Assesses juror comprehension of oral instructions used in criminal cases and indicates that instructions significantly increase comprehension. Areas of instruction most difficult to understand include definition of the crime; the terms information, reasonable doubt, and material allegation; and application of the concepts of reasonable doubt and…

Discusses the self-disparaging ironist and the hypocrite as symbols of power in contemporary American politics. Contrasts the presidential images of Richard Nixon and John Kennedy who exemplify, respectively, hypocritical and ironical power-holders. (PD)

Describes a study using the accentuation theory to predict differential effects of heckling on speaker credibility and attitude change, depending on whether the audience identifies with the heckler or the speaker. (JMF)

Finds that (1) under certain conditions, females (uninvolved third-party observers) appear to be more sensitive to relational deception than males and report more negative attitudes and perceptions of the deceiver's character, competence, and sociability; and (2) the consequence for the target impacted both observer attitude toward the specific…

Asks whether macro-assessment of honesty has utility for detecting deception. Multiple regression analyses indicate that honesty assessments can be only partially predicted from communication style, characterized by the level of friendliness, attentiveness, preciseness, animation, and dramatic style. (JK)

Discusses coalition rhetoric as creating a sense of unity and facilitating cooperative action. The proposed phenomenological framework suggests that the search for rhetor intent and motive in cooperative communications may be approached through attention to "Coalition Form,""Dominant Phenomenological Themes," and "Representative Linguistic Cues."…

Points out that teachers frequently emit nonverbal messages that contradict their verbal messages. Isolates vocal cues (special characteristics of the communicator's voice) as the nonverbal behavior for study. Examines the interaction of vocal cues and verbal messages with respect to impact on teacher credibility. (PD)

Examines the hecklers and their tactics as well as the major candidates' strategies for dealing with this phenomenon during the 1968 campaign. Assesses the heckling's legitimacy in light of the First Amendment which protects the rights of both the hecklers and speakers to be heard. (JMF)

Illustrates both the need and a reasoning method for normative social ethics in communication by applying Reinhold Niebuhr's concept of justice to advertising as a preliminary case study. (KEH)

Results indicate that using the generic pronoun "she" can negatively affect perceptions of social attractiveness for all speakers; it particularly affects a male speaker's perceived competence. The generic "they," however, did not hinder perceived credibility in any way; in fact, it enhanced females' perceived competence. (PD)