Impact of ambiguity reduction about performance expectations on audience anxiety

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Anticipatory audience anxiety refers to the anxiety experienced by a speaker before an oral presentation. According to the CA literature, a major cause of this anxiety is ambiguity about what is expected of the speaker. In the present study, audio‐taped versions of either successful or unsuccessful models were presented in an effort to reduce anxiety due to uncertainty about performance expectation. Results indicate that successful models were ineffective in reducing anticipatory audience anxiety, especially for students who are apprehensive about public speaking. The use of unsuccessful models might be helpful for moderate to low apprehensives.