Metaphor theory bears many implications for counseling processes, but metaphor in extended counseling talk is seldom evaluated. This article reports an exploratory skin conductance and discourse analysis of metaphorical versus literal communication styles in facilitating affective engagement over time. After background interaction with the…

The purpose of this study is to (a) investigate the families of violent and nonviolent adolescents in terms of family functioning, trait anger and anger expression, and (b) compare incidence of psychological problems, alcohol usage and delinquent behaviors. The sample consisted of families of both violent (n = 54) and nonviolent adolescents (n =…

The study evaluates a social-communication-based approach to autism intervention aimed at improving the social interaction skills of children with autism spectrum disorder. We report preliminary results from an ongoing randomized controlled trial of 51 children aged 2 years 0 months to 4 years 11 months. Participants were assigned to either a…

Does autism involve a deficit in intersubjective engagement with other persons? We studied nonverbal communication in children and adolescents with and without autism (n = 12 per group), group-matched for chronological age and verbal mental age, during 3 min of a videotaped interview. In keeping with previous studies, there were only subtle but…

We used global ratings to compare the family (parent[s]-child) interactions of 51 clinic-referred children with ADHD and 32 non problem children. Children and parent(s) were videotaped while engaging in problem solving and game playing activities. Independent coders, blind to children's diagnostic status, rated the interactions using measures…

Women living in poverty are at increased risk for depression, especially during their childbearing years. Whereas poverty has known adverse effects on children's cognitive, social, and communication development, maternal depression may place these children at additional risk of developmental delays. The maternal sensitivity of mothers with and…

The originator of the communication apprehension (CA) construct has consistently maintained that communication apprehensive people should not be expected to exhibit anxious behaviors. On the other hand, inept and incompetent communicative actions constitute the reticence syndrome, clearly a construct defined through behaviors. Noting that it is…

Examined whether hostile and defensive personality characteristics contribute to conflict and withdrawal within marriage. Analysis of 90 newly wed couples' discussions showed that, among husbands, high levels of hostility combined with low levels of defensiveness accompanied increased conflict. This same personality pattern led to an increase in…

Adult stutterers (n=75) and nonstutterers (n=81) rated themselves on communication attitudes involving behavioral, affective, and cognitive components. The findings raise issues regarding stutterers' avoidances, attitude multidimensionality in the perceptions of speaking situations, differences in stutterers and nonstutterers' belief systems, and…

A study investigated the validity and usefulness of the Affective Communication Test (ACT) which measures a person's ability to project a nonverbal message to others. The ACT test was reduced to 10 items and administered to 130 college students. The results were analyzed for interpersonal display of effect, public display, and small group display.…

A study analyzed electronic-mail requests from college students (n=34 native speakers of English/NSs, 65 non-native speakers/NNSs) to faculty, randomly gathered over the period of a year. The requests were analyzed for the affective response they produced both on the faculty recipient and on a non-recipient faculty member, and for linguistic forms…