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The Basic Communication Course Syllabus As A Rhetorical Document: The Impact Of Mediated Immediacy On Communication Apprehension With Instructors And Out-Of-Class Communication, Divine N. Aboagye, John Hooker, Cheri J. Simonds

Basic Communication Course Annual

The purpose of this study was to examine teachers’ use of mediated immediacy in a syllabus to determine effects on students’ communication apprehension with instructors and student out-of-class communication with instructors. Participants viewed either a basic course syllabus with high levels of mediated immediacy or low levels of mediated immediacy and then completed surveys. The results showed that syllabi high in mediated immediacy made students significantly less apprehensive to communicate with instructors and more likely to engage in out-of-class communication with them. Implications for the use of mediated immediacy in syllabus construction are discussed.