EFFECT OF COMMUNICATION STYLES OF FACULTY OF HEALTH SCIENCES STUDENTS ON THEIR ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENTS

Abstract

In this study, it is aimed that the communication styles of the 1st and 4th grade students at the faculty of health sciences reach their academic achievement. A total of 977 students attending the 1st (438) and 4th (539) year classes were enrolled in this research. The data were collected using the sociodemographic characteristics form and the Interpersonal Communication Styles Scale (ICSS) and were evaluated using descriptive and inferential statistics. Among participating students, 44.8% were in the 1st year and 55.2% were in the 4th year. The overall ICSS scores and open communication score averages of the 1st year students were found to significantly higher than those of the 4th year students. The open communication scores of students with a grade point average of 3.00–4.00 were higher than those with a low grade point average. In this study, it was concluded that most of the 1st year students of the faculty of health sciences use open and respectful (nurturing) communication styles, and that their use of open and respectful communication styles positively affects their academic achievement. The ability of the students to progress towards the fourth grade was not a determining factor in their use of open communication style.