Background: Communication problems stemming from Alzheimer's disease (AD) often result in misunderstandings that can be linked with problem behaviours and increased caregiver stress. Moreover, these communication breakdowns also can result either from caregivers' use of ineffective communication strategies, which paradoxically are…

The widespread use of Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) in the higher education sector in recent years highlights the importance of forging successful relationships with employers, business, industry and government. This article reports on a large ethnographic study conducted by Victoria University into host organisations' perceptions of WIL.…

Virtual schooling is an increasing trend for secondary education. Research of the communication practices in virtual schools has provided a myriad of suggestions for virtual school policies. The purpose of this qualitative study was to investigate the activities and processes involved in the daily rituals of virtual school teachers and learners…

This is an article in a series illustrating the way scholars in communication have pursued translating their research into practice. The translational nature of communication accommodation theory and examples of its application are the focus of this contribution.

Research on graphic symbol learning suggests that symbols with a greater visual resemblance to their referents (greater iconicity) are more easily learned. The iconicity hypothesis has not yet been explored within the intervention protocol of the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS). Within the PECS protocol, participants do not point to a…

Purpose: To examine the extent to which sentences retain their levels of spoken intelligibility relative to other sentences in a set (the "sentence effect") across different types of signal distortion. Method: The Central Institute for the Deaf (CID) sentences were rendered difficult to understand through the addition of broadband noise. These…

The rise of distance education classrooms in colleges and universities call for attention to the difference in communicative strategies need from a regular classroom. This study examined the concept of classroom communication apprehension (CCA) and the distance classroom. Ninety-two students from three different classes participated in this study.…

This case study evaluates the potential of synchronous chat for deep learning in the context of a distance education program between two universities in different cultural contexts, with a focus on interaction and facilitation. Three rubrics--functional moves, social construction of knowledge, and teaching presence--were applied in a longitudinal…

A study investigated relationships between subordinate perceptions of the communication competence of self and supervisor, and subordinate perceptions of supervisor and work satisfaction. The hypotheses were the following: (1) subordinates' satisfaction with their supervisors will vary as a function of their perceptions of their supervisors'…

Communication skills are important in every part of organizational life. However, a number of people are unable to realize their organizational potential because of communication apprehension (CA). Its pervasiveness has ranked it as the single most severe handicap facing Americans today. The Intraview Communication Intervention Strategy may be a…

Examines the effectiveness of rhetoritherapy as a treatment for individuals with communication difficulties. Finds that performance-based communication training is effective in decreasing communication apprehension and problems communicating and in increasing other-perceived talkativeness. Reports that rhetoritherapy may be a more effective…

Purpose: This study provides preliminary reference data for speech and articulatory rates of school-age children in conversational and narrative speaking contexts. Method: Participants included 36 typically developing children in 3 groups of 12 participants at ages 7, 9, and 11 years. Conversational and narrative speech rates were measured in…

The communication activities and problems of 383 business and professional people in Hawaii were surveyed. The respondents reported spending the bulk of a typical work week engaged in giving instructions and making assignments, listening, talking face-to-face with employees, and conferring with clients. These interpersonal activities were related…

Assesses the construct and concurrent validity of the Reticence Scale, a 24-item self-report measure. Compares it to other established measures and to open-ended responses to a set of questions. Finds satisfactory support for its construct and concurrent validity. Finds high correlations between dimensions of the Reticence Scale and the open-ended…

Finds that persons (college students) thwarted in their attempts to provide geographic directions to others reiterated directions with little change in structure but with significant increases in vocal intensity and decreases in speech rate. Confirms the hierarchy hypothesis that individuals modify their message plans to make alterations first…