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Provides a synthesis and extension of research on teacher clarity conducted since 1971. Examines the conceptualization of teacher clarity and research approaches to it. Supports the thesis that clarity is a relational variable. (SR)

The college teacher can develop his or her own teaching and communication skills by becoming familiar with the literature on recommended teaching communication behaviors, making use of the internal and external resources, and practicing. (MSE)

Humor in teaching can promote a positive and cohesive class atmosphere but can also have unintended negative results if the teacher does not first develop a supportive relationship with the students. (Author)

Many college faculty are reluctant to examine and refine their own classroom communication skills, for a variety of reasons, but teachers should focus on developing the effectiveness of their classroom instruction through the student-teacher relationship. (MSE)

A sample of 280 undergraduate students were selected for a study to determine the effect of tendentious and nontendentious humor in college first lecture presentations on students' perceptions of classroom communicative climate. Findings are discussed. (MT)

At the core of the process by which social services are delivered is the interview between providers and low-income clients. These interviews, while crucial to the continuation of the interviewer-interviewee relationship, are inhibited by forces such as the apparent defensive nature of the communication environment. Gibb's (1961) supportive- defensive paradigm was used as the conceptual basis for an investigation of the pattern of verbal and nonverbal behaviors manifest in such interviews. Communicative behaviors were examined to identify situations rated as defensive, supportive, or intermediate. Interview behaviors were analyzed using videotape in the field settings, and interview climates were characterized. The results suggest the validity of the supportive-defensive paradigm and further indicate that individual behaviors may be less important in identifying interview climate than are behavioral repertoires. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents information on latitude of attitude in ratings of dialect variations. Considerable data have been accumulated in recent years on the way in which a person's dialect affects others attitudes and perceptions of him. Linguistic attitudes and stereotypes exist and can be measured using semantic differential techniques. This concept of range of acceptable ratings is what is referred to as latitude of attitude. This concept is not a new one, since a question has been raised in the more general realm of attitude research.

The article presents a discussion of graduate education in 1984. The purpose of the article is to discuss the interpretation of the graduate education of a student-learner, Winston Smith. It also forecasts what can be developed and accomplished by the new system and elaborates on the assumptions and implications derived from the description. It deals with the issue of moving toward more particularity of attitudes for differential classes of occupations and modification of graduate students' behavior to meet those specifications in education of the future.