Evaluation of structured interpersonal communication in the achie

Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses Graduate School 1981 Evaluation of Structured Interpersonal Communication in the Achievement of Business- Writing Principles. William Lee Wohlgamuth Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.edu/gradschool_disstheses Recommended Citation Wohlgamuth, William Lee, "Evaluation of Structured Interpersonal Communication in the Achievement of Business-Writing Principles. LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses.edu/gradschool_disstheses/3621 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses by an authorized administrator of LSU Digital Commons.

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University Micrrifilms International 3 0 0 N. ZEEB ROAD, ANN A RBO R. Ml 4 8 1 0 6 18 BE D FO RD ROW, LONDON WC1R 4 E J, ENGLAN D 8117651 WOHLGAMUTH, WILLIAM LEE EVALUATION OF STRUCTURED INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION IN THE ACHIEVEMENT OF BUSINESS-WRITING PRINCIPLES The Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical CoL PH. 1981 University Microfilms International 300 N.

Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, MI 48106 REVALUATION OF STRUCTURED INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION IN THE ACHIEVEMENT OF BUSINESS-WRITING PRINCIPLES^ A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in The Interdepartmental Program of Education by William Lee Wohlgamuth B., Michigan State University, 1972 M., Michigan State University, 1976 May, 1981 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The writer wishes to express gratitude to the many persons who contributed to this study. Special appreciation is extended to Dr. Beeson, the writer's major professor, who throughout this study demonstrated confidence in the writer and encouraged and supported him in his research efforts. Appreciation is also extended to the other members of his committee: Dr.

Sam Adams, Dr. Berton Gremillion, Dr. Strawitz, and Dr. Special recogni­ tion and thanks must also be given to Dr.

Sam Adams for his assistance with the statistical analysis of the data. The writer also wishes to express his thanks to Dr. Randy Cone and Miss Beverly House, the instructors of the control and experi­ mental groups, for their patience and cooperation in conducting this study. Gratitude is also extended to the members of the validation panel.

The writer is also grateful to his family for the encouragement they provided throughout his education. Deep appreciation is extended to his parents for the patience and support they gave him during his graduate study. The writer wishes to express deepest gratitude and appreciation to his wife, Mary, for the understanding, encouragement, support, and sacrifices she has made to aid in achieving this goal. Without her this study would not have been possible.

ii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. ii LIST OF T A B L E S. 2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM. 2 DELIMITATIONS OF THE S T U D Y.

3 LIMITATIONS OF THE S T U D Y. 4 IMPORTANCE OF THE S T U D Y. 6 SOURCE AND TREATMENT OF D A T A. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE.

8 DEVELOPMENT OF PRINCIPLES. 8 RESEARCH IN PRINCIPLES. DESIGN OF THE S T U D Y. 13 SELECTION OF POPULATION .14 PREPARATION AND CONSTRUCTION OF INSTRUMENT.

PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS OF D A T A. 18 iii Chapter Page 5. SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, IMPLICATIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS. Teaching Procedures for Structured Interpersonal Communication.

Letters of Request for Use of CopyrightedMaterial. Letters Granting Permission for Use of Copyrighted Material. Letters of Request to the Validating Panel. Evaluation Form for the Validation of the I n s t r u m e n t.

Instrument Used as Pretest/Posttest on Business- Writing P r i n c i p l e s. 64 iv LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1. Frequency Distribution of Business-Writing Principles Test Scores. Analysis of Covariance of the Business-Writing Principles Test Scores.

Frequency Distribution of Student Grade Point Averages ( G P A ). Analysis of Covariance of the Student Grade Point Averages (GPA), Business-Writing Principles Posttest Scores. 23 v ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to provide information that might lead to a more efficient way to teach business communication. By investigating the use of structured interpersonal communication, a decision might be made as to whether or not structured interpersonal communication should be stressed, and if so, how business-writing principles might be taught more efficiently.

The problem was to determine what effect structured interpersonal communication has on student achievement of the principles of business writing in a business communication course. The study was conducted at the University of New Orleans, New Orleans, Louisiana and all students in the sample were College of Business Administration majors enrolled in four sections of Office Administration 2651, Business Communication, during the fall semester of the 1980-81 academic year. The experimental-control group, pretest-posttest design was chosen for this study. The experimental group consisted of fifty- eight students while the control group consisted of sixty-three students.

In this experiment, the variable being investigated was struc­ tured interpersonal communication. Structured interpersonal communi­ cation in the experimental sections consisted of five structured interpersonal communication exercises. These exercises consisted of business communication problems selected from textbooks by the researcher. The problems involved a neutral message, a negative message, an informal report, an authorization letter, and a letter of transmittal.

vi In the experimental sections, immediately after introducing the respective topics, the class was divided into groups of three. Each group was then given the same business communication problem dealing with the respective topic. Using structured interpersonal communication, each group had 35 minutes to write a composite solution to the problem. At the next class meeting, two of these composite solutions were distributed to the class.

Through class discussion, the class critiqued the solutions. In the control sections, immediately after introducing the respective topics, two examples of solutions pertaining to these topics were distributed to the class. The class then critiqued these solutions through class discussion. Except for the structured inter­ personal communication exercises in the experimental sections, the control sections were taught using the same methods and procedures.

A pretest was administered to all students the first week of the semester, and a posttest was administered to all students after the structured interpersonal communication exercises had been completed in the experimental sections. The instrument used in the pretest/posttest was constructed by the researcher and consisted of 75 multiple-choice items. The instrument was validated by a panel of experts and a field test established a reliability coefficient of .73 for the instrument. The results of the analysis of covariance, which was used to determine whether structured interpersonal communication increases student achievement of business-writing principles, were as follows: vli 1.

There was a significant increase in student achievement of business-writing principles at the .05 level when pretest scores were used as the covariate. There was a significant increase in student achievement of business-writing principles at the .05 level when student Grade Point Averages (GPA) were used as the covariate. Research results indicate that structured interpersonal communi­ cation is a significant factor in student achievement of business- writing principles. viii CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION Business communication teachers are constantly searching for methods of instruction that will result in increased student per­ formance.

The principles of business writing are an area of prime importance in the field. Throughout the years, these principles have grown and become an accepted part of business communication courses. Regardless of the method of instruction used, virtually all teachers incorporate these principles in their business communi­ cation classes. Basically, there are three methods used in teaching business communication: the functional approach, the theory-application approach, and a combination method utilizing parts of the previous two methods.

All three methods, however, make use of the principles of business writing. An additional concern of business communication teachers is student participation and involvement in the business communication class. One of the activities frequently used by business communi­ cation teachers is interpersonal communication. While most teachers utilize some form of student interpersonal communication in their classes, the quantity and quality of the activities vary greatly.

In many instances, it is really no more than normal classroom dis­ cussion. Group-writing assignments are another method of increasing interpersonal communication in a business communication class. 2 This study focused on structured interpersonal communication, group-writing assignments specifically, as a way of increasing stu­ dent achievement in business-writing principles. Since much of busi­ ness communication makes use of these principles, it can be expected that increased knowledge of the principles would result in increased student performance in the business communication course.

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to provide information that might lead to a more efficient way to teach business communication. Because of the limited time available to develop business-writing skills, only those methods and techniques which are most effective should be used. If structured interpersonal communication does increase student achievement of business-writing principles, then structured inter­ personal communication should be stressed. If, on the other hand, structured interpersonal communication does not increase student achievement of business-writing principles, the time spent conducting these activities might be better utilized in some other activity.

By investigating the use of structured interpersonal communication, a decision might be made as to whether or not structured inter­ personal communication should be stressed, and if so, how business- writing principles might be taught more efficiently. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM The problem was to determine what effect structured inter­ personal communication has on student achievement of the principles of business writing in a business communication course. 3 This study was an attempt to answer the following questions concerning student achievement of business-writing principles: 1. Is structured interpersonal communication a significant factor in student achievement of business-writing principles when the student pretest score is used as the covariate? 2.

Is structured interpersonal communication a significant factor in student achievement of business-writing principles when the student Grade Point Average (GPA) is used as the covariate?