Communication Apprehension and Imagined Interactions

Authors:

• James M. Honeycutt (Louisiana State University)
• Charles Choi (University of California, Santa Barbara)

Abstract:

Communication apprehension is associated with fear of communication encounters. Yet, Imagined interactions (IIs) may help reduce fear of communication in which individuals use mental imagery before and after to prepare and review the conversations. As such, to examine whether a relationship between these factors exists two studies were performed to test for a potential relationship. The results of Study 1 indicated that communication apprehension could be significantly predicted by the II characteristic of discrepancy across multiple contexts. The II catharsis function of IIs was predictive in the context of public speaking. Study 2 examines the way in which rehearsal can take place through imagined dialogues and help a speaker overcome disfluency found in the delivery of messages. Results from this study indicate rehearsal's influence in the reduction of silent pauses but not vocalized pauses. The specificity of one's imagined interactions and the amount of disfluency found in a message were related to specific aspects of communication apprehension.