This study examined the experiences of shy, introverted, and apprehensive students in the college classroom. This study was framed by multiple goals theory to discover how these students use nonverbal communication to achieve their task, identity, and relational goals in the classroom. Shy, introverted, and apprehensive students face challenges in the classroom especially when asked to verbally participate or give presentations that their more outgoing classmates may not face. Participants (N = 16) participated in focus groups where they discussed their experiences, perceptions, and feelings about participation in their college courses. Results showed that these students do experience apprehension in communication situations, often avoiding participation when possible, and that they do use nonverbal communication to meet their task, identity, and relational goals in the classroom. Implications for theory and for both students and instructors, limitations, and future directions for research are discussed.

The classroom communication behavior of preservice teacher education students was the focus of this research. The study was designed to provide descriptive and empirical data for teacher educators to use in designing preservice and in-service training in classroom communication. Additionally, an interdisciplinary focus on research from the fields of interpersonal and instructional communication as applied to teacher education was emphasized. The sample for the study included 30 secondary and 29 elementary preservice teacher education students. The sample was stratified on the basis of the level of communication apprehension. A total of 30 high level apprehensive and 29 low level apprehensives were identified. The Personal Report of Communication Apprehension-24 (PRCA-24) was administered as a pre-posttest measure. Scores from the Communicator Style Measure (CSM) were analyzed with the PRCA—24. University supervisors and public school cooperating teachers completed a modified version of the CSM on two separate observation occasions.

Communication Apprehension (CA) pertains to levels of fear or anxiety people experience in relation to real or anticipated communication with other people. Decades of research on CA has focused on college students. This research explored levels of oral CA in an organizational environment. The purpose of this research was threefold. First, this study examined the communication apprehension profiles of native-language (English) and second-language (non-English) employees in a midsized South Florida service organization to understand if the levels of communication anxiety differ between the two groups as well as if demographic variables played a part in managing levels of communication anxiety. Second, this study examined the difference of perception credibility in supervisors between same-language and opposite-language employees to examine and analyze the relationship between the two groups and their supervisors in order to identify if communication problems exist that could affect an amicable working relationship or constructive feedback. Third, this study compared organizational personality types of upward mobile and indifferent to levels of communication apprehension in native-language (English) and second-language (non-English) employees in a sample of culturally diverse office personnel in two separate corporate locations in a midsized management organization located in South Florida. The findings were found not to be statistically significant; however, it was learned that CA levels do exist and that anxiety levels vary between respondents. Further investigation into the effects of CA on workplace production remains a challenge. Additional studies using randomly selected populations from similarly diverse organizations more representative of the diversity of the region rather than a convenience sample is recommended.

Sammanfattning Engelskundervisningen i dagens grundskolor ska vara kommunikativ, det vill säga att kommunikation och interaktion ligger till grund för elevernas språkutveckling. En sådan undervisning kan vara extra utmanande för elever med ängslan inför att tala. Talängslan hämmar elevens språkutveckling och kan påverka den kunskapsmässiga bedömningen och betyget negativt. Därför är det viktigt att lärare är medvetna om talängslan, dess orsaker och hur de kan arbeta för att gynna dessa elever. Denna studie handlar om vad lärare i årskurs 4-6 anser är utmaningen med talängsliga elever. Den handlar vidare om hur deltagarnan uttrycker att de undervisar i den muntliga delen av engelska. Syfte Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka vilka utmaningar fyra lärare uppfattar finns med talängslan hos elever i åk 4-6, samt lärarnas roll i att ta sig an dessa utmaningar. Metod I denna studie använder jag mig av kvalitativ metod i form av intervjuer, eftersom jag vill åt den enskilde lärarens uppfattningar/tolkningar av fenomenet talängslan i det engelskspråkiga klassrummet. Eftersom jag vill bygga en förståelse för hur andra människor uppfattar och tolkar, i detta fall lärarna i min studie, så är hermeneutiken en tolkningsmetod som ligger till grund för mitt arbete. Jag har använt mig av intervjuer med fyra lärare på fyra olika grundskolor i min studie. Respondenterna i intervjuerna är aktiva engelsklärare i åk 4-6. Resultat Av resultatet framgår att de deltagande lärarna i denna studie är medvetna om att talängslan finns bland eleverna. Deras uppfattning är att de på olika sätt kan se hur detta framträder hos dem. Talängslan syns via elevernas kroppsspråk, men också genom att de undviker situationer där de behöver tala engelska. Lärarna resonerar även kring de möjliga orsakerna som kan ligga bakom elevernas talängslan. Det kan bland annat handla om att eleverna inte förstår vad läraren säger, eller så kan de vara rädda för att säga fel inför lärare och klasskamrater. Vidare resonerar lärarna i min studie hur de bemöter talängsliga elever. I resultatet framgår det att en trygg kommunikativ miljö är en viktig aspekt; klassrumsmiljön ska vara sådan att alla elever vågar tala engelska. Detta innebär bland annat nolltolerans mot hån eller skratt i klassrummet när någon elev talar. Det framkommer även praktiska sätt de arbetar på med den muntliga delen. Resultatet visar att det ofta förekommer att lärarna växlar mellan svenska och engelska på lektionerna för att göra sig förstådda. Detta beror på vilken årskurs eller elevgrupp det handlar om.

Modern businesses place a premium on employees' oral communication skills.  Business schools are meant to develop future employees and leaders with the requisite skills for success.  Industry representatives, however, consistently express dissatisfaction with business graduates' oral communication skills.  There appears to remain a gap between business students' oral skills and marketplace demands. Research demonstrates that among many possible factors, oral communication apprehension (OCA) appears a significant contributor to ineffective oral communication. OCA may also significantly impede oral skills development by impacting the core aspects of spiral curriculum, an educational theory aimed at the processes of higher education.  The PRCA-24, the most utilized OCA measurement tool, assesses individuals' trait-like OCA levels across common oral communication settings (e.g., public speaking, interpersonal, group, and meeting) as well as their context (e.g., state) OCA levels within each setting.  This study examines whether OCA is significantly sensitive to situational variables and therefore operates as a state.  If so, acquiring business students' situational OCA may benefit educators as complimentary data to PRCA-24 assessments. This study also examines business and non-business undergraduates' self-reported OCA levels across general public speaking, interpersonal, and group/meeting oral communication settings as well as those in respective high (and low) stakes situations meant to reflect the stress-inducing scenarios they will likely experience on the job after graduation.  Results indicate OCA is significantly sensitive to situational variables (e.g., stakes).  Results are discussed in the framework of providing more relevant measurements of business students' OCA levels to help educators fill the oral skills gap. / Master of Arts

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This dissertation proposed and operationalized a theoretically meaningful and practically useful conceptualization of change for three well known communication constructs, namely willingness to communicate (WTC), self-perceived communication competence (SPCC), and communication apprehension (CA). Specifically, this research found that students' WTC and SPCC scores increased linearly during the semester and their CA scores decreased linearly. In addition, results from this dissertation indicated that for all three constructs considerable differences among students existed with respect to both initial levels and subsequent change in levels. These results are important and can advance the theoretical communication research centered around these constructs. In particular, knowledge that the hypothesis of linear change in the constructs received support from empirical data and that variations in students' trajectories of change were recorded, can prompt communication scholars to search for novel theoretical frameworks that can explicate these change processes. Moreover, the findings of this research are also salient for classroom instruction. Specifically, teachers of introductory communication classes can use the results of this study as broad benchmarks that can inform realistic expectations with respect to students' improvement in WTC, SPCC, and/or CA. In addition, this dissertation presented the benefits derived from properly conceptualizing and studying change by means of latent growth modeling, a powerful and versatile data analytic technique. Specifically, employing this methodology offered the opportunity to get detailed information about how changes in one construct are related to changes in the other two constructs and to gain a more in-depth knowledge of the intricate ways in which interlinkages among the constructs change across time. The benefits of this dynamic way to study WTC, SPCC, and CA are readily apparent as it facilitates teachers access to information that can be used to tailoring their activity for a more targeted, efficient, and beneficial instruction.

High communication apprehension has several negative effects on affected persons. Students with high communication apprehension in particular experience low class participation, poor teacher-student relationships, and low grades. This study examined the effects of Fundamentals of Oral Communication (public speaking) classes on students ' communication apprehension compared to non-public speaking alternatives, Introduction to Communication. McCroskey's PRCA-24 was distributed as a pre- and post-test, and the data was analyzed using a repeated measures design. Limitations and future study implications are discussed.

This study investigated the intercultural communication competence and intercultural communication apprehension of Chinese international students. Participants in the study consisted of Chinese international students over 18 years old studying at two 4-year public universities in the southeastern United States. The study participants completed 2 online survey questionnaires: the Intercultural Sensitivity Scale (ISS), which measured the degree of intercultural communication competence, and the Personal Report of Intercultural Communication Apprehension (PRICA), which measured the degree of intercultural communication apprehension. The findings of the study indicated a significant relationship between Chinese international students' intercultural communication competence and their intercultural apprehension. Findings also noted that gender, age, number of U.S. friends, and level of education were not factors predicting the participants' degree of intercultural communication competence and intercultural communication apprehension. However, frequency of speaking English outside of the classroom was an important factor indicating differences in the degree of the study participants' intercultural communication competence and intercultural communication apprehension. In addition, the study revealed that the length of time in the United States affected participants' intercultural communication competence but not their intercultural communication apprehension.

<p dir="ltr">When diagnosed with cancer, it is not uncommon for patients to turn to narratives—both fiction and non—looking for comfort or a way to make sense of their situation. When it comes to cancer on screen, we often see a romanticized version of cancer diagnosis: young sick kids falling in love, messages of going on to do amazing things after treatment, or visuals of glamorized sickness. This is not reflective of the dark thoughts that often find homes in the minds of cancer patients. And yet, little media exists to resonate with these darker narratives. Netflix’s The Midnight Club, a horror show catered toward young adults, helps to twist the pre-existing narratives surrounding cancer by utilizing the conventions of the horror genre to explore the darker sides of cancer diagnosis through storytelling. Though often uncomfortable, the show’s ability to discuss thoughts of mortality, pain, and loss in wake of terminal diagnosis is one important of discussion, as is done in this paper.</p>