| The purpose of this study was to identity the communication apprehension profile of students of Imo State University Nigeria, utilizing the Personal Report of Communication Apprehension (CA). Specifically, the study investigated the differences in the level of communication apprehension with regard to gender, age, background, and academic achievement. Communication apprehension research in the Nigerian context is important because it will raise the awareness of teachers and administrators and provoke the search for better ways to improve the performance of people with high CA.; This study employed a survey research design to determine the communication apprehension levels of college students. Participants consisted of 83 undergraduate college students who enrolled in Introductory Philosophy class at Imo State University in the fall 2005-2006. Descriptive statistics and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) were utilized in the analysis of data.; Data analyses showed that respondents indicated moderately high level of communication apprehension. In addition, the findings indicated significant differences regarding the variable gender, with male students having a higher level of communication apprehension than female students in the subsets of meeting, interpersonal relationship, and public speaking. Also, the results showed a significant difference in regard to age, with younger students having a higher level of communication apprehension than older students in the subset of interpersonal relationship. Additionally, regarding GPA, the findings indicated a significant difference in the subset of discussion, with low achievers having a higher level of communication apprehension than high achievers. However, no significant differences were observed in the students' background. |
