Small-set segmental identification experiments were conducted with three deaf-blind subjects who were highly experienced users of the Tadoma method. Systematic variations in the positioning of the hand on the speaker's face for Tadoma produced systematic effects on percent-correct scores, information transfer, and perception of individual…

Examines whether delayed judgments of observed behaviors are more biased than immediate judgments. Finds that delayed judgments more closely approximate implicit theories of communicative competence. (SR)

An analysis is made of research focusing on how speaking and listening activities are relevant to the language classroom. Current thinking is reviewed on spoken language, with a focus on pronunciation, as a medium of information transfer and of interpersonal exchange. (66 references) (GLR)

Examines words per pause (W/P) as a means of identifying solidarity between speakers and listeners. Speakers use significantly more words per pause with friends than when speaking with strangers. W/P can be used to investigate speaking style in various contexts and to diagnose sympathy and estrangement between speakers. (JL)

Analyzes the publication patterns of prolific authors in speech communication between 1915 and 1985, using the journals listed in the most recent "Index to Journals in Communication Studies." Reports that publication early in a scholar's career is very important, as is flexibility in selecting journals in which to publish. (MM)

Contends that the contradictory research on conversational interruptions may be traced not only to definitional inconsistencies, but to the empirically tenuous concept of "interruption." Asserts that "onset" and "resolution" are more rigorous and describable procedures. (MS)

Analyzes a segment of conversation in which one participant repairs the broken-off utterance of another. Finds that utterance design and sequential placement play key roles in this accomplishment. Argues that context is an ongoing achievement of such practices of utterance design and sequential placement. (MS)

Examines managing floor time and topical focus as manifestations of interpersonal dominance in conversations. Finds that the longer a conversational partner talks, and the less related are his or her remarks, the more that partner is perceived to be in control. (SR)

Reports a field study of computer professionals' client relationships. Concludes that client-oriented interaction behaviors grounded in the interactional view provide substantial discrimination between high and low-performing professionals. (MS/JAD)

Examines the 1984 party platforms from the perspective of Walter Fisher's narrative paradigm. Concludes that though the two party's narratives followed different strategies, they both displayed the internal consistency required by Fisher's perspective as they reflected transcendent values that were both relevant to and consistent with party…

Argues that the field of rhetoric is relevant to the study of two functions of communication (transmission and influence). Asserts that the rise of communications technology has again made the study of rhetoric possible and even socially necessary. (MS)

Argues that rhetorical criticism has approached the new persuasions and propaganda of 20th century America only with great difficulty, and that a greater understanding of the relationships between the new managerial rhetoric and the old criticism will resolve discrepant critical perspectives on modern social influence. (JAD)

Examines the news of the Persian Gulf War from a critical reader/viewer perspective. Proposes that video news works like an intriguing alphabet, the forms and meanings of which are pronounced by a monopoly of interpreter reporters, anchors, and media guests. Notes the facility with which rhetorical strategies governed the principles and actions of…

Advances a complexity account that suggests that there are increased processing-capacity and temporal demands associated with formulating and maintaining more complex message representations. Reports on four studies of this complexity account. Suggests that results of these studies provide considerable support for the complexity hypothesis. (RS)

Offers an overview of what is happening to communication programs across the United States, discussing the good news and the bad news of their current plight. (SR)