In a microanalysis of the behaviors of examiners and handicapped children during videotaped testing sessions, handicapped students performed better with familiar examiners than with unfamiliar examiners. The children spoke significantly more often and longer when tested by familiar examiners who exercised more frequent and longer intervals of…

Any university or college department that is conducting a self-study (self-evaluation) must do so in an organized and open-minded fashion. Too often persons can delude themselves into believing that they are conducting self-analysis when they are actually engaging in self-congratulations or conducting a disorganized search that will lead to…

Assuming that the forensic coach should attempt to facilitate the students' success in original speech events as well as provide a basis for understanding communication skills to be transferred to other communication settings, the coach as "educator" is crucial. While the purpose of the coach is to guide and direct a student toward an appropriate…

A review of the ethical standards established by the forensic community for use of evidence in contest speaking reveals that (1) there is a paucity of specific ethical guidelines established for contest speaking in the textbook literature, and (2) the standards outlined are stated in terms of "unethical behavior" rather than of positive…

An American family lived for 12 months in the Spanish province of Galicia as participant observers in the daily performance of the cultural roles and rituals of people living in the city of Santiago de Compostela. Since focus was on the performative dimensions of the culture, 38 people were formally interviewed, along with more than 100 on an…

A study was conducted to examine communication apprehension of job candidates evaluated in company assessment centers. It was hypothesized that (1) candidates' scores on interactive or oral communication activities would be more predictive of job success than would noninteractive activity scores, (2) there would be a negative correlation between…

Noting that little systematic attention has been devoted to research on the development, administration, and effects of a student internship program in speech communication, this practical guide to internships describes how to develop and administer such a program. The first part of the guide deals with preliminary considerations, including…

A rhetorical analysis was conducted of the four broadcast political debates that led to San Diego Mayor Pete Wilson's victory in the 1982 California senatorial race. Specifically, the analysis covered one primary debate held in San Diego among five of the seven Republican contenders and the three bipartisan debates held in Fresno, San Francisco,…

Understanding organizational cultures offers important and useful insights for the professional communicator. The fastest-growing area of interest in the study of modern organizations and their behavior is that of organizational cultures. There are at least two specific ways to categorize and discuss these cultures. The first is to divide them…

Intended for teachers of speech and theater, the material in this annual journal is divided into three parts: original research, instructional practices and materials, and Illinois issues. Titles and authors are as follows: (1) "A Study of the Predictive Validity of the Relational Control Paradigm" by Emil Bohn and Douglas G. Bock, (2)…

One problem confronting theater directors is how to revive a play in such a way as to give it new relevance to a contemporary audience, and there many unhappy examples of this dilemma. Each director is concerned with exploring the text, and in some cases, manipulating the content, in order to bring out new meanings. Whether controversial or…

Communication competence has been approached primarily from three perspectives in the communication literature: (1) as cognitive understanding of communication, (2) as a capability of performing certain communication skills, and (3) as achieving effective communication. Most scholars who write about communication competence view competence either…

Traditional assumptions about oral and written discourse persist among various philosophers and critics. Careful examination of the context for traditional assumptions, however, suggests that current scholarship should pursue altered lines of inquiry. Peculiar influences on Renaissance standards of purpose, style, and theme illustrate the nature…

Communication competency research and theory would benefit from a conceptualization that emphasizes competent communication rather than competent communicators. Such a conceptualization recognizes that competent communication is inherently both contextually bound and necessarily dependent upon the particular combination of people involved in an…

The proposals of this segment have been designed to help the elementary school child learn to evaluate the motive or intent of speakers. (Author)