Interpersonal communication competence has been conceptualized as a function of impressions of competence formed in the context of a dyadic relationship, and also in terms of individual behaviors. The Measure of Relational Competence, along with individual self-reports for empathy, role taking, and self-monitoring, were administered for 36…

A study analyzed the interaction of one freshman composition teacher and four students who met for a series of six conferences during a freshman composition course. The conferences, which were taped and transcribed, provide evidence of the benefits of the conference method of teaching composition. Analysis of the data included identifying the…

In a study designed to discover and describe the transmission of cultural meaning among women in middle management positions, oral histories of 10 middle management women were tape-recorded. The tapes were then transcribed and statements referring to the subjects' organizational enculturation were transferred onto approximately 500 sort cards.…

As part of a larger sociolinguistic study investigating the attitudes of Puerto Ricans on the island toward their own vernacular speech, the present research focused on the subjective reactions of 104 public high school teachers and students to spoken speech styles. The subjects' task was to: listen to a prerecorded tape, rate the voices on the…

When designing a contemporary curriculum in communication, it is important to adapt the specific set of skills and knowledge to the needs of the marketplace. The change in the transformation from speech to communication to communication/information technology is reflected in the various names of university departments. Schools that have changed…

An edited version of a 10-item instrument titled "Decision" was administered to 240 freshman students enrolled in speech courses to discover whether there were differential effects on the stability of a decision when the evidence used was fact or opinion and whether there were differential effects on the stability of the decision…

In an effort to determine how many West Virginia students were receiving specific instruction in the skills of speaking and listening, a survey of college introductory speech communication classes was devised. The survey, designed to determine whether separate courses or integrated skill instruction within English/language arts classes were being…

A study tested the hypothesis that higher organizational status translates into larger and better office space. One full professor, one associate professor, and one assistant professor for each of 30 departments in a large, mid-Atlantic land grant university were interviewed by organizational communication students. The results did not support the…

The study observed and compared the pragmatic skills of two mildly retarded and two nonhandicapped kindergarten children, focusing on their use of language in everyday conversational situations. A checklist developed by the investigator was used to record observations based on six categories of speech acts: commenting, answering, affirming,…

Of the many specific situations in which the exercise of suasory influence may be necessary to assure that a decision making group meets its analytical responsibilities, five appear to be particularly important. These are circumstances in which (1) a group is violating accepted procedural norms, (2) an authority figure or high status group member…

A study was conducted to identify the nonverbal behaviors predicting hireability, as well as the nonverbal behaviors candidates employ that predict hireability. Subjects were 25 campus recruiters, each of whom was given a cover letter explaining the purpose of the study and three copies of a Likert-type questionnaire on a single communicator…

Six casual conversations between university undergraduates were tape recorded and transcribed in an effort to describe the politeness practices of men and women during ordinary conversation. The first stage of analysis involved dividing the transcripts into utterances or units of speech actions. The second stage of analysis involved coding each…

To describe the conflict management training practices in 10 large American organizations, a study gathered descriptive data through interviews with organizational personnel responsible for training and development, a review of written materials where available, and observations of the delivery of conflict management training programs. The…

The two chief approaches to teaching argumentation and invention over the centuries have been first presenting a formal, abstract system, such as logic or topic, then emphasizing audience analysis. Sometimes these have been seen as alternatives, and sometimes as complements. Cursory attention is often paid to the ideal of investigating audience…

Discourse and conversational analysis methods were used in a qualitative reconstruction of one aspect of the regularities in the way 61 children "do" personal reference. Of particular interest was the development of two reference forms: minimization--preference for simple (one word) forms, or recipient design--reference forms indicating…