Reviews four books on speech research: (1) "The Speech Chain: The Physics and Biology of Spoken Language" (Peter B. Denes and Elliot N. Pinson); (2) "Speaking: From Intention to Articulation" (Willem J. M. Levelt); (3) "Talking to Learn: Conversation in Second Language Acquisition" (Richard R. Day); and (4) "Speaking" (Martin Bygate). (eight…

Provides a definition of a conversation and states that all conversations are either spontaneous or specific. Each conversational situation consists of a text, nonverbal communication, and turn taking. Any conversation contains an opening preparation, orientation, topic or object, conclusion, and end. A short bibliography is provided. (25…

Do infants and young children possess implicit theory of mind that is revealed through their communicative interactions, or are they simply treating their interlocutors as objects to manipulate in service to their own material ends? Paper reviews additional evidence indicating infants in second year of life are capable of communicating for sake of…

Discusses the four principles that guided the development of the communication studies program at Iowa State University. Describes the proposed program in communication studies. Appends the proposed curriculum. (RS)

Offers a unit on direction giving to help students identify effective and ineffective direction giving; become familiar with the preparation and presentation components of sound direction giving; and determine whether the message intended was the massage received. Discusses barriers to listening, misunderstandings, and provides exercises and steps…

Unsophisticated raters judged speech naturalness and stuttering severity in audio-only and audiovisual presentations of speech samples. For stutterer samples, raters judged the audiovisual presentation more unnatural than the audio presentation, but for the nonstutterer samples, there was no difference. Stuttering severity ratings did not differ…

Relates the experience of a speech communication faculty who chose, in a campus reorganization, to locate themselves in a professional college. Discusses benefits and difficulties. (SR)

Discusses the role of communication education in the United States (with its Western cultural origins and thus Western cultural biases) in the transformation of Asia's media environment. Advocates attention to Asian scholarship in communication-related subjects. (SR)

Discusses measures (which may be obtained easily for use in the communication classroom) associated with personality variables that influence communication (self-related variables and socially oriented variables). Discusses the usefulness of these measures in the classroom. (SR)

Offers guidelines for conducting outcomes assessment research, particularly communication alumni surveys. Recommends what to do before starting, suggests some step-by-step guidelines, and notes the aftermath and conclusions of the 1991 Boise State University Outcomes Assessment Project. (SR)

Responds to an article in the same issue regarding research methods for conversational cognition. Argues for a noncognitive view of rational models in communication research. Sets out an analysis of the kinds of claims made by rational models of message design. Discusses the implications of this analysis for studies of the cognitive processes…

Elucidates the historical inquiry into Anglo-American mass communication studies. Argues that they can be reduced to three versions: mass communication research, the New Left, and the cultural version. Shows how the field's history writing has been caught in complex ways in its inner developments and paradigmatic struggles. (SR)

Adopts symbolic convergence theory to analyze the stories and rituals that form the shared consciousness of bargaining teams and of labor-management relationships. Uses a case comparison approach to highlight similarities and differences in the fantasy themes and bargaining rights of two teachers' negotiation units in two school districts. (KEH)

Explores context in technical communication through the speech community. Asks what the relationship is among language, culture, and thought, and what knowledge is needed for effective communication. Argues that the Whorfian hypothesis answers the first question, whereas Chomsky's work on grammatical competence and Flower and Hayes' investigations…

Asserts that persuasive communication is an essential skill. Describes a class in which students learn to develop and deliver persuasive speeches. Note that they learn to focus their topics, understand different points of view, support beliefs with evidence, and deliver their speech in a persuasive way. (PRA)