An examination of the impact of anticipated communication and communication apprehension on negative thinking, task relevant thinking, and recall

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Booth‐Butterfield offers evidence that communication apprehensive people who are expecting to interact after listening to a lecture recall less information than those who are not anticipating such interaction. The present investigations extend his work by examining this inhibition effect with regard to negative thinking, task relevant thoughts, and recall. The first study revealed that expecting to deliver a speech was related to lower retention for high communication apprehensives (HCAs) but not low communication apprehensives (LCAs). HCAs also reported more negative and fewer task relevant thoughts than LCAs. The second study was conducted to determine if the effect on HCAs could be avoided by having them deliver the speech prior to being exposed to the lecture material. These data indicate that it did not matter whether HCAs had delivered a speech or were expecting to deliver a speech, they retained less information and reported fewer task relevant thoughts than HCAs not expecting to deliver a speech or LCAs in either condition. HCAs were also found to engage in a higher proportion of negative thinking than LCAs regardless of the speech expectancy condition. These findings provide support, albeit limited, for the inhibition position.