Public Speaking

“According to most studies, people’s number one fear is public speaking. Number two is death. Death is number two. Does that sound right? This means to the average person, if you go to a funeral, you’re better off in the casket than doing the eulogy.”

Jerry Seinfeld

Jerry Seinfeld may very well have a point. In fact, the fear of public speaking is so prevalent among people that researchers have labeled it as a form of communication apprehension.

Communication apprehension is a fear or anxiety over communicating. There are two basic forms: state apprehension and trait apprehension. State apprehension is fear that is specific to a given communication situation. While trait apprehension is a fear of communication in general, regardless of the specific situation.

First Experience/ Observation:
I have both experienced and been a witness to communication apprehension. Sometimes I do experience state apprehension when faced with a public speaking situation, but the degree of my fear is very much dependent upon the specifics of the situation (the environment, the size of the audience, the occasion, and the mood). I can surprise myself and be the most confident speaker in one situation, while I shrivel with inexplicable fear in a different situation. Thankfully, I have gotten much better at managing my fear throughout the years.

When I witness someone who is experiencing apprehension with regard to public speaking, I empathize with them and feel bad because I know first hand what they are going through and how tough it is. As much as I would love to give advice and tell them that they will improve, words only do so much. Their improvement has to come from within and they have to learn what works best for them-through trial and error-to manage anxiety when speaking in public. It is a difficult ongoing process, but very rewarding when you learn how to conquer your fear.

Second Experience/ Observation:
I have had some experiences with communication apprehension and one of my experiences was during my eighth grade moving up ceremony. I had  done presentations before, but this presentation determined whether or not I moved in to high school. Not only was this a stressful factor on my mind, the audience was just four people and they were all judges. When presentation day came I was extremely nervous that I was going to fail or get up to present and not be able to say anything.  To overcome that small fear of communication apprehension I imagined myself going up there, only seeing my parents and telling myself to present like I was presenting in front of them.

The following two articles concern communication apprehension as it relates to public speaking.

–Communication Apprehension and Implicit Memories of Public Speaking State Anxiety

Sawyer, C. R., & Behnke, R. R. (1997). Communication apprehension and implicit memories of public speaking state anxiety. Communication Quarterly, 45(3), 211-222.

The purpose of the studies presented in this article is to determine a link between the state of a person’s nervous system, their implicit memory, and communication apprehension toward public speaking. The researchers conducted two studies, one on short-term memory and the other on long-term memory. They are quick to point out that the information and findings they are presenting in this article, although legitimate, need to be further explored. One inference that was supported by the results of the studies is that communication apprehension causes memory repression of the level of public speaking state anxiety recollections over time. What does this mean? Basically, The anxiety we feel as a result of speaking in public causes us to bury our negative feelings about the experience. The present findings also support the perspective that communication apprehension is an attribute of a weak nervous system. Public speakers with weak nervous systems are more conditionable than those with strong nervous systems. Also, their perceptions of a stressful experience are more likely to undergo change and they are remembered differently as time passes.

– The Impact of Basic Courses in Oral Interpretation and Public Speaking on Communication Apprehension

Rose, H. M., & Rancer, A. S. (1993). The Impact of Basic Courses in Oral Interpretation and Public Speaking on Communication Apprehension. Communication Reports, 6(1), 54-60.

The purpose of this study is relatively simple. The researchers want to test the effect of completing an oral interpretation class or public speaking class on the level of students’ communication apprehension. Students enrolled in each course completed the Personal Report of Communication Apprehension-25 at the beginning and the end of the semester. The study’s results were not surprising, given that it is common knowledge that continual practice allows one to get better at certain activities. Data analysis revealed that students reported lower communication apprehension after both oral interpretation and public speaking classes. Thus, it is shown that experience combined with training in specific communication skills allows students to develop into more competent and confident communicators.