Michael J. Beatty

A Meta-Analysis of Trait-Behavior Correlations in Argumentativeness and Verbal Aggression

This article addresses controversy over the validity of two popular scales used to measure trait argumentativeness and verbal aggressiveness. The first half of the article offers a rejoinder to the Infante, Rancer, and Wigley article. It is argued that original conceptualizations of the scales are logically incoherent and lack empirical correspondence with research findings. The second part of the article offers a meta-analysis of scale–behavior and –nonbehavioral associations. The results show that research testing scale–behavior convergence is sparse and that the little research that currently exists is inconsistent with convergent and predictive validity. The Infante scales correlate consistently and to a greater extent with self-reported communication than with actual behavior, suggesting that the scales assess cognitive–affective rather than communication behavior tendencies.

Communication Apprehension and Resting Alpha Range Asymmetry in the Anterior Cortex.

In this study, we examined the relationship between trait-like communication apprehension (CA) and resting alpha range asymmetry in the anterior cortex (AC). Although theory and research in cognitive neuroscience suggest that asymmetry in the AC constitutes a relatively stable, inborn, substrate of emotion, some studies indicate that asymmetry can be increased by experimentally induced transitory anxiety. Transitory anxiety produced by interaction with strangers covaries with trait-like CA, raising questions regarding whether asymmetrical electrical activity in the AC during data collection represents resting levels as assumed in the literature or transitory reactions to dyadic interaction with the experimenter. Because the question if unanswered poses issues for theory and approaches to remediation, we computed correlations among alpha range asymmetry in the AC gathered by electroencephalograph (EEG) while participants were at rest, transitory anxiety scores referring to the participants’ interactions with the experimenter, and CA scores gathered four weeks earlier. Results revealed a partial correlation based on disattenuated correlations, r=.51, p<.05, between CA and EEG scores when the effects of transitory anxiety due to participant-experimenter interaction were removed.

A meta-analytic review of health information credibility: Belief in physicians or belief in peers?

Background: Despite the large corpus of literature on the credibility of health information, results of studies that examined the effect sizes for relationships between credibility and expertise/trustworthiness are inconsistent and have drawn attention to the ambiguity and uncertainty that surrounds the relationship between these constructs in the literature. Objective: This study aimed to provide an estimate of the magnitude of the relationship between manipulated expertise and trustworthiness in predicting health information credibility and to search for potential moderators of the relationship. Method: Comprehensive searches of the Communication & Mass Media Complete, PubMed, PsycINFO, Web of Knowledge, and Medline databases were used to identify potentially eligible studies. No year range was set in this study. Application of strict inclusion and exclusion criteria identified 20 studies, which were analyzed using the R package. Results: Results indicated that manipulated expertise correlated with health information credibility at a higher level than did trustworthiness in the online but not offline context, and that sample characteristics (student vs. nonstudent populations; age of participants) as well as the year of publication of the study were significant moderators of the relationship. Conclusion: This meta-analytic review of the literature has contributed to knowledge about how health information is received and processed by those who seek it. While participants in studies included in this research perceived health information to be more credible when provided by an expert rather than a layperson, their perceptions were moderated by demographic characteristics. This highlights the importance of moderator analyses and provides guidance for future research and practice in health information management.

Resting prefrontal cortex asymmetry and communication apprehension, verbal aggression, and other social interaction constructs: A meta-analytic review

A large corpus of neuroscience research suggests that resting levels of asymmetry in the anterior region of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) underlies the ability to self-regulate emotions and behaviors related to affective traits. Several studies have specifically linked resting asymmetry in the PFC to variables of interest to interpersonal communication scholars. These variables include verbal aggression, shyness and communication apprehension, social competence, sociability, perspective-taking, and interpersonal defensiveness. Meta-analysis of the studies examining resting asymmetry in the PFC and these other variables indicated that (a) an average sample-weighted (attenuated) correlation of .437 (average r = .447 when corrected for attenuation) and (b) all of the variance in r was attributable to sampling error.

Verbal aggressiveness as an expression of selected biological influences

Preface Part I: Conceptualization and Operationalization of Argumentative and Aggressive Communication 1. Approaches to Understanding Argumentative and Aggressive Communication (Michael Beatty, Alan Heisel, Brian Patterson, Kevin Wright) 2. The Measurement of Argumentative and Aggressive Communication (Timothy Levine) 3. Global Perspectives on Argumentative and Aggressive Communication (Yang Lin, Anne Maydan Nicotera) Part II: Contextual Research and Argumentative and Aggressive Communication 4. Instructional Communication (Paul Schrodt, Scott Myers) 5. Mass and Mediated Communication (Rebecca Chory, Anthony Roberto) 6. Argumentativeness and Verbal Aggressiveness in Applied Communication a. Political Communication (John Seiter, Robert Gass) b. Health Communication (Theodore Avtgis) c. Organizational Communication (Theodore Avtgis, Rebecca Chory) d. Sports Communication (Jeffrey Kassing) e. Negotiation (Jill Rudd) f. Nonverbal Communication (Andrew Rancer) g. Group Communication (Carolyn Anderson) h. Family Communication (Sally Vogl-Bauer) i. Teasing and Humor (Rachel DiCioccio) Part III: Specific Factors Influencing Argumentative and Aggressive Communication 7. Argumentativeness, Verbal Aggressiveness, and Other Traits (James McCroskey, Virginia Peck Richmond, Dale Hample) 8. Factors Stimulating the Use of Verbal Aggression (Charles Wigley) 9. The Instrumental Use of Verbal Aggression (Matthew M. Martin)

How Language Can Influence Political Marketing Strategy and a Candidate's Image: Effect of Presidential Candidates' Language Intensity and Experience on College Students' Ratings of Source Credibility

The present study examines the effects of language intensity on presidential candidates credibility. We manipulated language intensity levels and experience levels for hypothetical candidates for president of the United States. Manipulation checks confirmed the effectiveness of the experimental conditions. The dimensions of source credibility, character, and authoritativeness were confirmed using confirmatory factor analysis. Analysis of variance indicated that candidates using low-intensity language received higher scores on character than did candidates using high-intensity language. Experienced candidates received higher scores on authoritativeness than did inexperienced candidates. Implications for political marketing of candidates are discussed.

Electroencephalographic Analysis in Communication Science: Testing Two Competing Models of Message Production

Electroencephalographic (EEG) analysis allows measurement of electrical activity in bundles of neurons around electrodes placed at various locations on the scalp. In this essay, we provide an overview of the biological basis of EEG methodology and outline basic principles and practices of data collection. We conducted a study using EEG to test expectations from two competing cognitive theories of communication—computational theory and dynamic memory theory. Participants (N = 30) were assigned to one of two conditions—routine talk and direction-giving. EEG was used to measure the electrical activity in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), an area of the brain that is associated with message production. Results indicated that DLPFC activity was far more suggestive of dynamic memory theory. Specifically, electrical activity in the DLPFC was significantly lower during routine talk than during direction-giving. We discuss the implications of our findings and the limitations of EEG methods in communication research.

A Meta-Analytic Comparison of the Effects of Text Messaging to Substance-Induced Impairment on Driving Performance

According to the National Safety Commission, 28% of auto accidents or 1.6 million accidents per year are attributable to cell phone use and texting while driving. In response to this problem, state and federal agencies, as well as coalitions of citizens such as Mothers Against Texting and Driving, are leading public campaigns to ban texting while driving. The evidence in support of such campaigns often compares texting while driving to other forms of impairment, such as drunk driving, but the evidence is often anecdotal or is selectively drawn from single studies. Such appeals do little to overcome drivers’ overestimations of their abilities to “multi-task” while driving. Based on the assumption that scientific evidence regarding the comparative effects of text messaging while driving to other forms of impairment is required to establish credibility of campaigns, the authors conducted a planned contrast meta-analysis of the research in 3 domains. Results indicated large and comparable effects on poor driving performance for texting (r = .572) and alcohol use (r = .539), as well as marihuana use (r = .27), which, although moderate, was significantly less than either texting or alcohol.

Correcting Internal Consistency Estimates Inflated by Correlated Item Errors

ABSTRACT Coefficient alpha is perhaps the most widely employed estimate of reliability for self-report measures in communication research. However, coefficient alpha misestimates internal consistency when measures are not congeneric. Congeneric measures meet the assumption of classical test theory in that all item errors are uncorrelated or random; when item errors are correlated, the measure fails to be congeneric, signaling the presence of latent factor(s) other than those the researcher intended to measure. Scholars have alerted to the fact that many self-report measures used are noncongeneric and that coefficient alpha might be yielding inaccurate, often inflated, reliability estimates. In this essay, we propose a formula for estimating the internal consistency of a measure that reflects the degree to which reliability is affected by correlated item errors.