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Personal Report of Public Speaking Anxiety (PRPSA)

This measure was developed as a part of a continuing research program investigating the effects of systematic desensitization on communication apprehension. The Personal Report of Public Speaking Anxiety Scale (PRPSA) is an excellent measure for research which centers on public speaking anxiety, but is an inadequate measure of the broader communication apprehension construct.

Author of Tool: 
McCroskey, J. C.

Shyness Scale (SS)

This Shyness Scale (SS) measure is also referred to as the McCroskey Shyness Scale. It was developed to obtain individual's self-report of their shy behavior. Unlike many shyness scales that have been developed in the field of Psychology, this scale does not confound communication apprehension with shy behavior. These are two very different constructs and adding items from both provide an uninterpretable score. Communication apprehension relates to fear and/or anxiety about communicating. Willingness to Communicate (WTC) relates to an orientation to initiate communication. Shyness relates...

Author of Tool: 
McCroskey, J. C., & Richmond, V. P.

Satisfaction with Physician (SWP)

While the primary function of physician-patient communication is to enhance the health of the patient, in the modern medical world it is also important that the patient believe that he/she is being taken care of well by their physicians. Dissatisfied patients may not return to the physician, may leave the HMO, or may even file suit against the physician. Hence, patient satisfaction with the physician's care is an important outcome of the communication between physicians and patients. The Satisfaction With Physician (SWP) scale was developed to provide a simple, general measure of patients...

Author of Tool: 
Richmond, V. P., Smith, R. S., Heisel, A. M., & McCroskey, J. C.

SocioCommunicative Style Scale (SCS)

Socio-communicative style refers to others' perception of a communicator's assertiveness and responsiveness behaviors. The SocioCommunicative Style Scale (SCS) is designed to measure the perceptions of these behaviors. Generally, these perceived behaviors are uncorrelated. These are two of the three components of the SCS construct. The third component is variously labeled as "versatility" or "flexibility." This third component is best measured by the "Cognitive Flexibility" scale.

Author of Tool: 
Richmond, V. P., & McCroskey, J. C.

SocioCommunicative Orientation Scale (SCO)

Sociocommunicative orientation refers to an individual's perception of how assertive and responsive he/she is. This Socio-Communicative Orientation Scale (SCO) is designed to measures these orientations. Generally, these orientations are either totally uncorrelated or only marginally correlated (r < .30). These are two of the three components of the SCO construct. The third component is variously labeled as "versatility" or "flexibility." This third component is best measured by the "Cognitive Flexibility" scale.

Author of Tool: 
Richmond, V. P., & McCroskey, J. C.

Situational Communication Apprehension Measure (SCAM)

The Situational Communication Apprehension Measure (SCAM) was developed to provide and instrument which could measure state CA in any context. This is a self-report instrument which can apply to how a person felt in any recent communication event (the closer in time between the event and completion of this instrument, the more valid the measure will be).

Author of Tool: 
Richmond, V. P.

Sources of Social Support Scale (SSSS)

This scale is part of the body of research on the effects of a multi-modal cognitive-behavioral stress management intervention on the psychosocial well-being of breast cancer patients. In the course of this work, several questions have arisen about social support. One question is whether different sources of support matter in different ways (e.g., partner, friends, health care providers). Another question is how different aspects of support differ. Indeed, there is a developing literature suggesting that negative support is more impactful than positive support. Neither of these questions...

Author of Tool: 
Carver, C. S.

COPE Inventory

The COPE Inventory is a multidimensional coping inventory to assess the different ways in which people respond to stress. Five scales (of four items each) measure conceptually distinct aspects of problem-focused coping (active coping, planning, suppression of competing activities, restraint coping, seeking of instrumental social support); five scales measure aspects of what might be viewed as emotion-focused coping (seeking of emotional social support, positive reinterpretation, acceptance, denial, turning to religion); and three scales measuring coping responses that arguably are less...

Author of Tool: 
Carver, C. S.

Brief COPE

The items of the Brief COPE are an abbreviated version of the COPE Inventory. It has been used in research with breast cancer patients, with a community sample recovering from Hurricane Andrew, and with other samples as well. The authors created the shorter item set partly because earlier patient samples became impatient at responding to the full instrument (both because of the length and redundancy of the full instrument and because of the overall time burden of the assessment protocol). In...

Author of Tool: 
Carver, C. S.

behavioral avoidance/inhibition (BIS/BAS) scales

Several theorists have argued that two general motivational systems underlie behavior. A behavioral approach system (BAS) is believed to regulate appetitive motives, in which the goal is to move toward something desired. A behavioral avoidance (or inhibition) system (BIS) is said to regulate aversive motives, in which the goal is to move away from something unpleasant. We developed the BIS/BAS scales to assess individual differences in the sensitivity of these systems. The BIS/BAS scales are available for research and teaching applications.

Author of Tool: 
Carver, C. S., & White, T. L.

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