The speech act theory of interpersonal communication: Stimulus for research

This paper uses the Mann Gulch and Storm King Mountain fire disasters as a beginning point to analyze organizational crises. Several of the human factors that contributed to both disasters are identified, and the point is made that similar factors most likely contribute to other organizational crises. It is argued that the lack of legitimate authority impaired the crews’ ability to overcome disaster. Underlying this is a lack of common experience, communication, and interaction. Based on this analysis of the Mann Gulch and Storm King Mountain fires, practical recommendations for enhancing organizations’ ability to effectively cope with crisis and environmental uncertainty are offered.     

The status of evaluation research in communication training programs

The purpose of this study was to determine the frequency and types of evaluation research methods used in communication training programs. A random sample of internal or in‐house human resource (HR) trainers were surveyed and asked to respond to a series of questions concerning evaluation practices used in planning, implementing, and assessing communication training programs. The findings suggest that: (1) HR trainers, for the most part, do not conduct needs analyses while planning communication training programs; (2) the majority of HR trainers collect data on trainees’ attitudes toward communication training programs; (3) the majority of HR trainers do not measure changes in cognitive, affective and psychomotor behaviors or job performance that may occur as a result of participation in communication training programs; (4) experimental and quasi‐experimental designs are used by only a very small percentage of HR trainers; and (5) cost benefit analyses are seldom used to assess the economic effects of communication training programs. The findings of this study suggest that although communication training programs have significantly increased in the past decade, the use of systematic and controlled evaluation research is presently not being undertaken to plan, implement, and assess communication training programs.     

便利还是无奈——大学生利用网络促进人际交流的思考

本文通过对中西方有关传播思想史及有关人际交往理论的寿辨,基于笔者的个人体验和对周边生活的观察分析,在网络时代的背景下,提出这样一个假设 如今的大学生利用阿结进行的交流路显无奈,也就是说,科学技术所提供的便利的交流平台,沟通渠道,对于大学生进行人际交往曲实质性帮助并没有想象中那么大。目的在于探明网络对于大学生人际交往施加的真实影响,希望能对大学生的人际交往有所启迪。     

Linking communication motives to loneliness in the lives of older adults: An empirical test of interpersonal needs and gratifications

Utilizing the interpersonal needs and gratifications perspective as the framework for this investigation, two studies investigated the link between interpersonal communication motives and the development of loneliness in the lives of older adults. Results suggest that (a) the interpersonal communication motives are a viable construct to be studied within this target population, (b) a significant relationship does exist between interpersonal communication motives (escape, pleasure, relaxation, cntrol, affection, and inclusion) and feelings of loneliness, and (c) communication is a significant factor in the development of loneliness within the lives of older adults. Implications of these results are discussed, and suggestions for future research are proposed.     

Formal group communication with older adults: A research imperative

Given the need for services, various types of group work will continue to prosper as a setting in which older adults can enrich their lives. Simply having membership in a group and engaging in interaction with others improves self‐concept and increases socialization outside the group.

Research in this area includes few contributions from the field of communication. Consequently, this paper suggests the importance of assessing and applying communication constructs to current research on detection and prevention of social isolation through formal group interaction.     

Communication research on a broader age: An introduction to the special forum on funded research in communication

This essay introduces the special forum on funded research in communication. It briefly discusses the relationship of funded research with theoretical and methodological development in the communication discipline and the impact of receiving grant support on the professional life of an academic and on collegiality, resources, and university recognition for a department of communication. It also addresses the potential impact of funded research for strengthening the role and visibility of the communication discipline in the social sciences, and for increasing the impact of communication scholarship on policy.     

Communication research on a broader age: An introduction to the special forum on funded research in communication

This essay introduces the special forum on funded research in communication. It briefly discusses the relationship of funded research with theoretical and methodological development in the communication discipline and the impact of receiving grant support on the professional life of an academic and on collegiality, resources, and university recognition for a department of communication. It also addresses the potential impact of funded research for strengthening the role and visibility of the communication discipline in the social sciences, and for increasing the impact of communication scholarship on policy.     

Actor goal achievement and sensitivity to partner as critical factors in understanding interpersonal communication competence and conflict strategies

Communication scholars have long argued that achieving one's personal goals with others constitutes an important element of interpersonal communication competence. Moreover, sensitivity to the partner's goals has been implicated in various lines of research related to competence. Despite the presumed status of goal achievement and sensitivity to the partner's goals, models do not develop the relationships between these constructs and how actors are assessed in terms of competence criteria. This paper attempts to repair this oversight by advancing and testing hypotheses that connect assessments of competence to actor's goal achievement and sensitivity to the partner's goals. Using the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model (APIM) (Kashy & Kenny, 1999), both actor and partner assessments of the actor's sensitivity and conflict strategies were analyzed. Results reveal that sensitivity to the partner's goals was a strong predictor of competence assessments and that actor goal achievement was a moderate predictor of competence assessments. In short, support was found for the explicit inclusion of goal achievement and goal sensitivity in models of interpersonal communication competence.     

Mass communication research on China from 2000 to 2010: a meta-analysis

This study presents a meta-analysis of mass communication research on China from 2000 to 2010. It reveals patterns in authorship, methodological and theoretical approaches, medium, and area of focus, through a content analysis of 159 articles published in 20 major communication journals. Eight frameworks frequently used by communication scholars to study China are identified in a follow-up analytical review. The paper concludes with discussion on the implications of the findings and suggestions for future work.     

The effects of skills training on communication satisfaction and communication anxiety in the basic speech course

This study was designed to test the effects of skills training and experience on communication satisfaction and communication anxiety in the basic speech course. Skills training was operationalized as completion of COMM 15000, Theory and Practice of Oral Discourse, and experience was operationalized as multiple rhetorical performances. The results showed that students of the basic speech course experienced an increase in communication satisfaction and a decrease in communication anxiety following skills training for this sample. Moreover, highly apprehensive students reported being more satisfied with their communication interchanges following completion of the basic speech course.     

新闻传播人才培养模式观察与思考

我国新闻传播教育经过近 80年的发展 ,取得了显著的成绩 ,目前已出现多种不同的教育模式 ,也面临不少现实问题。本文对新闻传播教育的历史、现状、经验与问题进行了归纳分析 ,提出借鉴国外新闻传播教育的成功经验 ,进一步加快新闻教育改革的建议     

Creating Responsible Designers: Recognizing and Responding to Professional Immunity Claims

Design educators see the need for responsible designers but often disagree over how these individuals should behave or how they might encourage their students to become ethically aware practitioners. With this dichotomy in mind, this essay examines professional moral responsibility from the standpoint of immunity claims. Specifically, it shows how designers attempt to minimize their moral culpability by using pardons arising from role morality or collective responsibility. The essay also shows the effect these claims have on the environment where design students regularly work. The discussion gives design educators new starting points to consider for more nuanced departmental, curricular, and classroom responses to develop and graduate responsible designers.     

传播研究范式与中国传播学的发展

本文通过对范式概念的辨析,将目前学界公认的三种传播研究范式———社会科学研究、诠释研究以及批判研究———进行梳理;并结合中国的社会历史语境,探讨这三种研究范式在我国的发展状况;最后针对传播学多元范式并存的现状,提出要正确理解范式之间的张力,避免其负面影响,以促进我国传播学的发展。     

Causal modeling in communication research: Use,disuse, and misuse

The logic and procedures of causal modeling can help researchers avoid errors arising in more traditional analyses in a number of commonly occurring cases. A table of cases requiring causal modeling, or an equivalent technique, is presented. Nine years of published research in communication journals are reviewed to assess the adequacy of analysis in these situations. Standards for the conduct and reporting of causal modeling are also offered along with a review of their use in published causal modeling. These reviews indicate a number of areas demanding increased methodological rigor and sophistication in communication research.     

Delivery to the Sharp End of the Spear: Responding to the Need for Library Support to the Deployed and Downrange Military Community

ABSTRACT

Libraries that support military patrons often face unique challenges. One of the most traumatic is the temporary transfer, or sudden deployment of members of the university community, often in the middle of an academic term, sometimes without notice or adequate preparation time. Not too long ago such an event would almost certainly have interrupted if not altogether halted students’ academic progress until they could return to the parent institution. Technology now in place has allowed many of these students to continue their education regardless of their physical locations, and libraries will have to improvise with regard to the delivery of resources and materials to the “sharp end of the spear.”