Planning, Imagined Interaction, and the Nonverbal Display of Anxiety

Abstract

Berger's (1995) planning theory has spawned research on the tactical variations that individuals use to influence others, to disseminate information, and to react to opposition to plans. However, the effect of planning on anxiety has not been tested. The current study examined one nonverbal indicator of anxiety in this study, the use of object adaptors. In addition, research on imagined interactions (IIs) has revealed that individuals imagine conversations with significant others for a variety of reasons, including rehearsal for anticipated messages and the alleviation of anxiety. The current study also examined the effects of planning for an anticiapted encounter and the level of discrepancy that individuals report they have in their IIs on the use of object adaptors. The findings are discussed in terms of spontaneous helplessness, plan efficacy, and the accretion of plan strategies in response to encounters that are discrepant from what was anticipated.

Talk, silence and anxiety during one-to-one tutorials: A cross-cultural comparative study of Japan and UK undergraduates’ tolerance of silence

“…During this videotaped encounter, which took the form of a meeting in the instructor's office, the instructor refrained from speech and all overt non-verbal communication (adopting a neutral facial expression, gaze direction, posture and so on) from a set point in the meeting. The student participant's reaction to the period of silence which ensued was examined in detail using a non-verbal coding scheme (Allen and Honeycutt 1997;Gregersen 2005) and their length of silence tolerance was measured precisely using a digital stopwatch accurate to one hundredth of a second. Timings were double-checked by a research assistant.…”

“…In reality, the open then axial coding we engaged in did not produce a wide variety of themes because participants' testimony from both the UK and Japan groups centred around the feelings of anxiety, nervousness and confusion that they felt during the encounter. Coding of both groups' non-verbal affect displays (Allen and Honeycutt 1997;Gregersen 2005) provided further evidence of their anxiety and this manifested itself through such behaviours as self-touching, postural rigidity, closed body positions and gaze aversion. Overall, 73.33% of UK students and 80% of Japanese students displayed non-verbal cues of anxiety during the encounter.…”

Intrapersonal Communication and Listening Goals: An Examination of Attributes and Functions of Imagined Interactions and Active-Empathic Listening Behaviors

“…Based on prior II research, there appear to be many opportunities where imagined interactions may relate to tendencies towards particular AEL behaviors. Allen and Honeycutt (1997) found that individuals instructed to engage in rehearsal IIs prior to interaction used fewer object adaptors in the subsequent interaction, seemingly preparing individuals for an upcoming conversation and resulting in more appropriate nonverbal behaviors such as head nods (i.e., AEL responding). IIs focused on self-understanding may include visualizations of conversational partners' verbal and nonverbal statements and searches for implied meanings (i.e., AEL sensing).…”

Effects of Imagined Interactions and Rehearsal on Speaking Performance

“…IIs should help an individual address nervousness and anxiety and ensure that the actual performance or delivery of that message is efficient. Previously, Allen and Honeycutt (1997) found that IIs resulted in fewer nonverbal expressions of anxiety in a health communication context while individuals were devising plans for convincing a friend with a drinking problem to seek help. In general then the rehearsal function of IIs should facilitate stronger speech performance.…”