A study investigated the impact of a one-time persuasive message presented to subjects across two media--audio and audiovisual. A second variable, distraction, was also examined for its induced impact on conferring resistance to the message. Subjects were 170 college undergraduates, 46 of whom were assigned to a control group that did not see or…

Aristotle rejects a world vision of changing reality as neither useful nor beneficial to human life, and instead he reaffirms both change and eternal reality, fuses motion and rest, and ends up with "well-behaved" changes. This concept of motion is foundational to his world view, and from it emerges his theory of knowledge, philosophy of…

A grammar based on speech acts to be used by second language teachers, syllabus planners, and instructional materials writers is outlined. The grammar proposes only two basic categories of speech act: (1) those involving a negotiation between speaker and addressee, and (2) those designed by the speaker to give information to the addressee. The…

In many college and high school forensics tournaments, the topic agenda is derived from "Newsweek,""Time," and "U.S. News and World Report." This use of three profit-oriented, widely circulated magazines as the agenda setting basis of extemporaneous speaking competition is philosophically and substantively damaging.…

Arguing that any discussion of debate theory is incomplete without at least some analysis or review of paradigm theory, this paper begins by analogizing the arguments over paradigms to a battle ground over control of the activity. The analysis then shifts to an examination of Thomas Kuhn's sociological theory as a basis for the argument that the…

A study focused on the effect of assigned social decision rule on the process and product of mock jury deliberations. Subjects, 360 college students, were randomly assigned to six-member juries under three decision rule conditions: unanimity, five-sixths majority, and two-thirds majority. After viewing a videotape of a criminal trial, each subject…

Debate educators must evaluate the efficacy of debate in terms of its goals of developing reasoning skills and critical thought. Disputes regarding method, purpose, and style identify problems within debate that obstruct or confound its capacity to reach these goals. Research plays a critical role in the development of reasoning skills and the…

Although scholars have tried to identify validity as a single characteristic, an alternative path treats validity as a confluence of characteristics, a multifaceted concept that is a product of the function of argument in a given context. From a functional perspective on argumentation, validity criteria change as the speaker's purpose is redefined…

Over recent years critics of debate have expressed disenchantment with the rate of delivery used by intercollegiate debaters. To determine how fast Cross Examination Debate Association (CEDA) debaters speak compared to normal public speaking rates, and whether CEDA has met its goal of providing a forum that is consistent with the rate of public…

This annotated bibliography lists 43 books, periodicals, and essays in the area of governmental-political communication. Topics include: social justice, lying, cheating, ethics, public duties, public policy, language, rhetorical strategies, and propaganda. (MS)

This 44-item bibliography, limited to the television era of American politics, is intended to assist teachers of debate, argumentation, and political communication; researchers of campaign debates; and debate sponsors and participants. Scholarly books and monographs; public affairs books, monographs and papers; academic articles and chapters from…

This 47-item bibliography lists selected sources which offer advice, instruction, and opinion on the subject of clerical reading, including when and how it should be done. Basic speech textbooks and articles; secular oral interpretation textbooks and articles; religious source materials; and classical collections of sermons are annotated and…

This paper reviews the newly emergent trend of audience-centered debate paradigms, such as the narrative and the issues-agenda paradigms, in light of an informal logic perspective on the argumentum ad populum fallacy. The paper demonstrates the complexity involved in the evaluation of ad populum arguments as well as the care which must be taken in…

The public, the media, and the candidates each bring a unique and sometimes contradictory set of needs to the political campaign debate that must be reconciled in designing formats to significantly improve debate practice. Five format suggestions address problems characteristic of debates, particularly at the state and local levels: (1) format…

A study was conducted to determine the function of a firm within the context of public relations practice. The assessment of James E. Grunig's "Indices for Models of Public Relations" (an instrument for measuring the type of public relations practiced by an organization) was of primary concern. This instrument places public relations…