In this paper, we first frame Sprague's vision in the historical context from which it emerged. From there, we explore some contemporary concerns instructional communication researchers must grapple with, and then propose some practical next steps for envisioning instructional communication research as a platform for meaningful contributions…

Designing solutions to social problems requires some degree of interpretive accountability to the sociocultural systems in which design solutions must live. Our case studies show how ethnography of communication research generates distinctive resources for design. (Contains 5 notes.)

Civic engagement has become an essential learning goal for institutions throughout higher education. Communication scholars employ various pedagogical tools to foster civic engagement. For instance, service learning has been shown to increase political and community engagement in courses such as family communication and public relations. Teachers…

To assess the pervasiveness of quality circles in American corporations, as well as to ascertain perceptions of their impact in terms of various organizational outcomes, a 45-item questionnaire was mailed to personnel directors of the Fortune 500 corporations. Some time after the initial mailing, a follow-up mailing was executed to maximize the…

Expert systems are computer programs that solve selected problems by modelling domain-specific behaviors of human experts. These computer programs typically consist of an input/output system that feeds data into the computer and retrieves advice, an inference system using the reasoning and heuristic processes of human experts, and a knowledge…

An ethnographic study examined a distinctive and recurrent form of problem solving interaction that has been previously unreported in the organizational communication and problem solving literatures--Informal Problem Solving Meetings (IPSs). The fact that participants in IPS meetings themselves neither name or ordinarily formulate Informal Problem…

Suggests that communication consultants are diverse in degree qualifications, in disciplines, and in kind of consulting services offered. Also suggests that consultants serve large businesses and that they conduct various writing and nonwriting workshops for client organizations. Notes that word-of-mouth and college referrals are important means…

Examines the communication strategies that differentiate "strong" stepfamilies from stepfamilies having more difficulty, inductively deriving a composite of stepfamily "communication strengths." Finds that in general, strong stepfamilies reported using everyday talk, more openness, spending time together as a family, communicating clear rules and…

Describes how speech acts in the beginning of many telephone conversations signal and resolve problems. Examines data from telephone conversations using "call-waiting" to show how ambiguity may provide resources for problem solving. (MM)

Examines the choice-making processes of students engaged in the selection of speech introduction strategies. Finds that the frequency of students making decision-making errors was a positive function of public speaking apprehension. (MS)

Examines the types of comprehension problems that students experience in classrooms and the tactics they use to resolve those problems. Reports meaningful distinctions among classroom comprehension problems, and finds that the tactics used vary systematically in relation to the situation (class size and instructional format) and the type of…

This collection of abstracts is part of a continuing series providing information on recent doctoral dissertations. The 21 titles deal with a variety of topics, including the following: (1) factors affecting interpersonal attraction and perceived appropriateness; (2) the effect of self-esteem, relationship satisfaction, conceptual complexity, and…

A study was conducted to examine and compare the managerial communication strategies of 40 Brazilian and American female managers. Subjects read four scripts describing various problems that a manager might encounter with an employee or another manager of equal status, and explained how they would resolve the problem. Four versions of each script…

As a step toward the study of invention, an investigation dealt not with public arguments or the results of invention, but with arguments that may have occurred to the rhetor but were discarded. To avoid problems of self-presentation and retrospection, thinking aloud and reconstructive protocols were avoided in favor of providing 37 college…

Reports results from a study of university students in Sweden that investigated aspects of communicative processes using face-to-face and computer-mediated communication. Examined influences of gender on communication equality, social relations, and communicative processes and studied differences in self-awareness. Results showed few significant…