Too Anxious to Talk: Social Anxiety, Communication, and Academic Experiences in Higher Education

The first overarching goal of this doctoral dissertation was to develop and measure a new construct termed academic communication. Accordingly, Study 1 focussed on item development, pilot testing, and examining the psychometric properties of the newly developed Academic Communication Inventory (ACI). Undergraduate students (N = 642, Mage = 19.5) completed the ACI (assessing general communicative behaviours) along with other measures to investigate external validity. Results demonstrated that the best fitting structure of the ACI was a two-factor solution, consisting of the subscales: (1) communication with instructors; and (2) communication with peers. Study 2 assessed measure invariance across educational context (i.e., blended courses, online courses, offline courses), as well as gender differences in communication. Participants were undergraduate students (N = 1074, Mage = 20.3) who completed the ACI (assessing course-specific communicative behaviours), with 21% subset completing follow-up questionnaires (participants from Study 2 were also used in Studies 3 and 4 for different research purposes). Multi-group factor analyses suggested that the ACI could be used as both a general and course-specific measure of academic communication (i.e., the ACI was invariant across course contexts). Moreover, females and males reported different communication levels with instructors and peers. Study 3 focused on the utility of the ACI, by examining the links between social anxiety, communication, academic experiences (i.e., engagement, classroom connectedness, student satisfaction). Among the results, academic communication accounted for significant variance in the links between social anxiety and academic experiences. Moreover, social anxiety was negatively related to academic experiences, and there was at least some evidence that academic experiences explained part of the association between social anxiety and wellbeing. Study 4 supplemented the previous studies by asking students who they ask course related questions to and why. Emerging themes aligned with the subscales of the ACI (i.e., communication with peers, instructors, peers and instructors, and no one). Social anxiety scores in the theme of no one and peers were significantly higher than instructors and peers and instructors. Results from each study are discussed in the context of contemporary higher education and potential implications for educational practice

Shy Children in the Classroom: From Research to Educational Practice

Shyness is a temperamental trait characterized by wariness, fear, and self-consciousness in social situations. In elementary school, child shyness is associated with a wide range of socioemotional difficulties, including poor peer relationships (e.g., exclusion, victimization), internalizing problems (e.g., low self-esteem, anxiety, depression), and academic adjustment problems (e.g., lack of engagement, poor academic performance). In the current article we particularly review recent research examining the implication of shyness in educational contexts. Topics covered include the development of shyness, why shy students might perceive the classroom as a potential threat, and the unique challenges faced by shy children at school. Further, we consider research pertaining to shy children and their teachers, including teachers’ attitudes and beliefs toward childhood shyness, and the critical role of teacher– child relationships for shy children’s school adjustment. Thereafter, we briefly summarize the findings from teacher-focused and child-focused intervention programs aimed to improve academic and social performance of shy children. We conclude with a short description of implications of shyness for educational practitioners and posit some directions for future research

Shy Children in the Classroom: From Research to Educational Practice

Shyness is a temperamental trait characterized by wariness, fear, and self-consciousness in social situations. In elementary school, child shyness is associated with a wide range of socioemotional difficulties, including poor peer relationships (e.g., exclusion, victimization), internalizing problems (e.g., low self-esteem, anxiety, depression), and academic adjustment problems (e.g., lack of engagement, poor academic performance). In the current article we particularly review recent research examining the implication of shyness in educational contexts. Topics covered include the development of shyness, why shy students might perceive the classroom as a potential threat, and the unique challenges faced by shy children at school. Further, we consider research pertaining to shy children and their teachers, including teachers’ attitudes and beliefs toward childhood shyness, and the critical role of teacher– child relationships for shy children’s school adjustment. Thereafter, we briefly summarize the findings from teacher-focused and child-focused intervention programs aimed to improve academic and social performance of shy children. We conclude with a short description of implications of shyness for educational practitioners and posit some directions for future research

African Linguistics in Central and Eastern Europe, and in the Nordic Countries

Non peer reviewe

Language endangerment and language documentation in Africa

Non peer reviewe

Chinese Kindergarten Teacher Beliefs, Attitudes and Responses Towards Social Behaviours in the Classroom: Examining Social Withdrawal and Social Engagement

The purpose of this study was to examine Chinese teachers’ beliefs, attitudes and responses towards social withdrawal (shyness and unsociability) and social engagement (exuberance and prosocial behaviour) within the classroom context. The sample included N=672 (in-service) Chinese kindergarten teachers from Shanghai and surrounding areas. Teachers were presented with a series of vignettes depicting hypothetical children displaying shy, unsociable, exuberant, and prosocial behaviours. Following each vignettes, teachers responded to a series of questions assessing their responses (e.g., intervene), emotional reactions (e.g., worry, anger), attitudes (e.g., tolerance), and beliefs (e.g., perceived social and academic implications). In general, teachers appeared to be more concerned towards shy and exuberant behaviours as compared to unsociable and prosocial behaviours across a variety of response items. Further, teachers made distinctions among the subtypes of social withdrawal and social engagement. Results are discussed in terms of implications for the classroom, cultural differences, and suggestions for future research

Too Anxious to Talk: Social Anxiety, Academic Communication, and Students’ Experiences in Higher Education

Social anxiety is related to a host of negative student outcomes in the educational context, including physical symptoms of anxiety, reduced cognitive functioning, and poor academic performance. Despite the prevalence of social anxiety, little is known about mechanisms that may underlie associations between social anxiety and outcomes in the context of higher education. Therefore, the goal of this study was to evaluate a conceptual model linking social anxiety, communication with peers and instructors, students’ experiences (i.e., engagement, connectedness, and satisfaction), and indices of socio-emotional functioning at university. Participants were 1,073 undergraduate students ( Mage = 20.3 years, SD = 3.49) who completed a series of self-report measures. Among the results, social anxiety was negatively related to communication with instructors, socio-emotional functioning, and student experiences, and academic communication accounted for significant variance in the links between social anxiety and student experiences. In addition, there was at least some evidence that student experiences partially mediated the association between social anxiety and socio-emotional functioning. Gender effects suggest that social anxiety is related to less communication with instructors, lower engagement and satisfaction, and poorer socio-emotional functioning among females compared with males. Results are situated within current literature examining social anxiety in education. The discussion provides concrete suggestions for educational practitioners to increase support for students who experience social anxiety. </jats:p

What did your child do today? Describing young children’s daily activities outside of school

The purpose of this study was to describe the daily activities of Canadian children outside of school. Participants were parents of N = 189 children (90 boys, 99 girls) in grades 1 to 3. The What Your Child Did Today parental telephone interview protocol was developed as a daily log of both the type and social context of children’s activities. Among the results, children spent almost half of their waking time in unstructured activities (e.g. free play), compared to 14 percent of on-screen, and 6 percent in structured activities (e.g. sports). Children spent about two-thirds of their time in the company of family followed by peers (22%), and only 10 percent of time was spent alone. Some gender differences were also noted (e.g. boys engaged in more screen time) and parental education was related to time spent in structured activities. Results are discussed in terms of implications for children’s socio-emotional development. </jats:p