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.     

The role of cognitive “performance orientation” in communication anxiety

This study examined cognitive patterns involved in communication anxiety, particularly in public speaking situations. The cognitive patterns were represented by Motley's (1990) theoretical‐clinical conceptualization of either a “performance” or a “communication” orientation to public presentations. The mediating role of public self‐consciousness in these anxious cognitive patterns was also examined.

Results indicated that Motley's measurement of performance orientation (i.e. the presentation has to be perfect and will be closely scrutinized for delivery by the audience) was not associated with communication apprehension, public speaking anxiety, nor with public self‐consciousness. Although other scales performed as expected, the Performance/Communication Orientation scale proved to be multi‐factored and internally unreliable.     

Test anxiety and GCSE performance: the effect of gender and socio‐economic background

Despite a well established body of international literature describing the effect of test anxiety on student performance in a range of assessments, there has been little work conducted on samples of students from the UK. The purpose of this exploratory study is two‐fold. First, to establish the relationship between test anxiety and assessment performance in a group of students in their final year of compulsory secondary schooling, in the politicised educational context of the UK. Second, to establish if this relationship is moderated by gender and socio‐economic background. Data were gathered on trait test anxiety, GSCE examination performance in Mathematics, English Language and Science, gender and socio‐economic background from 557 mixed ability Year 11 students drawn from three secondary schools in the UK. A hierarchical regression analysis was used to establish the moderating influence of gender and socio‐economic background. Results suggest a small, but significant inverse relationship between test anxiety scores and mean examination performance and that the cognitive component of test anxiety accounts for 7% of variance in examination performance. A differential test anxiety–assessment performance relationship was reported for socio‐economic background but not gender. Although the data reported for the test anxiety–assessment performance relationship are similar to those reported in numerous other studies, it is hypothesised that contextualised features associated with secondary education in the UK, particularly efforts to raise attainment, may have influenced these results.     

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.     

The long‐term effectiveness of anti‐bullying work in primary schools

The DFE Sheffield Anti‐Bullying Project showed that schools can reduce the problem of bullying through the use of whole‐school anti‐bullying policies, curriculum exercises, environmental improvements and individual work with bullies and victims. However, the length of time necessary to plan these interventions meant that, in many cases, the work was not completed when the project evaluations ended. This study investigates the continuing progress made in primary schools in the year after the end of the project. Eleven heads took part in interviews; all schools had made some progress with policy development, and all used some curriculum resources. Most had continued with environmental improvements, but few had used the methods for dealing with bullies and victims. Four schools then administered the Olweus bullying questionnaire to all pupils between ages seven and eleven, 657 children taking part. Two schools had a consistent decline in reported bullying, one experienced a consistent rise and the other an initial fall and subsequent rise. Important factors influencing success appeared to be the extent of the consultation exercise and the date of implementation of the anti‐bullying policy. All four schools had reduced bullying among boys, but three experienced a rise in bullying among girls. Anti‐bullying work may have been influenced by a male stereotype of bullying behaviour: efforts are necessary to raise awareness and promote honesty among girls. No school had raised the proportion of victims who had told staff about being bullied.     

The effect of language on the performance of second‐language students in science examinations

It has been established by previous researchers that changes in the wording of multiple‐choice examination questions can significantly affect pupil performance. In this study recent ‘home’ General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) and ‘overseas’ General Certificate of Education (GCE) papers were examined for questions in which the language could be simplified, and modified questions were prepared. When performance on the original and modified forms of the questions was compared for a sample of British school pupils, no statistically significant difference emerged. When performance on the same questions was examined for a sample of pupils for whom English was the second (or third) language, there were significant differences in their performance on modified and unmodified versions of the questions.     

A meta‐analysis of the effectiveness of telecourses in distance education

Abstract

This study used meta‐analytic procedures to examine experimental research literature about the use of telecourses in adult and higher education. Weighted effect size analysis procedures were used. The study included experiments that used video and either one‐way or two‐way audio. The purpose of this study was to review evidence concerning the effectiveness of telecourses. The instructional features that impacted learner achievement were type of interaction during the broadcast, type of course, and type of remote site. Two‐way interaction was found to be the best method of interaction between learners and the instructor. Most of the studies failed to provide information about their learner attrition rate, thereby casting a shadow on the results.     

The EHE‐EMSAT Project: the development of awareness of electronic mail among student teachers

ABSTRACT

This paper reports the results of a one‐year project designed to develop the awareness of 291 student teachers in the area of electronic mail (e‐mail). The project was successful in increasing the active use of e‐mail and the general awareness of students: the number of active users rose from 17 to 33%, and the number of those able to explain e‐mail to a colleague rose from 12 to 45%. Case study material is presented to illustrate the conditions under which the development of e‐mail flourished with one particular group of modern languages student teachers. Conclusions are drawn concerning the utility of the cascade model of curriculum development in extending electronic communication.     

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.     

The conflict over the control of elementary education 1870–1902 and its effect upon the life and influence of the church

Aims, Values and Education. F. W. Garforth. Pp. 191. Hull: Christygate Press, 1985.

Religious Education: Philosophical Perspectives. by John Sealey. Pp. xi., 97. London: George Allen &; Unwin, 1985. Hardback £12.50, Paperback £4.95.

Cultural Identity and Educational Policy. Edited by Colin Brock and Witold Tulasiewicz. Pp. 350. London: Croom Helm, 1985. £19.95.

The Social Science Encyclopedia, edited by Adam Kuper and Jessica Kuper. Pp. 916. London: Routledge &; Kegan Paul, November 1985. £29.95

A Generation of Schooling: English Secondary Schools since 1944 by Harry Judge. Pp. 227. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Hardback, £12.50. Paperback, £3.95.

Private Education in Britain by Clive Griggs. Pp. 230. London: The Falmer Press 1985. £7.95.

The Lost Elementary Schools of Victorian England. By Phil Gardner. Pp. viii, 296. London: Croom Helm, 1984. £22.50

1985 Women Who Teach In Universities. Margaret Sutherland. Trentham Books. Stoke‐on‐Trent. Pp. 212

Linguistic Minorities Project: The Other Languages of England Routledge &; Kegan Paul, 1985

Language Development in the preschool years. By Gordon Wells. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1985. Pp. 484. Hardbacked £35, Paperbacked £12.95

New Directions in Pastoral Care. Edited by Peter Lang &; Michael Marland. Pp. 253. Oxford, England: Basil Blackwell Limited, 1985. £6.25 (paperback)

Reviews Review of D. Murray Worlds Apart. Belfast: Appletree Press, 1985. Pp. 164. £10.95.     

The complexity of the learning and teaching of EFL among Swedish‐minority students in bilingual Finland

In Finland, English is widely visible outside the school context, above all in the area of entertainment and mass media, and is no longer regarded as a foreign language in the old sense of the word. Among Swedish‐minority students in Finland, the dominant status of English in various mass media leads to positive attitudes towards English among students and provides strong motivation to acquire the language. This paper considers whether the incidental learning of English taking place outside the classroom results in the same kind of proficiency as that resulting from formal classroom learning.     

The Importance of Parent‐to‐Parent Support among Families of Children with Autism in the People’s Republic of China

This article reports the experiences of families of children with autism in the People’s Republic of China. The caregivers of 43 children with autism attending one of two short‐term (3‐month) intervention programmes for young children with autism were interviewed about their experiences before, during, and after the programme. Parent‐to‐parent support emerged as the main theme. Specifically, caregivers in this study discussed the value of being with other parents who share similar experiences. Two reasons were given for the importance of parent‐to‐parent support: to learn from each other, and to gain moral support and encouragement in a relationship that is more equal and less discriminatory than was experienced from others in society. This report also briefly highlights the factors that are similar to family experiences in western contexts, as well as factors that are influenced by the Chinese context.     

The effect of time‐on‐task on student grades and grade expectations

The effects of students’ attitudes on time devoted to a course (i.e. time‐on‐task), and the subsequent effects of this time‐on‐task on their performance in the course and their overall grade point average (GPA) were studied. Over a three‐year period, engineering students (N = 231) were surveyed in weeks one, three, seven (after midterms) and 10 (before finals) of a 10‐week quarter in six sophomore and junior engineering classes (eight different sections). Results of this study show that most students are optimistic about their future performance in a new course, regardless of their previous overall GPA. All students appear to devote a relatively high and equal amount of time‐on‐task during the first week of the term. The students who earned grades between ‘B+’ and ‘A’ appear to optimise this time by the third week. Students who earned a final grade of ‘B’ study similar to ‘A’ students before midterms but significantly increase their efforts after midterms while the ‘C’ students decrease their time devoted to the course. This study finds that ‘A’ students know they will earn an ‘A’ as long as they do the work. In contrast, ‘C’ students are resigned to the fact that they will earn a ‘C’ and, thus, devote far less time to a course. The ‘B’ students want better grades and will devote the most effort towards achieving these grades.     

Factors affecting the state anxiety level of higher education students in Macau: the impact of trait anxiety and self‐esteem

The aim of this study is to find out the levels of anxiety of 589 day‐ and night‐class students in higher education in Macau two weeks before the final examination period. The Chinese version of the 40‐item Spielberger’s State‐Trait Anxiety Inventory (Spielberger, Gorsuch & Lusherier, 1970 Spielberger, C. D., Gorsuch, R. and Lusherier, R. 1970. STAI manual for the state trait anxiety inventory, CA: Consulting Psychologist Press.  [Google Scholar]) was applied in this study. The two anxiety scales are nicely constructed into several logical and explainable factors. In addition, the Chinese version of Rosenberg’s self‐esteem scale (Rosenberg, 1965 Rosenberg, M. 1965. Society and the adolescent self‐image, Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. [Crossref] [Google Scholar]) was applied to find out the relationship between students’ self‐esteem and their trait and state anxieties. Generally speaking, night‐class students, who had full‐time jobs during the day, had significantly higher levels of anxiety than day class students, who were either unemployed or engaged in part‐time employment. Furthermore, based on the results of the path analysis, students’ general anxiety levels might be affected by their general state of anxiety and their self‐esteem. It is hoped that through this study, the educational context of higher education might be better understood.     

Mass communication and journalism faculty’s perceptions of the effectiveness of email communication with college students: a nationwide study

Nearly 700 US journalism and mass communication faculty (all teaching personnel) reported their perceptions of student email use via a web‐based survey. This nationwide study focused on the content of email sent by faculty to students, email’s effectiveness, and email’s effect on student learning. Comparisons were made based on faculty gender, rank, age, and ethnicity. Findings suggest that despite statistical differences, when gender, rank, age, or ethnicity are considered, faculty are not in the habit of sending course materials like syllabi, project instructions, and lecture notes to students personally via email. Moreover, faculty tend to find favor with email communication and its effectiveness as a tool of teaching. The results of this survey coupled with previous research by the authors and other scholars suggest faculty ought to embrace the technology and develop positive ways to incorporate email, as well as other technology, into the educational process.     

The myth of the research‐led teacher

This paper examines the contention that achievement in research is a prerequisite for effective teaching in higher education. It also explores university level teaching more generally with the purpose of examining the links between teaching and research. Concept mapping, in particular, is described as a means of exploring both the knowledge structures of experts (teachers and researchers) and the cognitive changes that are indicative of meaningful learning among students. We use the approach to suggest that rich and complex networks are indicative of expert status, but that these are seldom made explicit to students in the course of teaching. Instead, simple, linear structures comprise most lesson plans or teaching sequences. This linearity is often made transparent through the lecturers’ use of PowerPoint presentations to structure teaching. Thus the transmission mode of teaching predominates in HE and evidence of authentic research‐led teaching remains scant. This is likely to reinforce surface learning outcomes among university students and be an impediment to the emergence of expert status. The linear chains that are commonly espoused in teaching lend themselves to rote learning strategies rather than to individual meaning making. The approach we describe here has the potential to reinstate expert status as the prime qualification for teaching in higher education. Where concept mapping is used to share and explore knowledge structures between students and experts, then learning can be shown to occur in ways that are synonymous with research and discovery. Using this approach, the teacher–student distinction becomes legitimately blurred so that the sharing and advancement of knowledge are concomitant. In conclusion, we suggest that this is a basis for a pedagogy that is appropriate to HE and distinct from the compulsory sector.     

The factorial structure and construct validity of the Psychopathy Checklist‐Revised (PCL‐R) among alcoholic inpatients

Simultaneous group confirmatory factor analyses of the Psychopathy Checklist‐Revised (PCL‐R; Hare, 1991) were conducted with an alcoholic inpatient sample (N= 740). Invariance of the item‐factor relations for the 2 highly correlated factors of Personality and Behavioral Features were supported across 3 racial/ethnic groups (African American, Puerto Rican, and White) and across gender groups. Moment structure analysis indicated no significant differences in the latent means across men and women. Alternative covariance structure models were specified within a multitrait‐multimethod framework to evaluate convergent and discriminant validity across different methods of measuring antisociality. A correlated trait‐correlated method model was supported. A factor intercorrelation of .68 was indicated for Personality and Behavioral Features, and a significant correlation (.40) among method factors emerged for the PCL‐R scores across different raters (interviewers and therapists). General support was provided for the use of the PCL‐R with alcoholic inpatients, though there was a substantial intercorrelation for the factors of Personality and Behavioral Features.