The communication anxiety inventory: Validation of state‐and context‐communication apprehension

Research reported in this paper investigates the reconceptualization (McCroskey, 1984) of communication apprehension (CA), focusing on the relationship between context‐CA and state‐CA. The validity of the reconceptualization can be enhanced by demonstrating that state‐CA (level of fear and anxiety) is systematically related to context‐CA (predisposition). Two research studies using a new operational measures of state‐CA and context‐CA, the Communication Anxiety Inventory, offer empirical support for the relationship between context‐CA and state‐CA. Results show that context‐CA explains a minimum of 50% of the state‐CA variance. Conclusions suggest that level of fear or anxiety varies closely with context‐CA and that the new scales have strong predictive validity.     

Developing teacher‐student relationships through out of class communication

This study investigated student perceptions of control, trust, and intimacy as dimensions of teacher‐student relationships, and. the correlation between these relational variables and reports of learning. Control, trust, and intimacy are viewed as core dimensions of interpersonal relationships, and it is hypothesized that students who engage in out of class communication have relationships that are more interpersonal in nature than students who do not engage in out of class communication with teachers. This hypothesis was supported. Additionally, students who perceived their teachers as exhibiting higher levels of shared control, trust, and intimacy reported greater learning.     

Interrogative strategies and information exchange in computer‐mediated communication

The explosive growth of Internet and E‐mail use has provided exceptional opportunities for humans to mediate their communication and thus their relationships in new ways. This study reports on a content analysis of interrogative strategies used in E‐mail messages exchanged over six months between intergenerational sets of senior citizens and youngsters. A great deal of relationship development is facilitated by the use of questions which are a core aspect of uncertainty reduction processes. While Uncertainty Reduction Theory (URT) has been a predominant theoretical position for examining face‐to‐face initial interaction, its utility for examining communication in an asynchronous, computer‐mediated environment was only partially effective. Data analyses focused on politeness of questions, types of questions, and, temporal effects. Results suggest that the interrogative strategies we engage in to achieve interpersonal connectedness are sometimes different in computer‐mediated communication (CMC) and a new standard for transacting relational message exhange may be emerging.     

Teaching technical communication on the pre‐college level: An annotated bibliography

Technical communication is being integrated into the pre‐college curriculum at an accelerating pace. However, few curriculum materials have been developed for the pre‐college level. This annotated bibliography is a partial attempt to address this lack. The entries have been divided into two categories: Pre‐College Level Material and Adaptable Post‐Secondary Material.     

Human affection exchange: VII. Affectionate communication in the sibling/spouse/sibling‐in‐law triad

This study sought to investigate affectionate communication among members of sibHng/spouse/sibling‐in‐law triads as well as the influence of such communication on relational quality. Under the principles of Affectionate Exchange Theory, affectionate communication among these family members may ultimately serve the evolutionary mandates of viability and procreation. Three hundred twenty‐seven participants, comprising 109 sibling/spouse/sibling‐in‐law triads, completed surveys about their communication of affection, relational satisfaction, and closeness. Consistent with predictions, spouses reported communicating more affection to each other than did siblings, who reported communicating more affection than siblings‐in‐law. The communication of affection by spouses and siblings showed a significant correlation, as did the communication of affection by siblings and siblings‐in‐law, and these correlations were significant even when controlling for the affection communicated in the third relationship in the triad (except for nonverbal support communicated in the sibling and marital relationships). Finally, for all three relational types, affectionate communication was positively correlated with both relational satisfaction and closeness.     

The influence of intercultural communication apprehension and socio‐communicative orientation on uncertainty reduction during initial cross‐cultural interaction

This study is an investigation of the influence of intercultural communication apprehension, socio‐communicative orientation, and uncertainty during initial cross‐cultural communication. Prior to interacting with unknown partners from another culture, participants completed measures of intercultural communication apprehension and socio‐communicative orientation. After interacting with their partners, participants completed measures of uncertainty. As predicted, intercultural communication apprehension was positively associated with uncertainty. Also as predicted intercultural communication apprehension was negatively correlated with socio‐communicative orientation. A third hypothesis, which was partially supported, posited that socio‐communicative orientation would be negatively correlated with uncertainty.     

The relationships of communication with supervisor and decision‐participation to employee job satisfaction

This study examined the relationship of communication‐related variables to employee job satisfaction. Specifically, employee communication satisfaction with supervisor, perceived supervisor receptivity to information and ideas, employee participation in decision‐making, participation versus desired participation level, and job satisfaction with supervisor, co‐workers, promotions, pay, and work were studied. The subjects for the study were classified employees (secretaries, clerks, lowest level supervisors, etc) in three administrative units (Controller, Personnel, and Admissions & Records) of a comprehensive Eastern university. The communication‐related variables accounted collectively for a substantial amount of variance (76%) in employees job satisfaction. Moreover, communication satisfaction with supervisor and supervisor receptivity in information were found to be more powerful “predictors”; of job satisfaction than the decision participation variables. The study cast some doubt upon the comparative value of participation as a communication strategy with low‐level employees. Specific guidelines for direct application of results and implications for future research were derived from the study.     

The effect of communication anxiety upon signing effectiveness among the profoundly hearing‐impaired

Anxiety influences and interferes with the production of messages, yet findings linking trait anxiety with communication gestures and movement have been inconsistent and weak. This may be because most studies observe the communicative movements which complement the message rather than movements which constitute the primary message. This study examined the influence of predisposi‐tional anxiety on gestures when they are the central channel of communication— the signing behavior of deaf students.

Anxiety was significantly related to signing in that more predispositionally anxious students' signs were less dear, slower, smaller, less intense, were more incomplete, and generally less effective compared to less anxious students. However compared to the general population, deaf students were not found to be more fearful of communication overall.     

Communication and aging: A study of the effects of cohort‐centrism and perceived decoding ability on communication competence and communication satisfaction

From a sample of 190 males and females (120 “young,”; 70 “old"), this study sought to determine differences in perceived levels of communication competence and communication satisfaction as a function of the main and joint effects of cohort‐centrism and perceived decoding ability. Analyses provided only weak support for the joint effects. However, older persons considered their conversational partners, whether young or old, to be more competent than did younger persons. Also, on the whole, older persons were more satisfied conversing with young persons, while younger persons were less satisfied, regardless of the age of the conversational partner. Those who perceived themselves as high decoders rated their partners as more competent than did those who perceived themselves as low decoders, and high decoders were also more satisfied with the interaction than low decoders. Cohort‐centrism was supported only in the case of low‐decoding older persons.     

Group communication and problem‐solving effectiveness I: A critical review of inconsistent findings

A review of the existing research literature indicates that, for the most part, researchers have generally failed to identify consistent and meaningful relationships between group interaction and group performance. This has led to a growing concern among small group scholars that unless a suitable explanation can be advanced to account for such failure, it may be necessary to re‐examine the widely held assumption that group interaction plays an important role in effective group performance. This paper attempts to explain why previous research has failed to identify consistent and meaningful relationships between group interaction behaviors and group performance outcomes. In addition, it offers an alternative approach to investigating the possible relationships between group interaction and group performance.     

Adult sons' satisfaction with their relationships with fathers and person‐group (father) communication apprehension

The present study was designed to explore the empirical relationship between adult sons' communication apprehension regarding their fathers and satisfaction with those relationships. Results indicated that (1) apprehension and satisfaction were negatively correlated, (2) a descending nonlinear function best described the relationship, (3) both frequency and intensity of apprehension experiences contributed to the prediction of satisfaction, and (4) father communication apprehension was empirically distinct from general dyadic communication apprehension. These results were initially derived from the responses of a screening sample and were subsequently cross‐validated. Theoretical implications are discussed.     

Infant pointing: communication to cooperate or communication to learn?

Tomasello, Carpenter, and Liszkowski (2007) present compelling data to support the view that infant pointing, from the outset, is communicative and deployed in many of the same situations in which adults would ordinarily point for one another, either to share their interest in something, or to informatively help the other person. This commentary concurs with the view that infant pointing is a communicative gesture, but challenges their interpretation of the motives behind pointing in 12-month-olds. An alternative account is proposed, according to which infant pointing is neither declarative nor imperative, but interrogative, and rather than being driven by the motive to share or help, it may serve a powerful cultural learning mechanism by which infants can obtain information from knowledgeable adults.     

Spur‐of‐the‐moment speeches

This study investigated the degree to which applicants' perceptions of interview behaviors differed from interviewers' perceptions. Data were drawn from 188 actual employment interviews conducted under the auspices of a university‐operated placement center. Data analyses revealed applicants rating themselves and the interviewers significantly higher than the interviewers' ratings of either themselves or the applicants.     

Self‐reported cues about deceptive and truthful communication: The effects of cognitive capacity and communicator veracity

One hundred four students watched a videotape of six communicators (three liars and three truthtellers) and were asked to judge the veracity of the strangers’ communication. In addition to judging deception, students reported which cites guided their veridical judgments. To limit their available cognitive capacity one‐half of the participants were given an additional cognitive task to complete (counting backwards from a number by 7) while viewing the videotapes. Results indicated that lie detectors with limited cognitive capacity reported using more vocal cues and fewer verbal cues than lie detectors whose cognitive capacity was not manipulated. Lie detectors with limited capacity were more accurate at catching liars and reported fewer truthful judgments than lie detectors in the high capacity condition. Overall, lie detectors reported using primarily demeanor cues and visual cues to distinguish truths from lies. Results also indicated that lie detectors’ beliefs about deception differed as a function of the communicators’ veracity. Specifically, when judging truthful communicators, lie detectors reported using fewer vocal cues and demeanor cues while relying on a greater number of verbal and visual cues as compared to lie detectors judging deceptive communicators.     

The relation between reported awareness of non‐verbal communication and rated effectiveness in probationer and student teachers

Forty probationer teachers were interviewed and questionnaires given to ninety‐two student teachers. They were asked how they could tell if a lesson was going well; what they would do if it was not; what they did to get attention at the start of a lesson; and whether their training had helped them in these respects. The responses were scored for mentions of non‐verbal communication. The teachers were also rated for effectiveness. Probationer teachers mentioned non‐verbal communication more often than student teachers. ‘Effective’ probationers mentioned non‐verbal communication more often than ‘ineffective’ ones, especially the more subtle cues of gaze and posture. There were no corresponding differences among the student teachers.     

Perceptions of on‐line support providers: An examination of perceived homophily,source credibility,communication and social support within on‐line support groups

The study examined perceptions of support providers, social support network size and network satisfaction, and the advantages and disadvantages of computer‐mediated support groups among (N = 107) on‐line support group users. The results indicated that the amount of time a person spent communicating within these groups and the number of messages received within on‐line groups was related to support group network size and network satisfaction. Perceptions of source credibility and homophily were also related to on‐line network size and network satisfaction. Finally, a number of advantages and disadvantages to receiving and providing support on‐line were reported by respondents.     

The effect of randomly assigned advisor’s department on student outcomes

Mentors have the potential to influence important academic and career outcomes. I examine the impact of one type of mentor – academic advisors – on student outcomes at the United States Air Force Academy. Exploiting the random assignment of advisors to first-year students, I find that these mentors influence students in different ways. Male and nonwhite students earn higher grades in courses in their advisors’ academic department, providing evidence that they are more likely to study and/or seek extra help because of their advisor. Advisor’s department is not associated with improved grades for female students; however, they are more likely to declare a major in their advisor’s department. I believe this provides unique evidence on the influence of academic advisors at academic institutions.     

Design‐based science and real‐world problem‐solving

Design‐based science (DBS) is a science pedagogy in which new scientific knowledge and problem‐solving skills are constructed in the context of designing artifacts. This paper examines whether the enactment of a DBS unit supported students’ efforts to construct and transfer new science knowledge and ‘designerly’ problem‐solving skills to the solution of a new real‐world design problem in a real‐world setting. One hundred and forty‐nine students participated in the enactment of a DBS unit. Their understanding of the curricular content was assessed by identical pre‐instructional and post‐instructional written tests. They were then given a new design problem as a transfer task. There was a statistically significant increase on scores from pre‐test to post‐test with an effect size of 1.8. There was a stronger correlation between the scores of the transfer task and those of the post‐test than with those of the pre‐test; we use this finding to suggest that the knowledge that was constructed during the unit enactment supported the solution of the transfer task. This has implications for the development of science curricula that aim to lead to the construction of knowledge and skills that may be useful in extra‐classroom settings. Whether participation in consecutive enactments of different DBS units increases transfer remains to be investigated in more depth.