Andrew S. Pyle

Climate Change Education Through TV Weathercasts: Results of a Field Experiment

TV weathercasters are well positioned to educate Americans about the relationships among weather, climate, and climate change. Through a collaboration involving TV meteorologists, climatologists, and social scientists, we produced a series of educational segments to assess the impact of such an education. The educational segments were branded “Climate Matters” and aired over one year during the nightly weather segment on WLTX TV (Columbia, South Carolina). Prior to airing, we conducted a telephone survey of adult TV news viewers in the Columbia media market using random digit dialing (n = 1,068) to establish baseline measures; respondent screening was used to sample approximately equal numbers of WLTX viewers and viewers of competing stations. Approximately one year later, we resurveyed all available members of the baseline cohort (n = 502) and an independent sample of randomly selected residents (n = 910). The longitudinal data showed that—after controlling for baseline measures, demographics, and politi...

Intercultural crisis communication: examining the experiences of crisis sojourners

ABSTRACT The concept of the sojourner has been studied in a variety of contexts, such as business, education, and international aid. However, there is as yet no communication research on the topic of the crisis sojourner. Consequently, the goal of this study was to explore experiences of crisis sojourners to determine what they perceive as effective and ineffective communication in intercultural settings. In-depth interviews were conducted with 20 emergency responders who deploy internationally following events such as the earthquake in Haiti or the Fukushima meltdown. Results showed crisis sojourners from this population were aware of cultural differences and highly alert to the emotional and physical pain of those they were attempting to assist. Furthermore, they were cognizant of cultural norms and had a strong desire to respect local values. These results yield implications for individuals who work as crisis sojourners, and questions about the need for intercultural crisis communication education for those who face such situations routinely.

Teaching PEACE: A plan for effective crisis communication instruction

Courses: This unit activity is intended for public relations (PR), crisis communication, or journalism courses. Objectives: The purpose is to equip future PR professionals with critical thinking skills and experience to manage crises. Students demonstrate mastery in two ways: by crafting clear crisis response messages and materials in a narrow time frame, and by applying a crisis communication heuristic to manage a simulated crisis event.

Inquiry-based civil discourse education

Course: Civil discourse, argumentation, debate, persuasion, political communication Objectives: This unit activity will help students build an understanding of civil discourse and its function in society. Students will: (1) increase their capacity to examine arguments critically, (2) enhance their own ability to self-reflect critically, and (3) improve their ability to engage in civil discourse. This activity will employ inquiry-based learning strategies to apply students’ understanding of civil discourse in a dialogue with the broader campus community by partnering with campus media to develop and publish original opinion-editorial pieces.

Public speaking versus hybrid introductory communication courses: exploring four outcomes

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to compare student growth in public speaking and hybrid introductory communication skills courses on four outcomes: public speaking anxiety, self-perceived communication competence, intercultural effectiveness, and connected classroom climate. This study also sought to find out whether there were differences in the achievement of outcomes and growth in each outcome by sex and ethnicity. Data from 908 participants utilized a within-subjects and between-subjects repeat measures design. Results showed that public speaking and hybrid communication courses reduced public speaking anxiety and increased self-perceived communication competence and connected classroom climate a similar amount, but did not significantly increase intercultural effectiveness for students overall. Small effects were found for sex on all outcomes and for ethnicity on two outcomes.