Nonverbal Immediacy Research Articles

Correlation Among Teacher ICT Teaching, Teacher Immediacy Behaviors, Teacher–Student Rapport, and Student Engagement in Smart Classroom Teaching

With the constant evolution of information and communication technology (ICT), smart classrooms have profoundly influenced Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) by presenting advanced ICT that markedly improved the effectiveness and quality of teaching and learning. Teacher communication technology teaching and immediacy behaviors are crucial for leading and reforming the teaching and learning process in smart classrooms. Meanwhile, teacher–student rapport and student engagement are also key factors that influence ESD. This study aims to investigate the correlation among teacher ICT teaching, teacher immediacy behaviors, teacher–student rapport and student engagement in smart classroom teaching. We surveyed 1032 Chinese university students using the questionnaire method and analyzed the data using structural equation modeling (SEM). The findings revealed that teacher ICT teaching and immediacy behaviors exerted a noteworthy positive impact on student engagement and teacher–student rapport. Meanwhile, teacher ICT teaching markedly positively correlated with verbal immediacy but markedly negatively correlated with nonverbal immediacy. These findings have practical implications for ESD: in smart classrooms, teacher ICT teaching and their immediacy behaviors serve as vital factors in augmenting teaching quality, encouraging student engagement and fostering harmonious teacher–student rapport. Thus, teachers must harness their ICT teaching skills, flexibly assimilate instant behaviors into the teaching process and interact with students in a richer and more diversified manner to effectively augment teaching quality and promote the overall and sustainable growth of students. Furthermore, this study can inform the expansion of smart classrooms, which in the future should not only offer teachers a convenient teaching and learning environment but also evade ICT that limits teacher nonverbal immediacy behaviors.

It Helped Push Me Through the Class’: Community College Student Perceptions of the Role of Instructor Immediacy Behaviors in Completing an Online Course

For decades, the number of students enrolling in online courses has been increasing, and this trend toward online education has been further intensified as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The completion rate of online courses is not as high as in-person instruction, and researchers and practitioners have long been invested in identifying ways in which online education can be optimized. One dimension of online education that has received scholarly attention is the transactional distance that exists between students and instructors, which, if not appropriately minimized, can lead to a variety of negative student outcomes. Scholars have also identified a variety of verbal and nonverbal immediacy behaviors that can help online instructors decrease this transactional distance and promote a variety of positive student outcomes. To date, the study of immediacy behaviors in online college courses has focused primarily on four-year institutions utilizing quantitative methods. As complement to this research, we interviewed 12 community college students to better understand how a particular set of immediacy behaviors (i.e., a “welcome” phone call, sending personalized emails, using humor, creating videos, and sending “check-in” emails) influenced students’ desire and ability to remain in and complete an online course. Implications of these findings for practice and future research are discussed.

Effect of AI counsellor’s nonverbal immediacy behaviour on user satisfaction: serial mediation of positive expectancy violation and rapport

ABSTRACT The aim of this study is to verify the causal relationship between the nonverbal immediacy behaviour (NIB) of an artificial intelligence (AI) agent for mental health counselling and user satisfaction through an experiment. We explored whether the anthropomorphism of the AI agent moderated the effect of the AI agent. A 2 (NIB: absent vs. present) × 2 (anthropomorphism: low vs. high) between-subjects experiment was conducted. The participants answered questionnaires after having a conversation about their daily stress with an AI counsellor, which was implemented according to the experimental conditions in the metaverse counselling room. The results showed that the NIB of the AI agent had a positive effect on user satisfaction, which was serially mediated by positive expectancy violations and rapport. However, anthropomorphism was not found to moderate the effects of NIB on user satisfaction. This study contributed to theoretical elaboration by providing empirical evidence that the effect of NIB is significant in AI counselling and by revealing that this effect occurs through a serial mediation path of positive expectation violation and rapport.

Exploring the impact of nonverbal social behavior on learning outcomes in instructional video design

Online education has become increasingly popular in recent years, and video lectures have emerged as a common instructional format. While the importance of instructors’ nonverbal social cues such as gaze, facial expression, and gestures for learning progress in face-to-face teaching is well-established, their impact on instructional videos is not fully understood. Most studies on nonverbal social cues in instructional videos focus on isolated cues rather than considering multimodal nonverbal behavior patterns and their effects on the learning progress. This study examines the role of instructors’ nonverbal immediacy (a construct capturing multimodal nonverbal behaviors that reduce psychological distance) in video lectures with respect to learners’ cognitive, affective, and motivational outcomes. We carried out an eye-tracking experiment with 87 participants (Mage = 24.11, SD = 4.80). Results of multilevel path analyses indicate that high nonverbal immediacy substantially increases learners’ state motivation and enjoyment, but does not affect cognitive learning. Analyses of learners’ eye movements show that learners allocate more attention to the instructor than to the learning material with increasing levels of nonverbal immediacy displayed by the instructor. The study highlights the importance of considering the role of multimodal nonverbal behavior patterns in online education and provides insights for effective video lecture design.

A deepfake-based study on facial expressiveness and social outcomes

Artificial intelligence (AI)-generated media is used in entertainment, art, education, and marketing. AI-generated faces or facial expressions using deepfake-based technologies might also contribute to nonverbal behavior studies. As a proof of concept, in this research, we test the replicability of past results regarding the positive effects of facial expressiveness (e.g., gazing, nodding, and smiling) on social outcomes. Because the facial expressions when listening to someone (i.e., nonverbal immediacy) encompass several behaviors that are typically related (i.e., smiling while nodding), the effect of combinations of these behaviors is challenging to study. We thus test the effect of facial expressiveness (gazing, nodding, and smiling vs. none) on first impression judgements in a job interview setting using AI-generated experimental video material. We measure how competent, warm, and favorably independent observers (n = 823) perceive the targets (n = 159) showing AI-generated facial expressions. Our results replicate past research showing that the more targets are facially expressive, the more they are perceived favorably. Apart from supporting evidence of the importance of facial expressiveness for conveying a positive impression, we show the benefits of relying on AI-generated experimental video material for the study of nonverbal behavior.

Predictors of student engagement and perceived learning in emergency online education amidst COVID-19: A community of inquiry perspective

During the COVID-19 pandemic, colleges and universities resorted to emergency online learning, which has significant implications for the future of online education. However, our knowledge of the factors influencing student engagement and learning is somewhat dispersed, partly due to a lack of a theoretical framework that guides research. This study draws on the Community of Inquiry (CoI) framework to examine the factors that predict student engagement and learning during emergency online learning. Through an online survey of 351 undergraduate students in a large public university in the US, we found that students who were more conscientious, open, perceived a higher sense of community at the university, perceived a higher level of nonverbal immediacy from the instructor, turned on the camera more often, had better time management skills, digital skills, and better health, reported higher engagement. Qualitative analysis revealed distractions, lack of copresence, and poor internet connections as challenges students face in synchronous online learning. By utilizing both quantitative and qualitative data collected at the peak of the pandemic, our findings offer lessons for understanding how individual factors related to student engagement and perceived learning in the online environment and how to make the online learning experience more meaningful and engaging for all individuals.

Effects of Nonverbal Immediacy and Similarity on Perceptions of Likability and Friendship Potential: First Impressions of U.S. and Middle Eastern Students on Zoom

Effects of Nonverbal Immediacy and Similarity on Perceptions of Likability and Friendship Potential: First Impressions of U.S. and Middle Eastern Students on Zoom

The effects of instructor clarity and non-verbal immediacy on Chinese and Iranian EFL students’ affective learning: The mediating role of instructor understanding

Drawing on the rhetorical/relational goal theory, this study examined the role of instructor clarity and non-verbal immediacy in affective learning through the mediation of instructor understanding. Data were gathered through close-ended questionnaires from 756 Chinese and 715 Iranian English as a foreign language (EFL) students, the factor structure and cross-cultural validity of which were supported via confirmatory factor analysis and testing measurement invariance, respectively. Path analysis results indicated that clarity and non-verbal immediacy positively predicted instructor understanding and affective learning; instructor understanding positively predicted affective learning; and understanding was a significant positive mediator in the relationship of non-verbal immediacy and clarity with affective learning. Except for the positive association of non-verbal immediacy with understanding which was significantly higher for the Iranian group, no significant difference was found between the Chinese and Iranian groups in all other associations, providing empirical support for the role of EFL teachers’ positive interpersonal communication behaviors in EFL students’ affective learning, irrespective of the cultural context.

Digitization Techniques Most Commonly Used for Promoting the Conservation of Library Collections

This paper delves into what digitization is, why it's useful, and how library materials may be digitized. As examples, we looked at the "cognitive flexibility," "relational," and "non-verbal immediacy" theories. It also covers the planning and policy implications of common problems faced throughout digitalization. Documents and works of art are digitized when they are transformed into digital pictures. By "digital images," we mean digital reproductions of paper documents. The term "digitization" refers to the process of transforming paper documents into digital files. The primary goals of digitization are to increase accessibility and improve longevity of library holdings. The process of digitizing library items presents a variety of obstacles. Human and technological difficulties are involved, with repercussions for strategy and policymaking. Due to the aforementioned issues and the necessity to become digital, i.e. offer online services, it was determined that digitization is an important role in contemporary libraries.

Influence of lecturers’ verbal and non-verbal immediacy behaviour on perceived affective and cognitive learning in a multicultural context.

The intention of the present study was to determine whether (1) the immediacy behaviourof lecturers whose home language is Afrikaans or English contributes positively to theaffective and cognitive learning of learners whose home language is Afrikaans, Englishor one of the African languages; and (2) whether the form of immediacy behaviourdisplayed by English or Afrikaans lecturers functions differently for learners whose homelanguage is one of the African languages in relation to those whose home language isAfrikaans or English. Data was collected by means of a questionnaire that had separatesections on immediacy behaviour and learning. Positive correlations between theimmediacy behaviour of the lecturers and the affective and cognitive learning of thelearners were observed for the whole test group. The immediacy behaviour displayed bythe lecturers functions differently for learners whose home language is one of the Africanlanguages than for those whose home language is Afrikaans or English. Considering thesefindings, it is imperative that instructional communication in today’s South Africa beincreasingly characterized by a culture-centred approach.

L2 Enjoyment of English as a Foreign Language Students: Does Teacher Verbal and Non-verbal Immediacy Matter?

This review explored the investigations on the role of teacher immediacy in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners’ foreign language enjoyment. Earlier investigations have proved that teacher immediacy, such as posture, body language, vocal variety, gestures, and smile, can significantly affect learners’ positive emotions like foreign language enjoyment. It means that teachers should try both to control the feelings of their learners and manage their feelings to enhance enjoyment among learners. Moreover, studies have shown that teacher immediacy is significantly related to learner motivation which is a basis for increasing foreign language enjoyment among learners. However, specific strategies can be employed to increase learner motivation, which in return increases learner foreign language enjoyment. Furthermore, the study presented the implications and future directions of this line of research for different people, such as EFL teachers, teacher educators, and foreign language scholars. The ideas can improve their awareness of teacher-student relationships, in particular, teacher immediacy and its role in learners’ foreign language enjoyment.

The Effect of Physician Immediacy on Patient Liking for Physician, Motivation, and Recall

ABSTRACT Guided by the fostering relationships function of patient-centered communication (PCC), the present study utilized a 2 (high/low nonverbal immediacy) x 2 (high/low verbal immediacy) between-subjects experimental design to determine whether physician verbal and nonverbal immediacy influenced participant liking for physician, motivation to process a health message, and recall of the health message. An actor physician delivered a 3–4 minute video-recorded message, diagnosing U.S. adult participants, serving as analogue patients, with a health issue. The results indicated main effects for physician verbal immediacy and nonverbal immediacy on participant liking for physician and motivation such that participants had greater liking for the physician and motivation to do what the physician requested when the physician demonstrated greater verbal and nonverbal immediacy. However, physician verbal and nonverbal immediacy did not influence participantsʻ recall. Physicians should consider displaying verbal and nonverbal immediacy to create a positive impression among patients, and to motivate patients to take steps to improve their health.

Design and Validation of the Non-Verbal Immediacy Scale (NVIS) for the Evaluation of Non-Verbal Language in University Professors.

Knowledge and awareness of how to use non-verbal language is essential for the educational field. For this reason, the aim of this study was to develop a validation that validly and reliably measures the analysis of non-verbal language in university teachers. Content validation was carried out by applying the Delphi technique and through an exploratory and confirmatory analysis. The validity of understanding is given by the application of the scale to 1316 university teachers between 24 and 67 years of age. The initial data collected through the Delphi technique provided some modifications. The final scale, called Non-verbal immediacy, was composed of a total of 26 items that presented satisfactory adjustments in both comprehension and outcome validity. Confirmatory factor analysis determined three dimensions (kinesics, paralanguage, and proxemics). These factors will be a new element for future lines of research related to the teaching-learning process, as high relationships have been demonstrated between non-verbal language and psychosocial aspects implicit in teaching practice, as well as comprehension and student learning.

The effect of an artificial agent's vocal expressiveness on immediacy and learning

AbstractBackgroundThough pedagogical artificial agents are expected to play a crucial role in the years to come, earlier studies provide inconsistent results regarding their effect on learning. This might be because their potential for exhibiting subtle nonverbal behaviours we know from human teachers has been untapped. What is more, there is little evidence of the processes underlying the effect of nonverbal behaviours of teachers (either human or artificial) on learning, so as to better guide their practical application.ObjectivesThe aims of the current research were threefold: firstly, to examine the effect of an artificial agent's vocal expressiveness on non‐verbal immediacy (teachers' ability to increase psychological closeness through nonverbal communication). Secondly, to test whether an artificial agent showing strong vocal expressiveness will enhance affective and cognitive learning (perceived and actual), as compared to an artificial agent that shows weak vocal expressiveness. Thirdly, to examine whether the underlying mechanisms of motivation and attention explain the effect of immediacy (and thereby also of vocal expressiveness) on the two learning outcomes.MethodsThe study used a between‐participants design, with the participants being randomly assigned to one of the two experimental conditions: artificial modelling with strong expressiveness and artificial modelling with weak vocal expressiveness.Results and conclusionsResults showed that an artificial agent with strong vocal expressiveness increased affective and perceived cognitive learning. Partial support was found for actual cognitive learning. What is more, our findings revealed that vocal expressiveness is related to affective and perceived cognitive learning because it promotes nonverbal immediacy. Finally, results provided evidence of motivation as a mediator of the path from immediacy to affective learning.Major takeawaysThe current findings verify the important role of nonverbal immediacy found in traditional educational settings. However, showing that these results also apply to artificial teachers is essential, given that the educational landscape is changing and reshaping by artificial intelligence. Thus, taking into consideration the role of vocal expressiveness in the development of artificial teachers or voice assistants like Alexa, Siri, and Google assistant, as a way to enhance immediacy and affective experience of learners is of imperative value, since they will be found more and more in our societies.

Chinese EFL Students' Perceptions of Classroom Justice: The Impact of Teachers' Caring and Immediacy.

The correlation between students' perceptions of three dimensions of classroom justice, teacher immediacy, and teacher caring has been found important since it can provide a learning ambiance for students in which they can enthusiastically learn a new language. To find out this relationship, the present study has strived to probe into the interplay between the aforementioned variables and to see whether teacher caring and teacher immediacy can predict students' perception of justice. In so doing, the participants of this study were 1,178 Chinese EFL students of various ages and education levels. Three instruments were utilized in this study to perceive the students' perception of classroom justice, teacher immediacy, and teacher caring. To collect the data, these instruments were distributed through an online survey software called Wenjuanxing (Questionnaire Star). Results demonstrated that there was a positive association among these three variables, and utilizing SEM analyses, it was found that both teacher immediacy and teacher caring predict students' perception of classroom justice that implies teachers who are found to be more caring and give appropriate verbal and non-verbal immediacy where needed, are perceived to change the students' understanding of the classroom justice to a positive attitude. Finally, the results of this study were discussed regarding previous findings, and accordingly, some implications were put forward in the EFL context.

The Predictability of Chinese English as a Foreign Language Students' Willingness to Communicate Through Teachers' Immediacy and Teacher-Student Rapport.

The teacher–learner relationship is not just a simple action and reaction on both sides of the relationship but a complete exchange that takes shape in the context of the factors that affect it. To understand the factors affecting this relationship, the present study investigated the predictability of Chinese English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students’ willingness to communicate (WTC) through teachers’ immediacy and teacher–student rapport. To conduct the study, 858 EFL students from Xinyang Normal University in Henan province of China were invited to participate in the study. To collect the required data, the researcher employed the Willingness to Communicate Questionnaire, Verbal and Nonverbal Immediacy Questionnaire, and Professor–Student Rapport Scale. Pearson product–moment correlation coefficient and structural equation modeling (SEM) were used to analyze the data. Results revealed that there was a strong positive relationship between teacher immediacy and teacher–student rapport and learners’ willingness to communicate. The findings also demonstrated that teachers’ immediacy and teacher–student rapport were positive predictors of learners’ willingness to communicate. The paper argues that teachers need to enhance their interpersonal relations with their students to make them willing to communicate in their classes.

Masked emotions: Implications drawn from nonverbal cues to recognize emotion

Students will participate in a “think-pair-share” activity where they will be challenged to demonstrate and recognize nonverbal communication cues that convey emotion. Students will work individually, with a partner, and with the instructor to understand the importance of nonverbal communicative cues and the effect of the nonverbal cues on immediacy and the development of interpersonal relationships. The overall goal is for students to understand what specific nonverbal cues can signify and the impact of nonverbal cues on conversation. Courses This activity would work best in a course where there is a focus on nonverbal cues, emotion, and immediacy. Objectives The primary goal of this activity is for students to be able to recognize nonverbal cues that are visible when face coverings are being used. The activity will help students recognize the challenges that come with communication while wearing a face mask and understand the impact and importance of nonverbal communicative cues on immediacy and emotion.

First impression sexual scripts of romantic encounters: Effect of gender on verbal and non verbal immediacy behaviors in American media dating culture

The current study investigates sexual scripts in reality dating shows—in particular, how the gender of the communicator affects the choice of verbal and nonverbal immediacy behaviors aimed at making a first impression. Data were drawn from 331 couples of opposite-sex heterosexual strangers interacting for approximately 30 seconds on two reality dating shows: The Bachelor and The Bachelorette (2012–2019). As a result, a codebook of verbal immediacy cues ( N = 1623) and nonverbal immediacy cues ( N = 3021) was derived. The findings showed that verbal behavior encompassed 11 categories of verbal immediacy cues, while nonverbal behavior included 32 categories of nonverbal immediacy cues. Results also showed gender-related preferences for verbal immediacy behavior; for instance, men were more likely to outline the probability of relationship development and pay compliments; conversely, women were prone to intriguing men to arouse curiosity and interest. As for nonverbal immediacy behavior, men were predisposed to use clothes straightening, while women tended to communicate immediacy through head tilt, shoulder shrug, gaze down, gaze side(s), eyebrow flashes, hand-in-hand, hug, pat, holding hands in front of their bodies, and hair grooming. Nonetheless, the similarities between men and women were found to be greater than the differences. These findings could have wide-reaching implications for theorizing on social and cultural norms, gender stereotypes, and traditional gender roles in intimate relationships in the form of sexual scripts, along with contributing to the study of reality television.

Does Teacher Immediacy Affect Students? A Systematic Review of the Association Between Teacher Verbal and Non-verbal Immediacy and Student Motivation

In instructional-learning contexts, the relationship between teacher verbal and non-verbal immediacy and student motivation has gained increasing attention. However, no systematic research has been done to review the empirical studies conducted on the impact of teacher immediacy on students' motivation. Hence, the aim of the present study was to systematically review the available literature on different types of teacher immediacy and student motivation. Some common databases were searched and 30 eligible manuscripts were identified. With regard to the key features of the included studies, the review's findings were categorized into different sections, namely “the measures of teacher immediacy employed,” “the measures of student motivation employed,” “designs,” and “educational contexts”. The main findings of the studies were also discussed. The reviewed studies pointed to positive associations between teacher immediacy and student motivation. Finally, limitations of the included studies are discussed and some practical directions for further research are offered, accordingly.

The Relationship between EFL Teachers’ Classroom Management Skills and Their Immediacy as Perceived by Their Learners

The Relationship between EFL Teachers’ Classroom Management Skills and Their Immediacy as Perceived by Their Learners