The creation of innovative and impactful communication theories depends on improving our theorizing practices. A grounded practical theory analysis of communication theory textbooks and exercises explored representations of theorizing and what it means for students to think like theorists. The analysis suggests that communication theory pedagogy…

As ways that communication scholars can prepare students to meet challenges and transform society are considered, for the greater good, the authors argue that it is essential to consider the realm of health communication (Morreale, Valenzano, & Bauer, 2016). The authors focus on a growing need for rigorous research as a cornerstone of…

Anita Vangelisti writes in this response that although the recommendations set forward in this "Forum" are well thought out and important additions to the discussion, teacher-scholars in the field of communication can, and should, do more. She agrees that there is a need to identify and describe learning outcomes in communication, and…

Could teacher communication behaviors generally assumed to be positive ever be detrimental to student realization of particular outcomes? This essay argues for increased scholarly attention to this question. The authors advocate a research agenda that explores the potential "downside" of teacher communication behaviors (TCBs);…

In daily language use, we sometimes comment on the conversation with phrases such as "What do you mean by saying that?" or "That was nice of you to say." This communication about the communication is sometimes labeled as metacommunication. It can be used for many different purposes; for instance, to try and clarify or appraise…

Advances in communication technology have created many new tools for school communicators--as well as increasing complexities for their programs. As a result, solid school communication research programs offering practical research insights for planning, tracking, and assessing school communication efforts are more important than ever. Still, many…

An emerging trend in health communication research advocates the need to foreground articulations of health by participants who are at the core of any health campaign. Scholarly work suggests that the culture-centered approach to health communication can provide a theoretical and practical framework to achieve this objective. The culture-centered…

Communication-across-the-curriculum (CXC) programs provide assistance to other disciplines on the teaching and learning of communication--meeting an increasingly important need for students not only to be content specialists, but also coherent communicators. Research emerging from this initiative details programmatic challenges and emphases, but…

Overlaps with one's interlocutor in the choice of words are called lexical entrainment. This article looks at accounts for these overlaps in word use. The question addressed is the extent to which the word use of the addressee, as opposed to available words from other sources, has a special impact on experts' choice of words. A laboratory…

Classroom communication between deaf students was modeled using a question-and-answer game. Participants consisted of student pairs that relied on spoken language, pairs that relied on American Sign Language (ASL), and mixed pairs in which one student used spoken language and one signed. Although the task encouraged students to request…

"Picture Exchange Communication System" (PECS) training was implemented with 5 nonspeaking adults with mental retardation who were not currently using any type of functional communication system. A modified ABAB, single-subject design was used to assess the effectiveness of PECS in enhancing the functional communication skills of these…

For individuals who have complex communication needs and for the interventionists who work with them, the collection of empirically derived data that support the use of an intervention approach is critical. The purposes of this study were to continue building an empirically derived base of support for, and to compare the relative effectiveness of…

Clear verbal communication is a key skill for the modern scientist. In this article we describe two model science courses, one given to a small class and the other to a large class, in which verbal communication is emphasized as a key learning objective. Both courses use a form of problem-based learning (PBL) with an end point that involves…

Three experiments from the late 1970s concerning second language communication strategies are studied for evidence supporting their classification as either avoidance or achievement strategies. The experiments had as subjects native English-speaking children in a French immersion program, adult second language learners of English who were native…