Tag: communication techniques

Relational Communication Theory in Action: Enhancing Learning and Competence – Faculty Focus

Interpersonal communication theories not only help students navigate personal and professional relationships but also strengthen teacher-student connections. Drawing on Orón (2018) and Orón Semper & Blasco (2018), we encourage instructors to use this one-day activity to shift from a “student-centered” to an “interpersonal relationship-centered” pedagogy. This approach views instructor-student relationships as essential to learning and as a space for students to apply theory with relational intent. The activity promotes self-reflexivity, theory analysis, and collaborative dialogue, resulting in improved theory comprehension, stronger rapport, and communication practices that respect classroom diversity.

Student and instructor diversity in higher education has grown significantly in recent years (Li & Koedel, 2017), with over a million international students enrolled in U.S. universities (Urban, 2016). This diversity—across culture, gender, race, ability, and socioeconomic status—shapes classroom dynamics and presents unique challenges related to language, identity, and cultural differences (Jones et al., 2021). Instructors must respond by creating inclusive learning environments that support all students (Downing & Billotte Verhoff, 2023). Diversity also presents an opportunity to apply communication theories to foster intercultural empathy and improve collaboration. Students may initially struggle to understand and respect differing perspectives, affecting group work and engagement (Gray et al., 2020), but these challenges can become learning opportunities that deepen classroom inclusivity.

Communication scholars often apply interpersonal communication theories in the classroom to strengthen student–teacher relationships (Xie & Derakhshan, 2021). This single class activity integrates uncertainty management, self-disclosure, and communication accommodation theory (CAT) for undergraduate students to (a) to understand and (b) apply these theories to facilitate an inclusive and self-reflexive classroom. Teachers are the leading actors during everyday interaction and play a significant role in shaping communication and enhancing the teaching and learning process (Almas Rizkika Nabila, 2020). This activity encourages students to actively co-create a meaningful learning experience, highlighting the reciprocal nature of classroom interaction (Anyichie & Butler, 2023; Kong, 2021).

Self-disclosure: Communication Privacy Management

Self-disclosure is “any conversation about the self that a person communicates to others” (Ampong et al., 2018). Communication Privacy Management (CPM) theory helps students understand how they set and manage privacy boundaries with peers and instructors (Petronio et al., 2021).  The intersection of privacy boundaries and the learning space is complicated as students and instructors navigate privacy. Instructors deliver the lecture and explain the course content, but they also intentionally and willingly share their personal stories (Liu & Zhu, 2021). For instance, the first author, an international graduate assistant, connects class discussions to experiences from his home country, helping students relate and engage. Such instructor self-disclosure encourages student participation and fosters more meaningful classroom communication (Goldstein, 1994) (Liu & Zhu, 2021). 

However, instructors and students rarely critically examine the disclosure norms in the classroom and their role in learning and relationship building. For example, disclosure boundaries (i.e., how far instructors can go to share their experiences) (Cayanus, 2004). Additionally, while students may attend to how much information they share in the classroom, this activity challenges them to apply CPM theory to examine their disclosure practices, expectations, and privacy boundary negotiations. 

Communication Accommodation Theory

Communication Accommodation Theory (CAT) explains how individuals adjust their communication such as speech, tone, pace, gestures, or body language—to interact effectively with others. Instructors can use CAT to enhance student understanding during lectures (Howard Giles, 2023). The theory outlines two key strategies: convergence, where a speaker adapts to another’s communication style (e.g., simplifying vocabulary, repeating phrases, pausing, smiling, nodding), and divergence, where a speaker maintains differences by avoiding shared cues (e.g., using complex words, changing topics, or not adjusting speaking pace) (Marko Dragojevic, 2016) (Pardo et al., 2022).

Drawing on this research, the goal of this activity is 1) to understand the theories and analyze how they facilitate the teaching process, 2) to explore the perceptions of students about these theories and their inclusion in the classroom, 3) to determine the expectations of students related to characteristics of these theories. 

The Activity

This single-class activity applies to various undergraduate courses, such as public speaking, communication among cultures, communication in interpersonal relationships, argument analysis and advocacy, and persuasion. Instructors can do this activity during introduction week as they begin navigating disclosures about themselves and student expectations. Moreover, planning this activity at the beginning will challenge students to examine their positionalities, norms, and expectations critically.

Step 1: Personal Reflection

Before implementing the activity, instructors should familiarize themselves with relevant communication theories and reflect on how their own identities shape their teaching assumptions (Nabila, 2020, Downing & Billotte Verhoff, 2023). We recommend engaging in self-reflexive questions, such as: What disclosure boundaries do I set and why? What uncertainties do I face around privacy or accommodation in teaching? What expectations exist between me and my students regarding communication and flexibility? Instructors should identify what personal information they’re willing to share, why they’re sharing it, and how it might impact classroom relationships. For example, the first author reflected on cultural and linguistic differences and adjusted his teaching by using simpler language, acknowledging English is not his first language, and setting shared guidelines to support mutual understanding and accommodation. This reflective process helps align instructional practices with inclusive, theory-informed pedagogy.

Step 2: Students’ Perceptions About Components of Theories

This activity takes approximately 30 to 40 minutes and is best suited for a full class session. Instructors should introduce the key theories with examples and explain the activity’s purpose and timing. For advanced courses, assigning theory readings beforehand can deepen analysis, making it more effective to conduct the activity later in the semester rather than at the start. During the session, students should be divided into groups of four and asked to write their expectations for the course and the instructor. To guide discussion, instructors can pose prompts such as:

What expectations do you have for your instructor when it comes to using different communication accommodation strategies?

How do you manage your own self-disclosure in the classroom? Where do you draw the line on what you choose to share?

What are your thoughts on instructors’ self-disclosure? What types of disclosures have a positive or negative impact on your learning experience?

How comfortable are you with classroom communication? What strategies could reduce uncertainty or discomfort?

How do you plan to engage with and accommodate diversity in terms of culture, race, gender identity, and sexual orientation in your classroom interactions?

Can you connect your responses to the core ideas of the communication theories we’ve discussed? How do these theories help explain disclosure and accommodation in the classroom context?

These questions will provide space for students to reflect on their experiences. Moreover, during that time, the instructor will also answer these questions from the instructor’s perspective and enlist the convergence techniques they perceive to accommodate. Instructors can give 15 to 20 minutes to answer the provided questions briefly. 

Step 3: Describing the Theories and Their Impact

Instructors will invite each group to share their responses, followed by the instructor’s own disclosure of planned strategies—such as accommodation, anticipated uncertainties, and boundaries around self-disclosure. A comparison table with two columns (students vs. instructor) can be used to visually display both perspectives. Instructors then lead a discussion with prompts like: Why do these expectations exist? What differences or overlaps emerge? How do these perspectives interact? This activity encourages students to (a) practice perspective-taking shaped by diverse identities, (b) apply key concepts like co-creating privacy boundaries (CPM), and (c) see how theory fosters a supportive learning environment. Since student familiarity with these theories may vary, instructors should first assess their basic understanding.

Debriefing

At the end of the activity on the same day. Instructors can initiate the debriefing by including the Q&A sessions such as: 

How did this activity impact, how you view self-disclosure and accommodation?

What do you understand about embedding these theories in the classroom?

How can this activity help to build a good student-teacher relationship and create an inclusive environment in the classroom?

Appraisal

In the second week, I (the first author) compiled all responses into a table and presented it to the class. I briefly discussed both student and instructor perspectives, then posted reflection prompts on Blackboard for feedback. Students responded positively, noting that the activity was enjoyable and helped them get to know one another. Many emphasized the importance of communication accommodation, agreeing that in a diverse classroom, convergence strategies are essential for fostering inclusion and mutual respect. One student highlighted that accommodation is key to ensuring understanding and promoting respectful interaction (see Table 1).

Table 1: Responses of Students and Instructor

	Communication Accommodation	Self-disclosure	Uncertainty
Students	-Speaking slower during a speech even when anxious -Staying away from slang words to avoid language barriers -Clear annunciation -Respectful of each other’s speaking language -Appropriate tone/voice -In class participation -Speaking clearly and loudly**** -Visual cue images if doing a speech. -Articulation -Be patient -Stay engaged -Ask him to repeat	-Disclose how comfortable you are speaking in front of a group, so the professor understands your anxiety or emotion towards speech presentation -Disclosing where you are from, what languages you, speak, and how much you understand a topic will be very important to critiquing your peers on their speeches -Safe space -No personal information** -No social media -Should disclose important and relevant events that could affect quality -Establish boundaries	-Topics that peers choose to speak about throughout the semester may be understood less or more by others -How to write a speech -How we will be graded -How heavy the workload will be -Fear of asking questions -Ask for help when needed -Talking in front of people preparation -Speech topics (Range of issues) -Comfort -What is expected of us from the professor -Memorizing speeches -Deadlines -Clear instructions for assignments -Reminders of important dates -Remember to submit assignments -Nervous
Instructor	-Speak slowly -Use clear words -Allow students to ask questions -Repeat my words without asking -Take a break during lecture and ask students if they have any concern or not -Making good eye contact -Listen everyone carefully -Give everyone chance to speak	-If you are comfortable to share your personal information you can, we can make a rule that whatever you share in this class will stay in this class	-How do you feel when I show attendance sheet on BB -How do you feel about forgetting your name -What do you think when it takes time to respond to your email -How you think when you meet me outside of class at court street on weekends

One limitation of this activity is the time required to develop and implement it during the first week of the semester, making early planning essential. Second, the activity is best suited for small classes; in larger classrooms, it may be difficult to follow all steps without modification. Lastly, delayed feedback or response-sharing may reduce the activity’s impact, as students may forget key details over time.

Athar Memon, MBBS, MSPH, is a graduate student in the PhD program in the Scripps School of Communication Studies at Ohio University. Athar Memon research interest is related to health communication specifically health care access, behaviors to access healthcare services among marginalized population, barriers related to patient-provider interpersonal communication, health literacy and its relationship with health outcomes and healthy behaviors. His work has been published in various journals including Professional Medical Journal, Journal of Pakistan Medical Association, Pakistan Journal of Public Health, PEC Innovation, and Eastern Mediterranean Journal.

China C. Billotte Verhoff, PhD, (Purdue University) is an Assistant Professor in the School of Communication Studies at Ohio University. Dr. Billotte Verhoff’s research agenda lies at the intersections of interpersonal and organizational communication. Specifically, she explores how individuals with marginalized and stigmatized identities navigate self-disclosure and social support processes to identify the associated relational, career, and health outcomes. Dr. Billotte Verhoff’s work has been published in peer-reviewed journals such as Communication Monographs, the Journal of Language and Social Psychology, Communication Studies, Sex Roles, Women and Language, and Health Communication.

References

Almas Rizkika Nabila, A. M., Syafi’ul Anam. 2020. “TEACHER’S MOTIVES IN APPLYING COMMUNICATION ACCOMMODATION STRATEGIES IN SECONDARY ELT CLASS. Linguistic, English Education and Art (LEEA) Journal, 3(2), 373-384.”

Ampong, G. O. A., Mensah, A., Adu, A. S. Y, Addae, J. A., Omoregie, O. K., & Ofori, K. S. 2018. “Examining Self-Disclosure on Social Networking Sites: A Flow Theory and Privacy Perspective. Behav Sci (Basel), 8(6).”

Anyichie, A. C., & Butler, D. L.. 2023. Examining culturally diverse learners’ motivation and engagement processes as situated in the context of a complex task. Frontiers in Education,

Cayanus, J. L.. 2004. “Effective Instructional Practice: Using Teacher Self-Disclosure as an Instructional Tool. Communication Teacher, 18(1), 6-9.”

Downing, S. S., & Billotte Verhoff, C. C. 2023. “Incorporating mini lessons on the hidden curriculum in communication classrooms. Communication Teacher, 37(3), 246-253.”

Ewa Urban, L. B. P.. 2016. “International Students’ Perceptions of the Value of U.S. Higher Education Journal of International Students, 6(1), 153-174.”

Gray, D. L., McElveen, T. L., Green, B. P., & Bryant, L. H.. 2020. Engaging Black and Latinx students through communal learning opportunities: A relevance intervention for middle schoolers in STEM elective classrooms. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 60, 101833.

Howard Giles, A. L. E., Joseph B. Walther. 2023. Communication accommodation theory: Past accomplishments, current trends, and future prospects.

Jones, B. D., Krost, K., & Jones, M. W.. 2021. Relationships between students’ course perceptions, effort, and achievement in an online course. Computers and Education Open, 2, 100051.

Kong, Y. 2021. The Role of Experiential Learning on Students’ Motivation and Classroom Engagement. Front Psychol, 12, 771272.

Li, D., & Koedel, C. 2017. “Representation and salary gaps by race-ethnicity and gender at selective public universities. Educational researcher, 46(7), 343-354.”

Liu, X., & Zhu, L. 2021. The Role of EFL Teachers’ Self-Disclosure as Predictors of Student’s Willingness to Communicate and Their Engagement. Front Psychol, 12, 748744.

Marko Dragojevic, J. G., Howard Giles. 2016. Accommodative Strategies as Core of the Theory. Communication Accommodation Theory: Negotiating Personal Relationships and Social Identities across Contexts, 36-59.

Pardo, J. S., Pellegrino, E., Dellwo, V., & Möbius, B. 2022. Special issue: Vocal accommodation in speech communication. Journal of Phonetics, 95, 101196.

Petronio, S., Child, J. T., & Hall, R. D. 2021. Communication privacy management theory: Significance for interpersonal communication. In Engaging theories in interpersonal communication (pp. 314-327). Routledge.

Xie, F., & Derakhshan, A. 2021. A Conceptual Review of Positive Teacher Interpersonal Communication Behaviors in the Instructional Context. Front Psychol, 12, 708490.

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October 31, 2025

Reaching (Not Just Teaching) Today’s Students: A Communication Cheatsheet – Faculty Focus
Communication is hard. Even in the best of circumstances, every interaction carries not just the message we intend to send but also our own assumptions, our students’ assumptions, and the ever-growing complexity of language and tone, not to mention the medium itself.

This complexity only multiplies in today’s higher ed environment, where faculty and staff are expected to reach students across multiple platforms — LMS announcements, emails, texts, apps — with messages that range from compassionate to corrective. Meanwhile, the rise of EdTech solutions promising “more reach” has, ironically, made it harder to ensure our messages are received in the way we intended. After all, reach does not equal resonance.

So how can we cut through the noise and actually connect with students?

Communication theory may sound abstract, but it offers a powerful lens for improving how we show up in these interactions. Becoming familiar with two frameworks in particular — Expectancy Violations Theory and Family Communication Patterns Theory — can help us better understand both ourselves and the diverse students we serve.

Want to Know Why Some Student Emails Irritate You and Others Inspire You?

Expectancy Violations Theory (EVT) can help answer that question (Burgoon 1978). EVT helps explain why we react so differently to similar messages depending on who’s delivering them and how.

Very basically, EVT says we form expectations for how interactions will unfold. When those expectations are violated, we automatically shift attention to the violation and to the person who caused it. But we don’t all interpret those violations the same way. Whether we view them as pleasant surprises or annoying disruptions depends on two factors: (1) violation valence, or how positive or negative we feel about the behavior itself, and (2) communicator reward valence, or how much we value the person who violated our expectation.

In other words, if a student I perceive as motivated and respectful asks for an extension, I might feel proud they trusted me enough to ask. But if the same request comes from someone I’ve perceived (rightly or wrongly) as disengaged, I may feel frustrated even if the circumstances are the same.

Reflecting on EVT can help us surface our biases, hold ourselves accountable to equitable treatment, and better understand our own reactions. If you’ve ever wondered why you’ll go above and beyond for one student but feel resistant to another’s similar request, EVT might be a good place to start.

Want to Know Why Some Students Embrace Your Syllabus and Others Push Back?

Family Communication Patterns Theory (FCP) invites us to consider how students’ early communication environments shape how they relate to authority, rules, and classroom norms (Fitzpatrick and Ritchie 1994).

FCP theory identifies four types of family communication climates based on two key orientations: (1) conformity orientation, which emphasizes obedience, family harmony, and deference to authority, and (2) conversation orientation, which emphasizes open discussion, questioning, and individual voice.

Students from “protective” families (high conformity, low conversation) may be less likely to challenge your authority or seek clarification, while those from “pluralistic” families (low conformity, high conversation) may expect more dialogue, debate, and negotiation. Neither is better, but each brings different expectations to the classroom.

This is especially relevant when teaching first-generation college students, as so many of us do these days. These students often navigate new cultural territory not just academically but communicatively. If they come from family environments where questioning authority wasn’t encouraged, they may hesitate to speak up even when confused or struggling. On the other hand, some may challenge norms precisely because they’re breaking with family tradition.

FCP theory doesn’t give us a script, but it does offer a compass. Understanding that students come with different “communication upbringings” can help us meet them where they are, rather than assuming one-size-fits-all policies or approaches will be received as intended.

Five Communication Theory-Informed Tips for Faculty

Understanding communication theory is helpful but applying it is what truly makes a difference in the classroom. If EVT helps us become more aware of how we perceive student behavior, and FCP Theory helps us see the diverse assumptions students bring with them, what can we do differently?

Here are five practical ways to use these insights to communicate more effectively with your students, all the time but also especially when the message really matters:
1. Notice your gut reactions — then ask why. If a student’s email rubs you the wrong way, pause and reflect. Are you reacting to the content, or to a violated expectation? EVT reminds us that our perceptions are shaped by both the message and the messenger. Naming your bias is the first step toward equity.
1. Don’t assume your clarity = their clarity. FCP theory suggests students arrive with different assumptions about how authority and conversation work. A policy you think is obvious may feel rigid to one student and open-ended to another. With this in mind, make space to clarify expectations, especially early in the term.
1. Reaffirm your approachability, even after pushback. When students challenge you, it may not be intended as disrespect. Rather, it might reflect a high conversation orientation. Keep the door open. A brief, calm response — for instance, “That’s a fair question — let’s talk through it” — can defuse tension and build trust.
1. Explain the “why” and the “what.” Students are more likely to comply with classroom norms when they understand the thinking behind them. Instead of “No late work,” try: “I don’t accept late work because feedback loops are tight in this class. I want you to get input quickly so you can improve in the next assignment.”
1. Choose connection over correction. Digital platforms can depersonalize your messages and make tone hard to read. When addressing an issue, lead with empathy before jumping to policy. A stern reminder might shut doors, while a check-in — think: “Hey, I noticed this assignment didn’t come through — everything okay?” — opens them up.
Of course, the goal isn’t to categorize our students, but to better understand them. Communication theory can illuminate patterns, but it can’t predict behavior. Each student, like each of us, is shaped by their own myriad of life experiences.

Still, theory offers a starting point. It helps us move from frustration (“Why don’t students read instructions?”) to curiosity (“What might be getting in the way of this message landing?”). And it reminds us that in a world of increasing technological mediation, the most important messages we send to students are often the most human: I see you. I hear you. I want you to succeed.

When we approach our communication with that intention, we’re more likely to teach and reach our students.

Laura Nicole Miller, DET, is an assistant professor in the Grenon School of Business at Assumption University, where she teaches organizational communication, marketing, and management. A first-generation college graduate and former EdTech executive, she studies how communication practices shape equity, trust, and student success in high-stakes environments.

References

Burgoon, Judee K. “A communication model of personal space violations: Explication and an initial test.” Human communication research 4, no. 2 (1978): 129-142. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2958.1978.tb00603.x

Fitzpatrick, Mary Anne, and L. David Ritchie. “Communication schemata within the family: Multiple perspectives on family interaction.” Human Communication Research 20, no. 3 (1994): 275-301. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2958.1994.tb00324.x
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July 30, 2025