Communication apprehension and self-perceived communication competence as variables underlying willingness to communicate

Abstract

Based on the literature, willingness to communicate (WTC) can be defined as “the probability that an individual will choose to initiate communication, more specifically, talking, when free to do so” (MacIntyre et al. 2003: 590). Two crucial factors directly influencing one’s willingness to communicate are perceived communication competence together with communication apprehension (MacIntyre et al. 1998). Perceived communication competence refers to selfreported verbal activity and ability (McCroskey 1982) while communication apprehension is described as an “individual level of fear or anxiety associated with either real or anticipated communication with another person or persons” (McCroskey 1977: 28). The paper explores the extent to which perceived competence and communication apprehension are the causes of students’ willingness to communicate as hypothesized by MacIntyre et al. (2003) and found by MacIntyre and Charos (1996). Three types of questionnaires were used to investigate the relations among the above-mentioned variables. The subjects of the study were first-year students of the English Department at the University of Silesia. The students completed WTC Scale (McCroskey 1992), Self-perceived Communication Competence Scale (McCroskey 1988) and Personal Report of Communication Apprehension (McCroskey 1982). All three instruments were administered to one group of students, altogether 25 subjects. Results show that a combination of perceived competence and communication apprehension strongly impact willingness to communicate. In the following presentation primary attention is devoted to questionnaire results. Theoretical and practical implications are also discussed.