Rebecca Rubin

• Ph.D. Speech Communication, University of Illinois
• Professor Emeritus at Kent State University

Interpersonal communication competence is an evaluative impression of the quality of interaction (Spitzberg & Cupach, 1984). Such impressions derive from enacting skills associated with effectiveness and appropriateness in interactions. Andersen (1987) included communication competence in his discussion of communicative predispositions, which he de...

This investigation compares television use in contexts of communication, social, and psychological confinement and non‐confinement. Findings indicate that environmental context is more influential than chronological age in determining viewing motivations, program preferences, and viewing behaviors.

Considerable research has been conducted testing Rauscher, Shaw, and Ky's (1993)23. Rauscher , F. H. , Shaw , G. L and Ky , K. N. 1993. Music and spatial task performance. Nature, 365: 611 [CrossRef], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®], [CSA]View all references Mozart Effect (ME). This study attempts to replicate, in part, research that tested the ME...

The aims of the investigation were to initiate the development of “contextual age” as an alternative life-position concept to chronological age in communication and aging research, and to examine the relationships between contextual age and socio-demographic characteristics, television viewing patterns, and viewing motivations. The sample consisted...

We examined perceived appropriateness and effectiveness of six communication channels (face-to-face, telephone, voice mail, electronic mail, letter, fax) used in relation to interpersonal communication motives (inclusion, affection, control relaxation, escape, pleasure) in other-directed and self-directed need-fulfillment situations. In Study 1, re...

This article describes three studies undertaken to develop measures of relationship level based on Knapp's (1978) staircase model. First, we attempted to develop a quantitative index for relational stages. Second, we created a coding system for narrative data and assessed the reliability of coders; we also compared the two systems and found congrue...

Summarizes efforts by various groups in the National Communication Association, federal government agencies, and research centers to identify important core communication (speaking and listening) competencies that are necessary for undergraduates and graduates to be effective in the workplace and in society. Provides lists of competencies deemed es...

This study is a preliminary investigation of computer‐mediated communication (CMC) as a functional alternative to face‐to‐face communication. We examined the relationships between motives for using the Internet as a CMC channel and motives for face‐to‐face interactions as well as the influence of locus of control and communication apprehension as a...

The present investigation examines the process of seeking affinity during first encounters between strangers. It tests a process model of affinity‐seeking competence and examines the relationships between and among the model's components. This study examined the affinity‐seeking process in initial interactions by focusing on the relationships among...

In this study, we assessed how classroom instruction might result in changes in students' communication competence (CC) and communication apprehension (CA). Students enrolled in a basic communication class completed the Personal Report of Communication Apprehension (PRCA) and the Self‐Perception of Communication Competence (SPCC) Scale at the begin...

Speaking and listening skills are essential for college graduates. Some skills are basic and important for success in college; others are more advanced and necessary for entry into the workforce.

Two experiments examined the reliability and validity of the Cognitive Flexibility Scale. 247 undergraduates in Exp 1 completed the Cognitive Flexibility Scale, the Communication Flexibility Scale, and the Rigidity of Attitudes Regarding Personal Habits Scale. Scores on cognitive flexibility were positively related to communication flexibility and...

This study tests an uncertainty model of organizational assimilation assimilation that views assimilation as an active process involving both organizational attempts to form the newcomer (socialization) and the newcomer's efforts to influence the organization (individualization). Results showed that during organizational entry, socialization tactic...

In this study, we examine the role of standardized, performance‐based assessment measures in the high school context. In addition, we report validity and reliability information on the Communication Competency Assessment Instrument—High School Edition (CCAI‐HS), which was used to assess student speaking performance and to gauge the level of improve...

This article reports the development of a self‐report Interpersonal Communication Competence Scale (ICCS) that taps 10 dimensions of competence: self‐disclosure, empathy, social relaxation, assertiveness, interaction management, altercentrism, expressiveness, supportiveness, immediacy, and environmental control. First, we created the ICCS, reducing...

Communication flexibility has long been recognized as an essential component of communication competence. This article reports the development of a communication flexibility scale and corresponding validity and reliability information. The Communication Flexibility Scale demonstrated acceptable levels of reliability; communication flexibility was p...

In this study we examined (a) the relationship between affinity‐seeking competence and self‐disclosure and (b) the role of self‐awareness in mediating this relationship. According to Social Penetration Theory, people who are able to develop affinity in relationships tend to self‐disclose to increase the intimacy of a relationship; a person who self...

Self‐efficacy is the belief or confidence people have in their ability to achieve their goals. This study tested a path model involving past communicative experience, situation difficulty, self‐efficacy, interpersonal communication competence, and interpersonal communication outcomes. We found that self‐efficacy mediated the effect of past experien...

According to Schutz's theory of interpersonal motives and the uses and gratifications perspective, people communicate to gratify felt needs or wants. In this study we examined two main antecedents affecting motives for communicating interpersonally: life‐position and locus‐of‐control. Canonical correlation analysis supported our expectations for a...

This study examined cultural differences in motives for interpersonal communication by comparing a general U.S. sample with student samples from the U.S. and Mexico. Past research indicated six main motives that people have for initiating conversations with others: Pleasure, Escape, Relaxation, Inclusion, Affection, and Control. Hofstede's (1980) d...

This study examined changes in predispositions toward communication over the course of therapy. Results indicated that both foreign dialect and stuttering clients had significantly lower levels of communication apprehension and higher levels of communication competence after 3 1/2 months of their respective therapies; each client group also demonst...

This study examined interpersonal perceptions of communication competence and satisfaction in interpersonal situations where controversial issues are discussed. Male and female students, who were either high or low in argumentativeness, argued either high or low ego‐involvement topics with male and female opponents who were moderate in argumentativ...

This research examines the development of communication competence in college students and how communication factors are related to college success. College students’ communication competence was assessed yearly for four years. Results suggested that communication competence decreased significantly during the sophomore year, but then increased the...

We investigated the relationship between communication apprehension and satisfaction for a sample of 504 persons. The analyses supported the expectation that apprehension and satisfaction would be related negatively. Apprehension in dyadic contexts and with friends related most strongly to dissatisfaction. We discussed the implications of these res...

This study examined social and parasocial interaction from interpersonal attribution perspectives. Parasocial interaction is a perceived interpersonal relationship on the part of a television viewer with a mass media persona. We proposed that attributional confidence associated with parasocial interaction would mirror that resulting from social int...

The goal of this study was to develop and validate an instrument that could be used to ascertain motives individuals have for interpersonal communication. A 28-item scale is presented along with initial information about the scale's construct validity. Results indicated there were six prominent motives: pleasure, affection, inclusion, escape, relax...

This paper reports the results of a two‐year study of college students' communication competence. Results indicate that communication competence is linked to success in college, that high school communication experience is related to higher GPAs and higher communication competence ratings, and that communication apprehension is related to perceptio...

The parasocial interaction relationship development process was explored by applying principles of uncertainty reduction theory. Results suggested that parasocial relationship development follows a path from (a) social and task attraction to (b) parasocial interaction to (c) a sense of relationship importance. Length of exposure to the television c...

This study examined the conceptual and methodological similarities and differences of three listening measures—Watson‐Barker Listening Test, Kentucky Comprehensive Listening Test, and the Communication Competency Assessment Instrument. The results of a study using all three instruments provided information on the concepts being assessed in each and...

This study employs a perceptual theory of competence to examine the relationships among student‐teachers’ communication skills, motivation, and knowledge in relation to perceived teaching effectiveness, communicator style and teacher credibility. The results indicate that communication skill instruments may be helpful in differentiating successful...

Communication researchers were surveyed about the importance of 116 research questions and 24 general areas in communication education to identify future research needs for the discipline. Respondents indicated that priority should be placed on investigations of student and teacher communication competence, the effects of teacher communication on l...

A contextual age construct was developed and examined as a transactional, life-position index of aging. The eighteen-item contextual age index included six interrelated dimensions: physical health, interpersonal interaction, mobility, life satisfaction, social activity, and economic security. In addition to the development of the index, association...

This study reports validity information on one measure of communication competence, the Communication Competency Assessment Instrument (CCAI). Conceptual validity of the CCAI was demonstrated in prior research. This study, in confirming operational validity, found that self‐reported measures correlated only slightly with observations of students' a...

Uses and gratifications is seen as a viable communication perspective for examining the interface of interpersonal and mass communication. This essay explicates the interpersonal dimension of uses and gratifications models, including individual needs and functional alternatives. The uses of interpersonal channels are considered as coequal alternati...

To suggest future research directions in the assessment area, a review was conducted of literature concerning teachers' classroom communication. Focusing first on the large body of research identifying behaviors or skills that lead to perceptions of teaching effectiveness and increased learning, the review then examined a smaller group of studies t...

Since the evaluation of communication behavior is performed by individuals who are prone to subjectivity, it is important that the ethics of this process be examined. The authors discuss respect, fairness, freedom, and responsibility as ethical principles necessary when students’ communication skills are evaluated.

This study examined the relationships among cognitive complexity, verbal ability, and communication competence in classroom communication. Moderate correlations between cognitive complexity and verbal ability and between communication competence and verbal ability were found. Minimal association was apparent between the overall communication compet...

Presents a short summary report of the results of a national survey, commissioned by the SCA Committee on Assessment and Testing, to determine the range and degree of assessment occurring in colleges and universities and to evaluate the methods used to assess the communication skills of college students. (PD)

In an effort to assess the communication skills of prospective teachers, a study examined the role of three pedagogical domains in speech communication instruction--skill, knowledge, and motivation. Fifty student teachers were tested using the Personal Report of Communication Apprehension (PCRA; McCroskey l977), the Communication Competency Assessm...

Forty-one college students participated in a study designed to gather validity and reliability information on a procedure used to measure communication competence, the Communication Competency Assessment Instrument (CCAI). The study, in confirming operationalization validity, found that self-report measures correlated only slightly with observation...

The development of applicable affirmative action legislation and practice and the current role of the affirmative action officer are discussed. Threats to affirmative action and possible answers to those threats are identified, and specific ways by which the affirmative action officer's role might be strengthened are described. (MLW)

Guided by the belief that impressions of communication competence are based on observations of behavior appropriate to a particular context and on inferences about others' capabilities and motivations, a study was undertaken to (1) examine the relationship between self perceptions and other perceptions, (2) discover the role of motivation in behavi...

Providing insight into how learning assistance practitioners can effect positive change in the ability of their students to speak and to listen, this book presents the experiences of communication professionals who have succeeded in improving students' skills. The first five chapters describe a variety of instructional methods useful in teaching sp...

Television viewing motivations and viewing patterns were examined for a sample of 340 aging and aged persons. Correlational relations between viewing motivations and viewing patterns were evident. Viewing motivations were found to be intercorrelated and canonical analysis located associations among viewing motivations and patterns. Companionship, h...

This paper details the present state of the development of the Communication Competency Assessment Instrument (CCAI), a test of basic communication skills for college students. The CCAI assesses 19 specific speaking and listening competencies in an educational context, defined as those skills which high school graduates should possess to be prepare...

Examined students' perceptions of college professors' ideal traits to ascertain possible influences of sex-role stereotyping (Exp I) and the terms of address students use with their professors in public and private contexts (Exp II). In Exp I, 20 undergraduates compiled a list of 34 ideal traits of professors divided among 5 categories: intellect,...

The first step in developing a communication competency assessment instrument is determining whether there is conceptual support for such an instrument. Funding should also be determined, since speaking skills must be assessed as a person speaks, a procedure that requires more time and money to complete than in the case of machine-scored tests. Nex...

The state of the art in college-level competency testing is described, as is the development of a communication test for the University of Wisconsin-Parkside program. The research described herein exposes the fact that some students have communication problems which could inhibit their learning abilities. Valid and reliable procedures are needed to...

A study was conducted on the relationships between information seeking and individual cognitive structures (both individual cognitive complexity and the constructs used to understand others). Specifically, the study sought to determine how people use questions to reduce the uncertainty of meeting new people in impression-formation interviews. The s...

The level of uncertainty within a context was investigated as a possible influence on information seeking in interactions where subjects are forming first impressions of others. Analysis of types of questions asked others over the span of interactions in an ambiguous context revealed significantly more requests for demographic information than any...

This study investigated the amount and type of information sought during impression formation. Under conditions of either ambiguous or specific context, each subject interacted with a confederate whose background was either congruent or incongruent with the specific context. Analyses revealed de finite contextual eßects. More information, especiall...

Lloyd Bitzer's concept of the rhetorical situation is used to explore the operation of discourse in Weight Watchers International. The essay considers the three constituents and the six basic features of the rhetorical situation.