An intersection of communication apprehension, willingness to communicate, and cultural difference: The university classroom
Abstract
The purpose of the present study was to investigate how communication apprehension, willingness to communicate and cultural difference interrelate in the university classroom, generally. Specifically, the study addressed the role of culture, and recognition of cultural differences, in the communication interaction between instructors and students, particularly when a high degree of cultural difference existed in the instructor-student dyad. Students enrolled in basic English and communication classes completed a two-phase, self-report survey including the Personal Report of Communication Apprehension (PRCA-24) and the Willingness to Communicate scale. Follow-up interviews were conducted with a portion of survey respondents. Instructors were also interviewed to assess their perception of communication apprehension, willingness to communicate and culture in their classrooms. Instructors were found to quickly label students as communicatively apprehensive or unwilling to communicate, with little insight into the phenomenon, and treated students differently based on such labels. This can be problematic for student-instructor interactions exhibiting high cultural difference, pointing to an important role for culture. Culture plays a significant, if as yet not completely tested, role in the interaction between culturally different students and their instructors in the university classroom. When cultural differences exist it is incumbent upon the instructor, and the university, to see that those differences do not negatively impact a student's academic experience.
Degree
Ph.D.
Advisors
Webb, Purdue University.
Subject Area
Communication|Higher education|Bilingual education|Multicultural education
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