Is There a Balance between Causes of Fear and Use of Communication Strategies?

Abstract

Students' oral presenting skills can be significantly enhanced through the use of communication strategies. Nonetheless, some students struggle to communicate in English due to their lack of proficiency. This is primarily because they lack effective communication techniques. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to identify the communication strategies performed by students during oral presentations and the factors that contribute to their fear of oral presentations. For a more in-depth data analysis, this study utilised a quantitative survey comprising two sections. Respondents to this survey comprised a total of 131 students from a Malaysian public university. The collected results indicate that respondents utilise message reduction, orientation, and non-verbal methods the most, and that they are influenced by a number of internal and external factors that contribute to their dread of oral presentation. It has been demonstrated that the employment of oral communication strategies is beneficial in assisting students to overcome their fear of oral presentation.