Communication Commons^™

Viewer's Perception Of Local Television Anchors: A Gender Based Study, Mary Elizabeth Wagner

Masters Theses

A number of studies conducted by Lin (1992), Meeske (1992), Stone and Lee (1990), and Weinthal and O'Keefe (1984) have examined which variables are rated highest and most prominent by respondents toward television anchors. Professionalism, voice and speech, personal appeal, and attractiveness have been among the top rated variables, but they have never been researched within a single study. This study examines the above variables for local male and female television anchors and discovers which was rated the highest by male and female respondents. Significant findings within this study include male respondents perceive professionalism to be the highest rated variable …

A Rhetorical Analysis Of The Persian Gulf Debates, Daniel F. Hickey

Masters Theses

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to analyze selected senatorial speeches for and against using military force against Iraq.

Hypothesis

It was hypothesized that Richard Weaver's hierarchy of argument will provide a useful framework for the identification of arguments and philosophical inclination of the speakers.

Materials

The primary documents comprising this study were the four speeches found in Vital Speeches of the Day by Senator Robert Dole (R-KS), Senator George Mitchell (D-ME), Senator John C. Danforth (R-MO), and Senator Sam Nunn (D-GA). All were delivered in the Senate between January 10-12, 1991. The speakers chosen were well-respected members of …

Hunter S. Thompson's Bid For Sheriff Of Pitkin County, Colorado: The Rhetorical Anatomy Of An Unconventional Campaign, Eric Bruce

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

Communication Apprehension As A Determinant Of Conflict Management Style, Jennifer C. Eikenberg

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

The Relationship Between Ca And Humor, Michael Sean Mcmurtry

Masters Theses

Research has shown that communication apprehension is seen as a negative effect of speaking in public as well as in other situations. The nervous and anxious feelings experienced in these contexts take away from understanding and add to the breakdown of interpersonal relationships. On the other hand, humor is found to be an excellent coping mechanism to deal with embarrassing and fear-related anxieties and it adds to group cohesiveness. The relationship between CA and humor was of investigated to determine what effects CA has on humor and how well the use of humorous messages alleviates the problems associated with CA. …

Visualization And Imagined Interaction As Cognitive Interventions For Lowering Levels Of Communication Apprehension, Kathleen A. Snyder

Masters Theses

Communication apprehension is something with which many students and people in general are faced when forced into an involuntary communication situation. Various treatments have been tested for coping with it. Imagined interaction and visualization, two cognitive processes associated with intrapersonal communication, were investigated in this study as interventions for lowering communication apprehension levels in introductory public speaking courses. One-hundred and fifty college students enrolled in introductory speech courses at Eastern Illinois University served as subjects and were assigned to one of four groups: a control group, a script visualization group, a performance visualization group, and an imagined interaction group.

The …

A Study Of Required Educational Preparation And Role Of Entry Level Public Relations Practitioners: A National Educator And Practitioner Perspective, Kristin Mary Oelke

Masters Theses

The public relations profession is in a constant state of change, and it doesn't have a clear definition. Without having a clear understanding of public relations, it is difficult to know exactly how to prepare college students who aspire to become public relations practitioners for the profession.

Moreover, there is only limited public relations research and literature regarding the required educational preparation and role of entry-level practitioners. Therefore, due to the limited literature, this study was conducted, in general, to learn more about the required educational preparation and role of entry-level PR practitioners and, specifically, to test the following three …

A Burkean Analysis Of The Rhetoric Of Sexual Harassment: An Examination Of The Polarization Of Attitudes Related To Consensual Relationships On Campus, Loretta Lovelace Wiman

Masters Theses

A history of sexual harassment traces the recognition and development of the issue as a social problem in the workplace and on college campuses. A review of research literature reveals both percentages of students involved and the effects on those students of academic or teacher/student sexual harassment. A brief overview of institutional policy statements shows that some colleges/universities have responded to the issue with a ban on all consensual amorous relationships between teachers and students; some ban such relationships only when a supervisory relationship also exists, and some do neither. Some policies include sanctions on those who violate bans; others …

Robert Frost And Maya Angelou: Poet-As-Rhetor In The Presidential Inauguration: Textual Symbols And The Symbol Of Enactment, Donna M. Witmer

Masters Theses

This criticism uses an organic approach to examine the rhetorical properties of Frost's and Angelou's inaugural poems and their individual enactments respective of the constraints and exigencies in the Presidential inaugurations of Kennedy and Clinton. Apparently responding to the constraints of television's sound bite as well as to exigencies of the traditional inauguration and the need to serve a new generation and a culturally diverse population, the Clinton Administration combined the poetic form, used to heighten an emotional response, with an enactment as a synecdochic symbol, used to assert sociopolitical ideology.

Affinity-Seeking In The Classroom: A Study Of Differences In Instructor Gender And Status, Darin L. Garard

Masters Theses

Affinity-seeking is the process by which individuals attempt to get others to like them. The purpose of the present study was to analyze student perceptions of instructor use of affinity-seeking strategies as a function of instructor gender and status by replicating the research of Bell and Daly (1984) and Roach (1992). A pilot study was first conducted to determine if research in this area was indeed warranted; results were significantly positive to that effect. For the present study, research questions were developed to examine the differences between male and female instructor affinity-seeking, Graduate Teaching Assistant and faculty affinity-seeking, and to …