Brian José Velasco-Pena

My research interests focus on organizational communication, which is why I place great importance on the analysis of human interactions. I am particularly interested in interactions in the context of non-profit organizations (NPOs). These organizations have dynamic but conflicting organizational structures, in that power issues may exist between employees and volunteer administrators. These two groups have shared responsibilities, but the decision-making power of one can be limited by that of the other, and vice versa. This lack of clarity in their roles creates tensions that have significant impacts both within and outside the organization.

On the other hand, I am also interested in migration contexts and how, through immigration, notions of culture and identity can be reconfigured. Thus, I study communicational phenomena related to bicultural and hybrid identities. For example, young people with an immigrant background, who were born in a certain context but have immigrant parents, integrate multiple and often very different cultural references into their selves. These markers result from their own experiences, but also from those of their parents. So how can we understand their identities, given the complexity of their daily lives?