Interpersonal and Small Group Communication Commons^™

The War On Drugs: An Analysis Of The Rhetoric According To Richard Weaver’S Theory Of Ultimate Terms, Cristina Peniche

Masters Theses

The language associated with President Nixon’s ‘war on drugs’ has sparked considerable debate in the political struggle against narcotics' abuse and crime, as well as within scholarly research. There is a language associated with the debate and it reflects the primary considerations of policy makers- economics, criminal behavior, and morality. The present study discusses these qualities as well as the rhetorical ideas of Richard Weaver, specifically his theory of ultimate terms. Then, discussions within research show the discontent that scholars bear towards narcotics'-related language. Specifically, there is concern that the rhetoric may stigmatize certain populations and hinder better outcomes. As …

The Future Of Farming In Capable And Small Hands: The Young Farmer’S Movement In Waterloo Region 1907-1924, Morgan Williams

Laurier Undergraduate Journal of the Arts

No abstract provided.

Organizational Communication: Perceptions Of Staff Members’ Level Of Communication Satisfaction And Job Satisfaction, Priti R. Sharma

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research study was to explore the topic of organizational communication in higher education and examine staff members’ perceptions about their level of communication and job satisfaction in their workplaces. This study was also designed to test the relationship between communication satisfaction and job satisfaction by analyzing the significance of different dimensions of Communication Satisfaction with the view that satisfaction is multifaceted.

A total of 463 non-faculty staff members from different units of a single higher education institution participated in this study. This study included non-teaching staff, including student workers and both full-time and part-time staff members. …

A Case Study Of Professional Coach-Client Communication., Scott Shank

Honors Theses

Organizations increasingly embrace coaching as a core process to improve employee learning, increase overall performance, and develop leaders. Extant research on coaching is increasing, yet communication-based theories are underrepresented in the literature despite the fact that coaching is fundamentally discursive in nature. Further, although the coaching literature suggests that coaching conversations contribute to client identity growth and potential transformation, studies that specifically explore such activities are underrepresented in existing scholarship. Further, there lacks sufficient research examining how coaching contributes to the ongoing identity development of the coaches themselves. To fill this gap, this qualitative study explored the role coaching plays …

Making Oral Communication A Successful Part Of The Common Core, Jon A. Hess

Communication Faculty Publications

Adoption of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) represents the first time that oral communication has been included in the curriculum requirements for K–12 education in many states. If done well, this change will provide important benefits to students. However, effective implementation will require collaboration among policymakers, educators, and experts in oral communication.

As educators work to strengthen primary and secondary education in the United States, many agree that schools need educational standards that are grounded in today’s needs and shared across states. The CCSS have emerged as a potential solution, and the majority of states have adopted these standards. …

Cultural Awareness Training: Preparing New Instructors For The Millennial Student, Trisha K. Hoffman, Tara Franks, Belle Edson

Basic Communication Course Annual

It is not unusual for instructors to face challenges relating to, understanding, or motivating their students. Educators can chalk this up to a variety of factors, including differences in and between education levels, life experiences, and ascribed power roles. We argue, however, that it is the generational differences between instructors and their students that pose a much greater challenge toward the establishment of a productive teacher-student relationship and the facilitation of learning. With the age of the Millennial college student upon us, we make the case that the most important area of training for new instructors is developing cultural awareness …

A Model For The Development Of A Sustainable Basic Course In Communication, Samuel P. Wallace

Basic Communication Course Annual

The purpose of this essay is to provide clarity and direction for developing and maintaining outcome-driven courses for inclusion in general education curricula. The focus is on the basic course in Communication, but the principles can be applied to nearly any course. The outcome-driven perspective changes many traditional conceptions of the basic communication course and provides an opportunity to integrate communication content into a student’s broader college education and subsequent career. A model is proposed that can provide guidance in the development of sustainable courses that emerged from the experience with course development and implementation.

Back Cover

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Front Cover

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Title Page

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Editorial Board

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Editor's Page, Joseph M. Valenzano Iii

Basic Communication Course Annual

Despite its nom de guerre, there is nothing “basic” about the basic communication course in colleges and universities. It has served as a locus for research into communication skills, instructional technology, speech anxiety, instructional design and pedagogical practices. All of the research on these topics impacts more than just the basic course, as it is often relevant to instruction in other courses. The work done in the basic communication course is complex and important for both our students and the discipline.

In this, the 27th volume of the Basic Communication Course Annual, there continue to appear studies that examine the …

Contents And Abstracts

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

The Invaluable Nature Of Speech Evaluation Training For New Basic Course Instructors, T. Kody Frey, John F. Hooker, Cheri J. Simonds

Basic Communication Course Annual

Recent reforms in higher education recognize the centrality of communication in general education programs (e.g., Association of American Colleges and Universities, American Association of State Colleges and Universities, LEAP, Common Core State Standards). As oral communication knowledge and skills are becoming recognized as integral to general education programs across the country, many basic course directors are finding themselves in the position of offering multiple sections of the course taught by multiple instructors. Additionally, basic course directors find themselves with the responsibility of providing clear measures of what they do and how well they do it. Because oral communication assessment is …

Preparing To Prepare Quality Speakers: What New Basic Course Instructors Need To Know, Luke Lefebvre, William Keith

Basic Communication Course Annual

Students should focus on practicing speaking skills, not just preliminary activities such as learning concepts about speaking. A common obstacle for training instructors is to describe the valued activity in an appropriate way. Often instructors first think the assignments included in the basic course simply are the activity the course teaches, but they are not. For example, giving an "informative speech" is supposed to help students become better public or oral communicators in general – the speech is a means to that, not an end itself.

As we contemplate the important elements for training new basic course instructors two variables …

Instructional Discussion: The Most Important Area Of Training For New Basic Course Instructors, Cheri J. Simonds, John F. Hooker, Anna M. Wright

Basic Communication Course Annual

In order to determine the most important concept to teach new basic course instructors, it is important to know what we want students to be able to do as a result of the basic course and what teaching method will best reach that outcome. One main goal of the basic course is to teach students to communicate orally and give them practice doing so. This can be accomplished through what Muller (2014) defines as instructional discussion, or “an instructional interaction where teachers and students engage together in an exploration of problems, ideas, and questions in ways that incorporate the knowledge …

Shaking In Their Digital Boots: Anxiety And Competence In The Online Basic Public Speaking Course, Joshua N. Westwick, Karla M. Hunter, Laurie L. Haleta

Basic Communication Course Annual

In response to a call for increased research on educational quality of online public speaking courses, this study assessed online course impacts on students’ (N = 147) speaker anxiety and self-perceived communication competence. A significant decrease in speaking anxiety occurred over the course of the semester, supporting efficacy of the online basic speech course at the university level. However, the predicted significant increase in self-perceived communication competence was not found, warranting additional considerations in online course designs. The significant reduction in speaking anxiety within the online course is promising and suggests that this learning goal can be met in this …

From The Outside Looking In: Employers’ Views Of The Basic Course, John F. Hooker, Cheri J. Simonds

Basic Communication Course Annual

This essay is designed to connect specific communication skills desired by employers in industry to basic course concepts. While communication is often identified as one of the most important skills for graduates seeking employment, this broad view makes it nearly impossible for basic course directors and instructors to design their pedagogy to satisfy students’ future needs. This manuscript examines a part of the 2014 Basic Course Conference where industry leaders were invited to present what they felt to be the most important communication skills and knowledge in employees and then engaged in a discussion with the attending basic course directors …

Comparisons Of Speech Anxiety In Basic Public Speaking Courses: Are Intensive Or Traditional Semester Courses Better?, Mary Z. Ashlock, William A. Brantley, Katherine B. Taylor

Basic Communication Course Annual

Students of public speaking are often asked if a basic public speaking course helped them deal with their fear of public speaking. Comparisons of anxiety levels between students enrolled in traditional 15-week semester courses and those enrolled in intensive courses has received little attention. The purpose of this exploratory, quasi-experimental study was to determine whether students enrolled in intensive public speaking courses reported higher levels of communication apprehension, i.e., speech anxiety. Participants were 722 undergraduate students who completed the Personal Report of Public Speaking Anxiety instrument. The findings indicated that students enrolled in intensive public speaking courses had significant moderate …

Connecting To Veterans In Public Speaking Courses, Alisa Roost

Basic Communication Course Annual

While much research has analyzed the role of military veterans’ centers on campus, faculty can also purposefully support veterans, a diverse group that may benefit from some accommodations. Intentional pedagogy that keeps the needs of veterans in mind can help us better support diverse populations regardless of military status. Specific issues professor may better engage include student alienation and connection, anxiety, language and clarity of directions. Professors can address issues of alienation and connection by working to create a welcoming classroom without singling veterans out. Professors should take communication anxiety among veterans very seriously as communication anxiety may be linked …

Author Biographies

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Submission Guidelines

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Basic Communication Course Annual Vol. 27

Basic Communication Course Annual

Full issue (196 pages, 7.0 MB)

Chaos, Reports, And Quests: Narrative Agency And Co-Workers In Stories Of Workplace Bullying, Stacy Tye-Williams, Kathleen J. Krone

Department of Communication Studies: Faculty Publications

This study examined narratives that targets of workplace bullying told about their difficult work experiences along with how co-workers were framed in these narratives. Three different narrative types emerged from their accounts: chaos, report, and quest narratives. Co-worker responses of support or lack thereof were related to the construction of various narrative forms and the level of narrative agency evident in target accounts. The study has important implications for the difference co-workers can make in a target’s ability to withstand bullying and narrate his or her experience.

What Makes A Good Ted Talk?, Jack R. Grodahl

CMC Senior Theses

Have you ever listened to a speech, seriously attempted to discern the speaker’s message, then realize you have forgotten most of, if not, the entire message moments after the speech is finished? Far too often audiences sit through a presentation focusing as best as they can, only to have the speaker craft a message in a way that is nearly impossible for the audience to remember. The best speakers not only deliver a memorable message, but also one that inspires their audience to action or change of mindset. Speakers at Ted Conferences are faced with a difficult challenge: they are …

A Measure Of Social Behavior In Team-Based, Multiplayer Online Games: The Sociality In Multiplayer Online Games Scale (Smog), Chelsea M. Hughes

Theses and Dissertations

Video games have become a new platform for social interaction. I review the sociality of video games and the relationship between virtual- and real-world behaviors. I review and address the pros and cons of methods of measuring social behavior. Finally, I present two studies drawn from internet populations. In Study 1 (N = 250), I develop a scale, The Sociality in Multiplayer Online Games Scale (SMOG), which measures the frequency of social gaming behaviors in team-based, multiplayer online games. I hypothesized these to align on dominance and affiliation dimensions of social interaction (Kiesler, 1982). In Study 2 (N …

How Not To Get Lost In The Shuffle: Producing The Most Effective And Eye-Catching Press Release, Erica Derrico

Journalism

The following study investigates how to produce the most effective and eye-catching press release on a national level for Summit Outdoor Supply (S.O.S). Winter quarter of 2014, my partner and I worked on a local campaign for S.O.S., using traditional text-based press releases to get media coverage. Although we did see some success with the traditional press release, there were often times our releases would get lost in the shuffle of the many releases that media outlets received each day. My goal with this project is to learn how to produce a press release that will get noticed out of …

Improv To Improve Interprofessional Communication, Team Building, Patient Safety, And Patient Satisfaction, Candace A. Campbell

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Projects

The purpose of this process improvement project was to implement a test of change within a healthcare team utilizing applied improvisational exercises (AIEs), and to lay the groundwork for more effective inter- and intra-professional communication.

Literature review: AIEs have been shown to facilitate individual participant communication strengths through a process of un-learning certain common behavioral habits, and learning new habits that assist in creating and expanding closed-loop communication. Such un-learning and learning enriches the participant’s awareness of the environment and encourages participant adaptability through positive group interactions.

Method: An all-day AIE seminar/workshop was conducted with members of two healthcare teams …

Characteristics Of Spoken And Written Communication In The Opening And Closing Sections Of Instant Messaging, Kenta Nishimaki

Dissertations and Theses

This study examines opening and closing segments in instant messaging (IM) and demonstrates how openings and closings differ between oral conversation and instant messaging as well as the factors that account for the difference. Many researchers have discussed the differences and similarities between spoken and written languages. Tannen (1980) claims that spoken and written languages are not distinct categories and there is a continuum between them. She also holds that interpersonal involvement is one of the factors that determine if a particular communication is closer to spoken communication or written communication.

I will analyze IM, which is best thought of …

Clearing The Smoke: Understanding Organizational Change Communication And Misalignment In High-Risk Contexts, Laura Elizabeth Young

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

Recent economic turbulence in the United States has resulted in budget cuts for many city-funded organizations, including high-risk organizations such as local fire departments. Budget cuts trigger organizational change and create uncertainty among employees, which is a major concern for high-risk organizations. This dissertation examined internal communication practices used during organizational change in an urban fire department and the influence of organizational structure and culture on communication satisfaction. This robust case study used a multi-method approach including interviews with middle managers (i.e., district majors), and focus groups and channel preference surveys with full-time firefighters from lower level ranks (i.e., firefighters, …