Perceived teacher affinity‐seeking in relation to perceived teacher credibility

Abstract

This study investigated the relationship between teachers' use of Bell and Daly's affinity-seeking strategies and students' perceptions of teacher credibility (competence and character) in the classroom. The associations among students' motivation to study, teachers' perceived credibility, and teachers' perceived use of affinity-seeking strategies also were investigated. Results indicated that several affinity-seeking strategies were positively and significantly associated with competence and character, indicating that use of affinity-seeking in the classroom may assist in the development of teacher credibility. Perceptions of teacher credibility and teachers' use of affinity-seeking strategies also were found to be positively and significantly associated with students' motivation to study. The purpose of this study was to investigate teacher communication strategies that enhance student perceptions of teacher credibility in the classroom. Specifically, we were interested in the potential use of the behaviors represented by Bell and Daly's (1984) affinity-seeking techniques as means for increasing students' perceptions of teachers' credibility in the classroom-that is, perceptions of their competence and character (McCroskey & Young, 1981)-and the relationship of these teacher communication behaviors with student motivation.While there is evidence that increasing a teacher's credibility has a positive impact on learning outcomes for students (Andersen, 1972(Andersen, , 1973Beatty & Zahn, 1990;Dempsey, 1975;Wheeless, 1974aWheeless, , 1974bWheeless, , 1975, there is comparatively little research that provides teachers with advice or strategies to increase their credibility. Rubin and Feezel (1986) found teacher credibility and teacher effectiveness were best predicted by the communicator style variables of impression leaving and relaxed. Also, Beatty and Behnke (1980), investigating the impact of consistent verbal and nonverbal messages on teacher credibility, found that consistent messages led to perceptions of greater character; however, the same relationship was not found for the competence dimension of credibility. Positive vocal cues appeared to be more predictive of competence. While this research contributed to educators' understanding of how to be perceived as a credible teacher, the need persists for additional strategies for enhancing credibility in the classroom.A possible means for increasing a teacher's credibility in the classroom is to employ affinity-seeking strategies with students. "Affinity," first introduced as an interpersonal communication construct by McCroskey and Wheeless (1976), is "a positive attitude toward another person" (p. 231), including positive perceptions of credibility, attraction, and similarity. McCroskey and Wheeless advanced seven techniques they believed would assist in affinity development:

The effects of student verbal and nonverbal responsiveness on teachers' liking of students and willingness to comply with student requests

“…Teacher affinity-seeking behaviors have been shown to positively influence student perceptions of teacher credibility (Frymier & Thompson, 1992), student liking of the teacher (Frymier, 1994), student motivation (Richmond, 1990), student affective learning (Frymier, 1994), and overall classroom environment (Myers, 1995).…”

A cross-cultural comparison of instructor communication in American and French classrooms

“…The converse of this is true as well. In an instructional context, several studies have linked teacher affinity seeking to student motivation and learning (Richmond, 1990;Roach, 1991b), perceptions of instructor credibility (Frymier & Thompson, 1992), and student perceptions of classroom climate (Myers, 1995).…”

Student satisfaction in interactive engagement-based physics classes

“…Instructors who are seen as credible are more likely to have students who are more motivated to learn [19], have increased cognitive learning [20], and are more respectful of the instructor [21]. Most relevant here, students who perceive their instructor as more credible also report greater affective learning; that is, they are more satisfied with their learning experience and report a more positive attitude toward the content and course [20].…”