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The Cowl - V. 75 - N. 3 - Sept 23, 2010

The Cowl

The Cowl - student newspaper of Providence College. Volume 75 - Number 3 - September 23, 2010. 32 pages.

Gender Bias As Evidenced On Political Blogs In The 2008 Presidential Election, Lori Ann Gardner

Theses and Dissertations

Political blogs played a significant role in the 2008 presidential election serving not only as news sources on the latest political coverage, but also as communities where people expressed political opinions, interacted with others who shared similar beliefs, as well as attempt to persuade and influence the audience members, often making calls to action. A rhetorical analysis, drawing from gendered mediation and frame theory, of 183 political blog posts revealed that gendered mediation was quite common on blog posts in the 2008 presidential election. Further, the mediation was often followed by gendered discourse that was much more blatant in content …

Students Say The Darndest Things! A Conversation Analysis For Teaching Assistants In The First-Year-Writing Classroom, Meredith Mcmillan

Theses and Dissertations

Teaching writing is about more than just the writing itself. It's about effective communication between students and teachers, which should create a positive and productive writing environment. However, within conversations, challenges of authority are likely to occur. This project discusses the pitfalls of communication between teaching assistants and students in the first-year-writing classroom. These pitfalls are defined as discourse violations, and are further explained and analyzed using concepts of language theory. Case studies of discourse violation scenarios are presented for discussion. Each scenario illustrates various types of discourse violations, and creates an awareness of the need for classroom management. Ultimately, …

Communicative Facework In Marital Dissolution And Post-Dissolution Processes, Brandi N. Frisby

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Divorce affects nearly 24,000 adults (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 2008) and one million children yearly (Amato, 2000), often with negative consequences for those who are involved (Amato, 2000; Kiecolt-Glaser & Newton, 2001). Unlike previous research which focused on predictors of divorce, this dissertation (2 studies) focused on the communicative processes that occur when divorce is initiated and in turning points which comprise the interactions in post-divorce relationships. In study one, participants (N = 69) reported on the conversation where the decision to divorce was made, the face threats and facework which were communicated during that conversation, and the individual …

Students' Perceptions Of Classroom Justice And Their Use Of Politeness Strategies, Charles K. Rudick

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The purpose of this study was to investigate how students' use of politeness strategies differed based on their perceptions of distributive, procedural, and interactional justice when they engaged in a face threatening act (FTA) with their instructors. Participants included 76 undergraduate students enrolled in undergraduate communication courses at a large mid-Atlantic university during the summer. Results revealed that students engage in all types of politeness strategies when speaking with their instructor, with students reporting the bald-on-record strategy the most frequently. However, students' use of politeness strategies did not significantly differ based on their perceptions of distributive, procedural, and interactional justice. …

Differences In Interpersonal Skills Between Engineering And Organizational Leadership And Supervision Majors, Anuj A. Mhaskar

Purdue Polytechnic Directed Projects

This study explored the differences in interpersonal communication skills – assertiveness and conflict management in particular between students with a senior academic standing in the college of engineering and the department of organizational leadership and supervision at Purdue University, West Lafayette. The Rathus Assertiveness Schedule and the Putnam-Wilson OCCI were used to measure assertiveness levels and conflict management styles in students. Results from the study indicated that there is no significant difference in assertiveness levels or the use of conflict management styles between the two majors. However, significant differences in assertiveness levels and the control scale of conflict management were …

Craft As A Form Of Mindful Inquiry, Louise Valentine, Georgina Follett

DRS Biennial Conference Series

In this research project ‘Communication of Craft Practice’ is the subject and the problem is one of transparency of the intellectual act and accessibility to the embodied knowledge. Why? The skill of coherently expressing the intellectual and personal voice within the development of craft practice is usually missing. There is a gap in our knowledge. The methodological framework is Mindful Inquiry which is a synthesis of critical social science, hermeneutics, phenomenology and Buddhism (Bentz and Shapiro, 1998).The research involves working directly with professional practitioners to embark on a series of creative journeys from which craft as an experience, process, product …

Understanding Team Design Communication Through The Designer’S Eye: A Descriptive-Analytic Approach, Chrysi Rapanta, Luca Botturi, Andreas Schmeil

DRS Biennial Conference Series

The present study is an example of an empirical design research project based on design teams. Our main goal is to describe, understand and analyze the communication processes which take place inside a design team working on a design project for a short period of time. This paper presents the main observations and results of two case studies based on two design fields: Architecture and Graphic design. The paper’s contribution lies on the methodology used, combining qualitative and quantitative methods of analysis, and involving the designers’ point of view at various steps of the research process. In this way, we …

The Effect Of Cross-Chain Discussion By Eyewitnesses And Non-Eyewitnesses On Rumor Accuracy, Samuel Brougher

Theses

As rumors travel from person to person, information is lost during the transmissions. Discussion, however, increases retention of the original account and organizes later transmissions. This organization then decreases the attentional load of the listeners, thus allowing them to attend to and retain a more complex message. Further, the information that is lost tends to be explanatory statements (instead of event statements). Such explanatory statements make ratings of a negative event more neutral, but are lost when the listener's attentional load is increased, and the central (event-based) message is more likely to be retained. With this in mind, the effects …

Navigating Reentry Shock: The Use Of Communication As A Facilitative Tool, Caroline C. Niesen

Communication ETDs

Even though many university students travel and study abroad, there is minimal literature and research about supporting these students when they return from their study abroad experience. In order to understand and incorporate the experience into the students everyday life, communication plays a key role in facilitating the transition back into the United States. Thus, the principal purpose of this study was to expand the research on reentry shock and communication by creating a new scale of reentry shock and testing a proposed model of variables to uncover which factor is most important (individual, interpersonal, and cultural). One hundred fifty …

Behavioural Display Systems Across Nine Anolis Lizard Species: Sexual Dimorphisms In Structure And Function, Michele A. Johnson, J. Wade

Biology Faculty Research

Relationships between structure and function are a primary focus in biology, yet they are most often considered within individual species. Sexually dimorphic communication behaviours and the morphology of associated structures can vary widely, even among closely related species, and these traits provide an ideal opportunity to investigate the evolution of structure-function patterns. Using nine Anolis lizard species, we addressed a series of questions regarding sex differences in and the evolution of relationships between extension of the throat fan (dewlap) and morphology of the muscles and cartilage controlling it. The main results indicated that within species, males displayed the dewlap more …

The Development Of A New Performance-Based Test For Measuring Emotional Intelligence: Humility-Empathy-Assertiveness-Respect Test, Hitomi Makino

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

A critical review of literature revealed a lack of performance-based Emotional Intelligence (EI) test which assesses core relationship abilities. The purpose of this study was to attend to this need by developing a new measurement, the Humility-Empathy-Assertiveness-Respect Test (HEART). As a preliminary investigation, this study explored psychometric properties of the HEART. Support for the Discriminant validity was obtained as it correlated with the IQ test as well as other EI tests that differ in various aspects from the HEART. Support for the convergent validity was partially obtained as the empathy subscale correlated with relationship satisfaction and attachment avoidance. While revisions …

A Comparative Study Of Self-Disclosure In Face-To-Face And Email Communication Between Americans And Chinese, Carolyn Durand

Senior Honors Projects

Self-disclosure occurs when one person communicates personal information about his or her self to another. This information can include facts, opinions, or feelings, and can vary in both breadth and depth. The amount of self-disclosure a person offers depends on several factors. The gender and personality of the person, the relationship they have with the listener, or target, the topic they are discussing, and the medium through which they are communicating all influence how much they are willing to reveal about themselves.

Another aspect that affects self-disclosure is culture. Culture refers to a set of beliefs, values, and traditions shared …

The Cowl - V. 74 - N. 21 - Apr 22, 2010

The Cowl

The Cowl - student newspaper of Providence College. Volume 74 - Number 21 - April 22, 2010. 32 pages.

The Closed Cohort Learning Model: Enabling Innovation And Organizational Success, Frederick D. Ellrich

Electronic Theses and Dissertations Archive

AbstractThis study examines the development of trust, communication, and collaboration in a closed cohort academic community. The closed cohort has gained in popularity in recent years and is now common at the graduate level, especially in the colleges of business and education. A closed cohort is a group of students who begin and end together, and proceed in lock step through a sequence of courses. The research is a case study of a master’s program in leadership at a university in the mid-south area of the United States. The research approach is phenomenological in that the researcher was an instructor …

Omg! The Gossip Behind One Program's Effects On Interpersonal Relationship Expectations, Cailin Rocco

Honors Projects in Communication

This research investigates the effects of media on the interpersonal relationship expectations of television viewers. The study sought to better understand the implications of this topic in addition to determining whether one television program can affect the mindset of viewers. Through the use of an online survey, a focus group, a cultivation analysis of the television show Gossip Girl, as well as an analysis of the show’s fan pages this research discovered that television viewing has an impact on viewer expectations of relationships (as well as a general desire for themes within television programs in reality). This research demonstrates the …

Would You Say That To Your Children? Enhancing Learning Through Improved Communication, Karin M. Mika

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

This paper discusses how an aging professor must change how she teaches in relation to how her relationship with her student changes. Sometimes professors see themselves in one way and do not realize that they are not perceived the same way they were years ago. The paper sets out advice for appearing less intimidating to students as they grow younger while we grow older.

Expressive Writing: A Technique For Improving Communication In Individuals With Autism And Related Disorders, Taryn G. Aldrich

Dissertations, Theses and Capstone Projects (Full IR Collection)

This capstone provides a survey of personally expressive writing approaches in psychology and composition and rhetoric, followed by an overview of symptoms and treatments of autism, Asperger's Syndrome, and ReH Syndrome. A series of graduated expressive writing exercises is proposed to facilitate communication in individuals with autism spectrum disorders. These exercises are intended to serve as a complement to traditional autism therapies.

Effects Of Parental Divorce On Uncertainty Following Initial Communication With A Potential Romantic Partner, Julia Ann Hansch

Master's Theses (2009 -)

Decades of research have supported Berger and Calabrese's (1975) Uncertainty Reduction Theory (URT), which posits that reducing uncertainty is a chief goal of initial communication between strangers. This study extends the scope of URT, focusing on initial communication between strangers who see themselves as potential romantic partners. Further, this study specifically examines the potential influence of a well-researched external factor that has been found to negatively affect the way people communicate and behave within romantic relationships: parental divorce. Although many studies have assessed the impact of parental divorce on communication in developed relationships, there is little research examining its impact …

Lived Experience: Near-Fatal Adolescent Suicide Attempt, Phyllis Ann Dougherty

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Adolescent suicide has become a national health crisis. Suicide now ranks as a leading cause of adolescent death in the U.S. In response to this, the National Strategy for Suicide Prevention (2001b) recommended the promotion and support of research into suicide and prevention, particularly high-risk groups such as adolescents. However, due to concerns for safety and liability, there have been few studies of highly suicidal individuals, specifically adolescents. Leading suicidologists have agreed that studying the qualities of the near-fatal suicide attempt can most resemble the completed suicide.

This case study explored the phenomenon of the near-fatal suicide attempt through the …

Effective And Compassionate Communication Between Hospital Staff And Parents Of Children With Newly Diagnosed Cancer, Natalie Volz

Regis University Student Publications (comprehensive collection)

This study was conducted to determine the most effective and compassionate modes of communication for hospital staff at The Children's Hospital to use when conveying information to parents of children with cancer. Twelve parents whose children were four to twelve weeks post diagnosis were interviewed. Parents were asked a series of eleven open-ended questions addressing their experience with hospital staff's communication skills. Recurring themes resulting from the interviews include delivery of diagnosis, value of information, receptiveness to questions and availability of hospital staff. These themes reveal that parents value thorough and complete explanations of their child's diagnosis and treatment plans, …

The Cowl - V. 74 - N. 18 - Mar 18, 2010

The Cowl

The Cowl - student newspaper of Providence College. Volume 74 - Number 18 - March 18, 2010. 32 pages.

Linguistic Accommodation: Perception Of Malaysian Lawyers, Maya Khemlani David, Kah Hui Gan, Yoong David, Balbir Singh

Research Publications (2006 to 2010)

Language Accommodation is “we adjust our communicational behavior to maintain integrity, distance or identity” (Giles and Coupland,1991:66). Do lawyers shift their discourse norms in order to obtain the information required from witnesses in a courtroom? In this study, 24 lawyers were interviewed to elicit the strategies and discourse norms used when questioning the elderly, minors, women and uneducated. The findings are discussed. This is part of a larger study where courtroom discourse is observed to determine if the perceptions of the lawyers are realized in authentic settings. Keywords: accommodation, courtroom, discourse

Effects Of Video-Conferencing On Gaze Behavior And Communication, Leanne Bohannon

Theses

Through the use of eye-tracking and conversation analysis this study examined the impact of video-conferencing on communication. Paired participants performed a collaborative task over four communication media: face-to-face; desktop video-conferencing with eye contact; and life-size video-conferencing with and without eye contact. Participants more frequently checked the information their partner verbally relayed when communicating face-to-face and over life-size video-conferencing with eye contact. They also looked more at their partner when conversing over life-size video-conferencing with eye contact compared to the other conditions. The results imply that the mode across which we communicate does influence our verbal and non-verbal interactions but that …

The Cowl - V. 74 - N. 16 - Feb 18, 2010

The Cowl

The Cowl - student newspaper of Providence College. Volume 74 - Number 16 - February 18, 2010. 32 pages.

The Cowl - V. 74 - N. 14 - Feb 2, 2010

The Cowl

The Cowl - student newspaper of Providence College. Volume 74 - Number 14 - February 2, 2010. 36 pages.

The Cowl - V. 74 - N. 13 - Jan 28, 2010

The Cowl

The Cowl - student newspaper of Providence College. Volume 74 - Number 13 - January 28, 2010. 32 pages.

Newspapers' Representations Of Corporate Mass Layoffs, Andrea Lynn Pace

Open Access Theses

Due to rising unemployment levels, researchers have begun to investigate how corporations handle layoffs and how they could manage them better in the future. Public relations practitioners can use this type of research to help organizations learn how to best maintain their images, reputations and productivity amid mass layoffs. When an organization conducts mass layoffs, its actions become both a current event and a public issue that is frequently discussed in newspaper articles. In order for downsizing organizations to be aware of the public's perceptions of their layoff procedures, they should be aware of how the news media represents them. …

Implications Of Skinner's Verbal Behavior For Studying Dementia, Jeffrey Buchanan, Daniel Houlihan, Peter J.N. Linnerooth

Psychology Department Publications

Persons with dementia experience continual declines in a number of abilities. Language abilities are particularly hard hit and become increasingly impaired as the underlying disease progresses. These language impairments make verbal communication very challenging for family and professional caregivers. As a result, caregivers may inadvertently punish verbal behavior, thereby exacerbating the deterioration of verbal repertoires. Although the topography of language impairments associated with dementia have been well described, less empirical work has been conducted concerning how to minimize these impairments and their deleterious effects. In 1957 B.F. Skinner outlined his conceptualization of language and cognition in his book Verbal Behavior. …

New Media And Cultural Identity In The Global Society, Guo-Ming Chen, Kai Zhang

Communication Studies Faculty Publications

New media has been the main force accelerating the development of globalizing society in the last two decades. With its digital, convergent, interactive, hypertextual, and virtual nature, new media has brought human interaction and society to a highly interconnected and complex level. The rapid transformation of human society due to the impact of the convergence of new media and globalization directly influences the construction and development of cultural identity. The emergence of new media and globalization not only breaks through the limit of the traditional time and space, but also may challenge the meaning of cultural identity. The purpose of …