THE EFFECTS OF A SEVEN-HOUR COMMUNICATION TRAINING PROGRAM ON PARTICIPANT UTILIZATION OF SIX COMPONENTS OF COMMUNICATION STYLE

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to determine the effects of a 7-hour communication training program (Human Interaction Workshop, HIW) on participant utilization of six components of communication style, in aggregate, as assessed by the Communication Style Inventory (CSI). The six components of communication were empathy, respect/warmth, concreteness, genuineness/self-disclosure, confrontation/gentle assertiveness, and immediacy. The aggregate measure of these six components of communication was the CSI Index, which was calculated from participant self-reports on the CSI.

The CSI was designed by the researcher to elicit data for the study and offered respondents the opportunity to describe characteristic ways in which they communicate with others. The HIW, developed by the researcher, was based on the work of Rogers, Carkhuff, and other researchers and practitioners in the field of human communication.

Data for the research were collected from a sample of 95 employees from the study population of employees of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Two experimental groups, a Management group of subjects (N = 23) in U.S. government pay levels 11 through 15 and a Support group of subjects (N = 20) in levels 5 through 10, participated in the HIW and completed the CSI at pre-test, immediate post-test, and delayed follow-up test intervals. Two control groups of employees, a Management group (N = 28) and a Support group (N = 24), completed the CSI at intervals equal to those of the experimental groups.

Participation in the HIW resulted in significant improvement in participants' self-perception of utilization of communication skills as indicated by their higher scores on the CSI. Participants scored significantly higher (p (LESSTHEQ) 0.01) on the CSI than nonparticipants 1 month following the HIW. Management level participants scored significantly higher (p (LESSTHEQ) 0.01) than management level nonparticipants 1 month following the HIW. Nonmanagement level participants scored significantly higher (p (LESSTHEQ) 0.01) than nonmanagement level nonparticipants 1 month following the HIW. One month following the workshop, Support individuals who participated in the HIW scored significantly higher (p (LESSTHEQ) 0.01) on the CSI than those Management individuals who did not participate in the HIW.

Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 45-03, Section: A, page: 7220.

Ph.D. American University 1984.

English