer patients' change in narrative meaning-making over the course of psychedelic assisted treatment. [Paper presentation]. International Association for Relationship Research Biennial Convention, Glasgow, Scotland.

Taladay-Carter, C., Nabi, A., Richards, S.K., Hornberger, B., Shadoan, S., Smith, H., Szelag, R., Stahl, H., Wahed, K. H., & Kaur-Gill, S. (2025, November 20–23). The graduate classroom as a site for critical reflexivity in (un)learning culture in health communication: A collaborative autoethnography [Paper presentation]. National Communication Association 111th Annual Convention, Denver, CO, United States. Top Paper Award, Instructional Development Division.

Koenig Kellas, J., Taladay-Carter, C., Maisano, T., Kauer, T., Richards, S.K., Eslinger, E. How Do Strong Families Tell Stories? Investigating the Links between Storytelling Content, Process, and Family Strengths in a U.S. Sample. [Paper presentation]. National Communication Association 111th Annual Convention, Denver, CO, United States. Top Paper Panel, Family Communication Division.