Are We Violating Their Expectations? Instructor Communication Expectations of Traditional and Nontraditional Students

Abstract

For years, researchers have been telling teachers how to communicate with students. Advising them to be immediate, clear and engage in affinity-seeking behaviors has been based on traditional undergraduate student responses. Adult education scholars recognize age and experience create unique expectations for instructors and the learning environment. Utilizing Expectancy Violations Theory, an investigation of traditional and nontraditional students' prescriptive expectations and experiences with instructor nonverbal immediacy, verbal immediacy, affinity seeking, and clarity behaviors reveals that differences exist and expectations are violated. Nontraditional students' expectations for affinity seeking were positively violated, traditional students' expectations for verbal immediacy were negatively violated, and expectations for instructor clarity behaviors were negatively violated for both groups.

Swearing by Peers in the Work Setting: Expectancy Violation Valence, Perceptions of Message, and Perceptions of Speaker

“…Jay and Janschewitz (2008) argued that ''taboo words' most potent emotional quality is arousal'' (p. 271) and Jay, Caldwell-Harris, and King (2008) concluded that it was the arousal associated with taboo words that made them memorable. Existing research on expectancy violations has distinguished between expectations of what is likely to occur (i.e., predictive expectancies) and what should occur (i.e., prescriptive expectancies) and has examined prescriptive expectancies in the contexts of student expectations of college instructors (Houser, 2005) and expectations about affection communicated by nonromantic partners (Floyd & Morman, 1997). Prescriptive expectancies should also be relevant in the context of swearing.…”

Leaders, followers, and time

“…Communication research suggests that immediacy can influence athletes' perceptions of coaches (Haselwood et al, 2005), students' perceptions of teachers (Punyanunt-Carter & Wagner, 2005), and even student effectiveness (Houser, 2005). Yet, while Sparrowe and Liden's work suggests that task-related immediacy will not allow a high LMX relationship to form, this body of communication theory suggests that followers associate immediacy with a more positive and supportive relationship.…”

When an Instructor Swears in Class: Functions and Targets of Instructor Swearing from College Students’ Retrospective Accounts

“…Moreover, student perceptions of an instructor's communication competence positively influences cognitive learning (Wrench & Punyanunt, 2004). For appropriateness, the classroom maintains numerous interaction rules known and practiced by both students and teachers (e.g., raising hand to speak) (Burgoon, 1995;Houser, 2005). The context of any classroom is unique, thus perceptions of appropriateness and effectiveness of certain behaviors vary from classroom to classroom: ''A given sequence of communication behaviors may be perceived to be competent in one context (relational, chronological, environmental, etc.…”