Communication Attitudes Research Articles

AAC 사용자의 대화 반응 시간에 따른 의사소통 상대자의 태도 특성

Background and Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate the attitudes of non-disabled communication partners when conversing with AAC users, based on the AAC users’ response times and the use of a pre-conversation strategy message. Method: The study examined the communication attitudes of 30 non-disabled participants aged 19 to 29 years. Participants listened to a fictitious conversation between an AAC user and a non-disabled person, rating the communication success, communication acceptance, and message understanding on a 5-point Likert scale according to the AAC user’s response times (5, 10, 20, and 30 seconds). Additionally, the study explored the impact of pre-conversation messages on communication attitudes. Results: Analysis revealed that as the AAC users’ response time increased, non-disabled participants raed communication success, communication acceptance, and message understanding lower. However, even when response times were slow, participants expressed very positive attitudes toward communication when the AAC user employed a pre-conversation strategy message. Conclusion: For AAC users, the ability to generate sentences by accurately and quickly selecting the messages they wish to convey is critical to successful communication. This study’s results indicated that non-disabled individuals rated communication success, acceptance, and message understanding lower when AAC users had a response time of 20 seconds or more, suggesting that employing a pre-conversation strategy message is essential for successful communication by AAC users.

Experimental Values in developing communication attitudes for children with learning difficulties

Currently, a special role belongs to the identification and use of both the procedures and means necessary to organize and facilitate the instructive-educational process, as well as the accountability of school institutions, the collaboration between teaching staff and parents with the aim of ensuring the success of the child in difficulty. Today's psycho-pedagogical science strives to respond to the existing crises, by initiating and implementing reform projects, which include a varied multitude of strategies and methods, appropriate, to satisfy individual needs in the instructive-educational field. In our study, we will argue the role and importance of developing communication attitudes in students with learning difficulties by presenting the research methodology and development of these skills. As well as the presentation of curricular interventions in the individualization of the instructional-educational process for students with learning difficulties, the description of the sociometric method of knowing the affinities expressed by the group members and implicitly the relationships within the class group. Completing the study by developing and validating the proposed pedagogical model, the intervention program and the teacher training program, various interactive methods and techniques adapted to students with learning difficulties being proposed in order to effectively organize the educational approach centered on the student.

Perception and coping with self-perceived burden among colorectal cancer patients and their caregivers: A qualitative study

PurposeSelf-perceived burden can take a toll on the physical and psychological well-being of cancer couples and prevent them from achieving favorable outcomes. There is limited qualitative research synthesizing the cognition and coping with self-perceived burden among Chinese colorectal cancer patients and their caregivers. Therefore, this study examined perceptions of self-perceived burden and coping strategies from the perspectives of colorectal cancer patients, their spousal caregivers and nursing staff. MethodsA qualitative study based on semi-structured interviews was implemented from May 15 to July 14, 2023. Data were analyzed using inductive thematic analysis. ResultsThis study summarized the cognition and coping strategies regarding self-perceived burden through three themes. Life under self-perceived burden contained sub-themes of Uncomfortable role changing, The handling of interpersonal relationships and Communication attitudes. What need to cope with contained sub-themes of Physical changes and discomfort, Negative emotions, Inappropriate decision-making and Negative communication. Coping with different perspectives contained sub-themes of Improving self-care ability correctly, Maintaining emotional stability, Finding new meaning and Solid family support. ConclusionsThe presence of self-perceived burden hinders good outcomes for colorectal cancer couples. It is necessary to help colorectal cancer couples cope with self-perceived burden together. Nursing staff need to be a bridge of communication and exchange for colorectal cancer couples, providing them with effective and reliable information and support, thus helping colorectal cancer patients and their spousal caregivers achieve true inner peace and better outcomes.

Adapting the Lidcombe Program for 6–12-year-olds: insights from a video telehealth trial

ABSTRACT Purpose: Childhood stuttering is common and can have debilitating, long-term psychosocial implications if prompt and effective treatment is not provided. The Lidcombe Program has robust clinical evidence for treating stuttering in early childhood. The results of a recent Phase II trial with a cohort of 6–12-year-old children showed that this treatment may benefit a much broader age range of children than initially thought. Benefits included improved communication attitudes, and reduced impact of stuttering and social anxiety symptoms. This study describes how clinicians can use the Lidcombe Program flexibly to cater to the varied needs of older children. Method: The Johnson et al. (2024) trial of the Lidcombe Program included clinical mentoring meetings every 2 weeks between the treating clinician and a member of the Lidcombe Program Trainers Consortium. Practical recommendations and clinical resources were developed to help clinicians adapt aspects of the available Lidcombe Program Treatment Guide (Onslow et al., 2021) for 6–12-year-old children. Results: Five key themes emerged from the clinical mentoring meetings to support clinicians. These included (a) active generalization of stutter-free speech to everyday conversations, (b) strategies for engaging the child in treatment, (c) examples of non-verbal contingencies, (d) optimizing treatment dosage for busy families, and (e) versatile clinical resources for different settings and child ages. Conclusions: This report provides resources for speech-language pathologists who manage school-age children who stutter. The recommendations and resources described in this report are designed to assist clinicians with adapting the Lidcombe Program for a wider age range of children.

교육적 의사소통을 통한 말하기 불안 해소 방향 연구

The purpose of this study is to consider the causes of the problem that students have accumulated speaking experience in the classroom and the symptoms of speaking anxiety intensify even if they go up in grade, and to find educational communication direction for resolving speaking anxiety. In chapter 2, explains the causes and types of speaking anxiety, limitations of the solution currently proposed. Chapter 3 proposes educational communication methods to activate communication in the classroom. First, in terms of communication attitudes, the contents suggest an empathetic communication method through Herman Hesse’s novel Siddhartha. Second, in terms of communication purposes, the contents suggest a communication behavior that aims for mutual understanding among classroom members through Habermas’s communication theory. Third, in terms of communication methods, the contents suggest using a type of group communication to solve common problems.

Caregiver Predictions of Their 3- to 6-Year-Old Child Who Stutters' Communication Attitude.

Caregivers share critical insight during their child's stuttering evaluation; yet, there have been no empirical studies evaluating whether caregivers provide similar accounts of their 3- to 6-year-old child's communication attitude compared to their child's self-report. This study examined caregiver- and child-reported communication attitude and assessed potential moderators of more comparable caregiver and child ratings (i.e., caregiver confidence, caregiver-child conflict, observer-rated stuttering severity). One hundred thirteen children who stutter ages 3 through 6 years and a primary caregiver were recruited from clinical settings across the United States. Children completed the Communication Attitude Test for Preschool and Kindergarten Children Who Stutter (KiddyCAT) and three speaking samples, which were recorded to assess observer-rated stuttering severity using the Stuttering Severity Instrument-Fourth Edition. Caregivers predicted their child's communication attitude (C-KiddyCAT) and provided a confidence rating for their prediction. Caregivers also rated caregiver-child conflict using the Child-Parent Relationship Scale-Short Form (CPRS-SF). Multiple regression was used to (a) evaluate whether caregiver C-KiddyCAT scores predicted child KiddyCAT scores and (b) assess potential moderators of the relationship between C-KiddyCAT and KiddyCAT scores. Caregiver ratings of their child's communication attitude (C-KiddyCAT) predicted child communication attitude ratings (KiddyCAT). A significant interaction between caregiver-child conflict (CPRS-SF) and caregiver ratings of their child's communication attitude (C-KiddyCAT) suggested caregiver-child conflict changed the underlying relationship between C-KiddyCAT and KiddyCAT scores, such that low conflict resulted in more similar C-KiddyCAT and KiddyCAT scores. Neither caregiver confidence nor observer-rated stuttering severity influenced the relationship between C-KiddyCAT and KiddyCAT scores. Although many caregivers predicted communication attitude ratings that closely aligned with their child's report, some caregiver-child dyads provided divergent ratings. Clinicians should interpret caregiver predictions of their child's communication attitude within the context of their full evaluation and the caregiver-child relationship. Assessing both self-reported communication attitude and caregiver predictions of their child's communication attitude provides a meaningful starting point to counseling caregivers about cognitive components of stuttering for preschool- and kindergarten-age children who stutter.

Validity and utility of the Japanese version of the brief unhelpful thoughts and beliefs about stuttering scale: UTBAS-6-J.

Do adults who stutter have abnormally high social anxiety? Is it related to maladaptive cognition? As these are persistent, unresolved questions in stuttering research, it behooves clinicians to at least assess and attempt to identify social anxiety in patients who stutter and its basis before decisions are made about stuttering treatment. The Unhelpful Thoughts and Beliefs About Stuttering (UTBAS) scale is a self-administered questionnaire that measures the degree of non-adaptive cognition in people who stutter (PWS) due to social anxiety. The 66-item UTBAS is time-consuming to complete, prompting the development of a shorter 6-item version, the UTBAS-6, which is in English. Here, we aimed to assess some psychometric properties of the Japanese version of the UTBAS-6, the UTBAS-6-J, which has not been done to date. In 56 adult patients (mean 32.6 ± 11.1 years) who stutter, we quantified the reliability, the internal consistency, and the concurrent validity of the UTBAS-6-J. Along with the UTBAS-6-J, patients also were administered the Overall Assessment of the Speaker's Experience of Stuttering - Japanese version (OASES-A-J), the Modified Erickson Communication Attitude Scale - Japanese version (S-24-J), and the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale - Japanese version (LSAS-J). Cronbach's alpha for UTBAS-6-J total scores was 0.974, indicating excellent internal consistency. UTBAS-6-J scores were significantly correlated with scores on the OASES-A-J, the S-24-J, and the LSAS-J (all p < 0.005). Concurrent validity of the UTBAS-6-J with these three questionnaires was confirmed. The UTBAS-6-J has good internal consistency and concurrent validity, which will aid clinical decision-making about stuttering treatments.

SOCIO-PHYSIOLOGICAL FACTORS OF FORMING COMMUNICATIVE TOLERANCE AMONG UNIVERSITY LECTURERS IN THE EDUCATIONAL ENVIRONMENT

By analyzing the impact of social psychological factors, the article delves into how university lecturers cultivate communicative tolerance throughout their professional development. Purpose of the study. The study aims to identify the specific socio-psychological factors that have shaped the communicative tolerance of university lecturers. Materials and methods of research. Utilizing theoretical approaches, the research involved an in-depth analysis of fundamental concepts within psychological and philosophical frameworks. Additionally, the study employed various mathematical statistical methods, such as correlation, factor, and cluster analyses, to explore the complex interplay of factors influencing communicative tolerance. In the study, various diagnostic tools were utilized as well, i.e. the Tolerance Index express questionnaire (by G.U. Soldatova, O.A. Kravtsova, O.E. Khukhlaev, L.A. Shaigerova), the Communicative Tolerance Questionnaire (by V.V. Boyko), Methodology for the evaluation of the level of empathic abilities (by V.V. Boyko), the Sixteen Personality-factor questionnaire (16 PF) (by R. Cattell), Methodology for the Diagnosis of interpersonal relationships (DME) (by T. Leary). Research results. The findings of the research provide a theoretical analysis of communicative tolerance development, shedding light on its significance and role within the professional realm of lecturers. The insufficient development of critical thinking among university lecturers has been validated through empirical data analysis, highlighting the impact of various internal and external social psychological factors on their communicative tolerance. Factors such as empathy, emotional maturity, emotional-volitional qualities, communicative qualities, positive communicative attitude, social maturity, and professional maturity play a significant role in shaping the level of communicative tolerance exhibited by university lecturers. Additionally, a strong statistical correlation was identified in the study, emphasizing the need for further research in this area. The study found a strong statistical link (ρ&lt;0.01) between positive communication attitude and communication tolerance, despite the absence of a statistically significant correlation between empathic abilities and communication tolerance. Research findings indicated that teachers who demonstrated moderate levels of empathy also displayed the greatest communication tolerance. Additionally, significant connections were uncovered between communication tolerance and various characteristics, such as emotional-volitional traits like “emotional stability” (ρ&lt;0). Practical implications. The obtained results of the study could be used in additional vocational training, job placement and job training schemes in order to improve the professional competence of teaching staff.

Perception of good physicians in patient’s face-to-face consultations: Evidence from a Chinese platform

Abstract Objective: This article aimed to offer insights into patients’ expectations regarding the traits of physicians, with the goal of helping physicians gain a better understanding of patient needs and provide better care. Method: This study used a Python crawler script to collect patients’ comments from haodf.com, a major online consultation platform in China, to examine the expected character traits of physicians by patients. A total of 83,315 comments were obtained. We selected positive comments from patients, performed text segmentation using Jieba, and utilized the TextRank algorithm to identify high-ranking words based on the Index of Relative Importance (IRI) within these comments. To make the findings comprehensible and practical for physicians and medical educators, we utilized a word cloud to visualize the results. We classified the high-ranking words into 4 dimensions—professional competence, communication attitude, communication ability, and character traits—based on the categorization of positive physician qualities found in the relevant literature. Results: Key findings from the study included: (1) The top 23 high-ranking words for traits of good physicians (in descending order) were patient, meticulous, proficient, precise, kind, moderate, successful, gentle, rigorous, explicit, clear, effective, humorous, sincere, skilled, kindhearted, modest, awesome, practical (and not flashy), unhurried, experienced, clean, and excellent; (2) patients placed the highest value on the professional competence of physicians, followed by their communication attitude, communication ability, and character traits; (3) despite the highest IRI score for professional competence, it was exceeded by the combined scores of communication attitude and communication ability. This underscored the significance of effective communication in medical encounters. Conclusions: Drawing from these findings, recommendations are proposed for physicians and medical educators to enhance the quality of medical encounters. These suggestions include implementing narrative medicine training to improve communication awareness and skills as well as encouraging lifelong continuing medical education to maintain professional competence among practitioners. This study contributes to the establishment of positive physician-patient relationships in both telemedicine and face-to-face medical interactions.

Building a Bridge Among Unspoken Words: The Use of Drawing According to the IARA Model to Trigger Communication in Children and Adolescents Who Stutter

Stuttering is a speech disorder characterized by frequent and significant problems with normal fluency and flow of speech. People who stutter perceive themselves as poor communicators and develop negative speech attitudes. This development of a negative communicative attitude could be related to the expectations and high demands made by their parents about fluency. When these expectations exceed the stuttering individual’s abilities to produce fluent verbal communication, a stuttering episode occurs. This is perceived by the individual as a communicative performance not adequately meeting the requests. Consequently, these individuals often resort to various avoidance and escape behaviors and generally avoid discussing their experiences and feelings related to stuttering. Therefore, stimulating communication is essential during speech therapy sessions to expose experiences otherwise kept hidden both from children/adolescents and their parents. However, encouraging communication is far from simple. In an attempt to facilitate communication and foster a more effective relationship between persons who stutter and their parents, we implemented the so-called awareness drawing according to the IARA model at the opening of the stuttering assessment session. Fourteen children (M=10; F=4; mean age=10.42; SD=1.65) and eight adolescents (M=6; F=2; mean age = 15.25; SD=1.03) diagnosed with stuttering were involved in this study, along with their relatives (28 parents; M=10; F=18; mean age=31.14; SD=4.66 years). The results of the study revealed that the drawings and comments of children and adolescents with stuttering, along with their parents, can offer valuable insights into their experiences and perceptions of stuttering. Children and adolescents expressed a desire for acceptance and a wish to be recognized beyond their stuttering. They depicted solutions that encompass the involvement of both parents and speech therapists. The utilization of awareness drawing can have a substantial impact on speech therapists. During the stuttering assessment session, it can provide valuable insights into the emotions, thoughts of person who stutter, as well as the experiences of their parents. This, in turn, can enhance the design of therapeutic intervention.

Therapeutic potential of robots for people who stutter: a preliminary study.

Growing anecdotal evidence suggests the feasibility of robotic intervention for people who suffer from disorders related to state anxiety. Few studies have been conducted on utilizing robots for persons who stutter (PWS). The present study examines the feasibility of using a robot for speech therapy for PWS. We prepared four settings (i.e., interviews with unfamiliar persons, interviews with unfamiliar communication robots, reading sentences aloud with a tandem robot that can utter the same words as a user by repeating the user's voice after a short delay, and reading sentences aloud while being alone). We assessed the potential of the robots as both interlocutors and practice partners in training with delayed auditory feedback (DAF) for PWS. Moreover, we assessed the relationship between the trait of stuttering and the participants' affinity to the robots. Eleven PWS participated in the study. Eight (72.7%) participants had fewer stuttering-related psychological symptoms when they communicated with robots than when they communicated with humans. Spearman's rank correlation analysis revealed that there was a significant negative correlation between the Modified Erickson Communication Attitude scale (S-24) and the difference between the scores for stuttering-related psychological symptoms pertaining to the communication robot and humans (p < 0.01). Six participants (54.5%) had fewer stuttering-related psychological symptoms when they read aloud with the tandem robot than when they read aloud alone. There were significant positive correlations between S-24 and the differences between the scores for stuttering-related psychological symptoms when reading aloud with the tandem robot and those when reading aloud alone (p < 0.01). The communication robot and tandem utterance robot can sometimes be burdensome, although both robots were always easier to talk to for PWS in this preliminary study. The participants with positive speech-related attitudes were more inclined to decrease stuttering-related psychological symptoms when communicating with CommU than when communicating with humans. The participants whose speech-related attitudes were negative were more inclined to show a decrease in stuttering-related psychological symptoms when reading aloud with the tandem robot. Further studies are needed to provide more detailed information.

The project of the “turn” of Siberian rivers: The dynamics of presentation in the texts of the Soviet media

The authors of the article analyze the materials of one of the most famous public polemics of the Soviet period. The purpose is to identify factors affecting the specifics of the presentation of a scientific idea in the media; mechanisms for the formation of broadcast meanings depending on the status and communicative attitudes of participants in scientific polemics, a description of the object and markers of objections of various types and forms. The empirical basis of the research is publications in the media of the 1950–1980s. The empirical base was created in accordance with the principle of representative sampling. The methodological foundations of the analytical approach were developed by our predecessors when formatting the cognitive approach to the study of the communicative interaction of speech subjects. When creating the analytical algorithm, modern methods of intentional-stylistic analysis of the media text were used. The main conclusion: the communicative trajectory of the promotion of a scientific idea depends not only on the addressee factor, the information channel, but also on the features of the global communicative situation, the status characteristics of the subject of speech, his communicative attitudes. At different stages of scientific controversy in the public communicative space, the volume of scientific knowledge presented in the process of its popularization changes. The results of scientific research, the results of the work of specialized expert commissions, historical analogies, precedent information about similar projects are introduced into public communication. The administrative capabilities of the subject of speech provoke the use of tricks instead of verbalized versions of the objection, changing the object of criticism. The motivational part of the communicative trajectory is represented not only by calls to suspend the project embodying the scientific idea under discussion, but, crucially, by alternative ideas that stimulate scientific search in a certain area. The potential of the media material selected for analysis provides untapped opportunities to study the process of socialization of scientific knowledge, the deployment of public polemics as a means of neutralizing anti-scientific administrative decisions.

Transcranial direct current stimulation combined with language-cognitive training improves language and cognitive ability in children with language delay.

Language delay cannot be ignored, and there is an urgent need to determine therapies that elicit better results in a short period. However, whether transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) alone or in combination with other therapies can promote recovery of language and cognitive function in children with language delay remains unknown. This study aims to explore the effects of tDCS combined with language-cognitive training and home-based rehabilitation on language and cognitive ability in children with language delay. Children with language delay who visited the Department of rehabilitation medicine or the pediatric outpatient clinic of the First People's Hospital of Foshan from January 2019 to December 2021, totaling 190 in number, were included and randomly divided into 4 groups, i.e., the family guidance group, the tDCS group, the language-cognitive training group, and the comprehensive training group. The family guidance group (47 cases) received home training. The tDCS group (46 cases) received home training and tDCS treatment. The language- cognitive training group (49 cases) adopted home training and language-cognitive training. The comprehensive training group (48 cases) took home training, language-cognitive training, and tDCS treatment. All groups received training 5 times a week for 4 weeks. The Sign-significant relations (S-S) test was applied to evaluate the language comprehension, language expression, basic learning ability, and attitude of communication of the children. The language-cognitive training group and the comprehensive training group showed improvement after treatment (p < 0.05) regarding basic learning ability. The communication attitude of the four groups improved after intervention (p < 0.05). Particularly, the comprehensive training group had maximum improvement after intervention. No serious adverse reactions such as epilepsy, headache, and behavioral abnormalities were found. tDCS combined with language-cognitive training and home training can improve language and cognitive ability in children with language delay.

Brain response to errors in children who stutter

PurposeHeightened rates of social anxiety have been reported in adults who stutter (AWS), but it is unclear whether anxiety is heightened also in children who stutter (CWS). Objective neurophysiological responses such as the error-related negativity (ERN) have been associated with anxiety, and ERN was reported to be increased in AWS. In this study, we examined whether ERN and error positivity (Pe) are increased in CWS. We further characterized ERN associations with age and anxiety in CWS relative to children who do not stutter (CWNS). MethodsEEG data were recorded from twenty-four CWS and twenty-four matched CWNS aged 3–9 years as they performed a Go/No-Go task. Parent-reported anxiety, and child-reported speech-associated attitude measures were collected. Linear regression models tested the effects of age, group, and their interaction, and the effects of anxiety, group, and their interaction on ERN and Pe. ResultsContrary to expectations, no ERN or Pe difference were observed between CWS and CWNS. However, larger ERN amplitudes were associated with older age in CWS but not CWNS, suggesting altered development of the error monitoring system in CWS. Association of Pe with anxiety also differed between groups: smaller Pe amplitudes were associated with higher level of parent-reported child anxiety in CWNS but not in CWS. Neither anxiety nor self-reported communication attitude differed between groups. ConclusionsBrain responses to errors were overall comparable between CWS and CWNS. However, CWS differed in how error monitoring responses varied with age and with anxiety levels. More research is warranted to examine how these factors contribute to persistent stuttering.

Relationships Between Psychological Distress and Affective, Behavioral, and Cognitive Experiences of Stuttering.

People who stutter (PWS) are vulnerable to the development of various psychopathological symptoms, although prevalence data are mixed and less clarity exists about factors that potentially influence their occurrence. The current study sought to shed light on the prevalence of self-reported psychopathology in PWS and aimed to identify relationships between affective, behavioral, and cognitive (ABC) experiences of stuttering and psychological distress (PD). Forty-four PWS were administered the Behavior Assessment Battery (BAB) for Adults who Stutter and the Brief Symptom Inventory-18. The prevalence of clinically significant PD was calculated via BSI-18 global severity index t-score cutoffs. Regression analyses examined relationships between ABC variables of stuttering and PD. Participants' BAB scores approximated normative values, while the PD score distribution was similar to that of a nonclinical sample. Nine percent of participants met thresholds for clinically significant PD. All ABC correlates of stuttering significantly and positively correlated with PD scores, capturing considerable amounts of shared variance. Levels of PD in PWS approximate those of the general community, highlighting the existence of psychologically distressed subgroups of PWS. Speech situation-specific anxiety had the strongest relationship to PD, followed closely by one's report of situation-specific speech disruption. To a lesser but still significant extent, PWS' frequency to which they engage in various avoidance/escape behaviors, as well as their communication attitude, predicted levels of psychopathology. These data inform diagnostic and clinical decision making, drawing attention to factors that should be attended to in treatment.

The Teaching Of Dasa Sila In Sila Kramaning Aguron-Guron Text From The Communicative Attitude Perspective

This article aims to analyze the teachings of the basic principles contained in the Lontar “sila kramaning aguron-guron” which focuses on the formal objects of communicative attitudes. The focus of the analysis is on the attitude dimension which relies on the teachings of dasa sila, namely ten principles as a guideline for the behavior of sisya (students) in order to improve the quality of spiritual life. This article uses interpretive qualitative methods in analyzing texts using content analysis techniques and hermeneutic methods to interpret the meaning of the text being analyzed. Based on the results of the analysis, it was found that the teachings of the ten principles in the perspective of communicative attitudes emphasize ethics in behavior, both verbally and non-verbally. There are ten human sensory organs that need to be controlled as tools to improve the quality of life of spiritual sisya, consisting of caksuindriya, srotendriya, granendriya, wakindriya, jihwendriya, panindriya, padendriya, paywindriya, pastendriya, and wikindriya. These ten sense organs must be controlled properly and correctly. The basic principles of indriya are a guide to action that must be adhered to by the side in their behavior to improve the quality of life spiritually. The dasa sila, namely ten basic teaching elements of the precepts are communicative actions taught by teachers to their sisya.

Studying in Online Environment: Students' Attitude Towards Online Open Electives in Karnataka

With the increasing popularity of the online environment, universities and colleges have started offering open online elective courses to provide students with a wide range of options to choose from. However, the success of these courses largely depends on the students attitudes toward them. The current study aimed to investigate the attitudes of undergraduate and postgraduate students toward online open electives in Karnataka. The sample consisted of 393 students chosen through purposive sampling and employed MOCA (Measure of Online Communication Attitude), developed by Ledbetter in 2009. The study revealed that students reported higher levels of apprehension and self-disclosure when compared to other domains, with social connection, ease, and miscommunication following suit. Males were observed to have higher levels of self-disclosure and social connection when compared to females. Apprehension was found to be more prevalent among students under 20 years old, whereas miscommunication, social connection, and ease were more prevalent among those between 23 and 25 years of age. Students from rural areas tended to exhibit higher levels of self-disclosure, apprehension, and miscommunication compared to their urban counterparts. Government college students reported higher levels of apprehension, while self-disclosure, social connection, and ease were higher among students studying in unaided colleges. Miscommunication was found to be more common among humanities and social science students, while science students reported higher levels of social connection and ease. The results of the study will help understand the factors that influence students’ attitudes towards online open electives and provide insights into how universities and colleges can improve the design and delivery of these courses to enhance students’ learning experiences.

A Meta-analysis Study on the Communication Attitudes of People Who Do and Do Not Stutter by Age

A Meta-analysis Study on the Communication Attitudes of People Who Do and Do Not Stutter by Age

Discourses about Miracle: Spectrum of Positions

The study is devoted to construct a typology of discourses about a miracle. Discourses are interpreted in this case not in a linguistic, but in a philosophical sense, as a certain “way of talking” about a chosen phenomenon. This includes the ontological and ideological position of the speaker (writer), emotional and value pathos, a communicative attitude or lack thereof, a message to the listener (reader) of specific views and beliefs. The author distinguishes three groups of discourses on the ideological basis: 1) a miracle, understood as supernatural, but accessible for communication; 2) a miracle understood as a man-made, purely human phenomenon; 3) a miracle as the result of a “dual determination” coming from both the transcendent and the person himself. The miracle is initially interpreted in the article as a positive phenomenon that can be described and expressed in speech without directly naming the word itself. Within the first group of discourses, the following are considered: religious (Christian), mythological and fairy-tale discourse, and the fate-providentialist discourse is also highlighted. The second approach, connected with the denial of the supernatural, speaks of a miracle in the context of its scientific and technical creation, as well as hopes for a miracle within the framework of progressive and utopian concepts. The third type of discourses, combining the view of a miracle as coming from above and from the person himself, includes mystical-magical, existential and creativistic discourses - interpreting the theme of creativity. The mystical-magical discourse describes a miracle as the result of illumination and as a consequence of persistent spiritual searches. In the existential discourse, represented by fiction, there is also a place for describing a miracle as a magical nature and a magical fate. In creative discourse, the miracle is the very act of the birth of a new one. Summing up what has been said, the author emphasizes that he presents readers with nothing more than a sketch that requires further work and thematic disclosure.

PSYCHOMETRIC PROPERTIES OF THE TURKISH VERSION OF THE EMOTIONAL COMMUNICATION SCALE FOR HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS

This study aimed to adapt the Emotional Communication Scale, which assesses emotional communication in healthcare professionals in Türkiye, into Turkish and investigate its psychometric properties. This study has a methodological design for the psychometric testing and validation of the Emotional Communication Scale. The mean age of participants was 31.31 years (SD = 9.94), with ages ranging from 19 to 60; of the 197 participants, 46 (23.4%) were males and 151 (76.6%) were females. In the first stage of the study, language equivalence was ensured. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted with the IBM AMOS 24.0 package program for construct validity. According to the CFA results, the Turkish version of the scale has 14 items and 3-dimensional structure, as in the English version. The model fit indices of the scale were acceptable (χ2/df=1.92, CFI=0.94, TLI=0.92, IFI=0.94, GFI=0.91, RMSEA=0.07, and SRMR=0.03). The item-total correlation coefficients of the scale ranged between 0.510 and 0.643. The Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.885 for the whole scale, 0.838 for the communicative proactivity, 0.770 for the openness authenticity, and 0.680 for the listening. The Turkish version of the Emotional Communication Scale is a measurement tool with high content validity and internal consistency that can be used to assess the emotional communication attitudes of healthcare professionals. The scale can help healthcare professionals determine their attitudes toward emotional communication. Therefore, this tool will aid in developing training programs for communication, design, and evaluation of training processes aimed at helping professionals working in the healthcare field.