Beowulf and Roland
Over the years, previous research has confirmed a high incidence of communication problems among male and female juvenile delinquents. Researchers have documented challenges in a broad range of communication skills including articulation, fluency, semantics, morphology, and syntax (Cozad; Falconer). Basically these findings resulted from assessment procedures that relied primarily on standardized tests rather than analyses of conversational skills or other means of assessing how individuals use language functionally in their everyday social interactions. Standardized speech and language tend to focus on mastery of discrete skills and rarely assess communication performance in "real life" situations. Standardized testing has shown that juvenile delinquents have a high incidence of communication problems. A productive study was conducted to explore communication problems in juvenile delinquents. There were forty-five female participants residing at a correctional institution for adjudicated youths. Ages of the participants ranged from fourteen to eighteen years. They had to be convicted of committing one or more misdemeanor or felony offenses. Twenty-nine of the participants were Caucasian, six were Native American, four
The participants constantly commented on the importance of listening and paying attention to others. They were aware that certain behaviors, such as head nodding, provide some important clues to speakers about the interest level of listeners. Also, they knew that acting disinterested by displaying actions like "spacing off" and daydreaming discourages people from talking to one another. Very few of the participants admitted to having problems paying attention and listening. Although, on numerous occasions, the researcher had to repeat several bits of information, due to the poor attention span and listening Eye contact is obviously important in aiding communication interactions. Frowning, having mean looks on their faces, and glaring are examples of behaviors that may get them into trouble. One student even commented, "If you give someone a dirty look, they aren't going to want to talk to you." Even though participants recognized this negative impact, they still frequently rolled their eyes, glared at one another, or often stared off into space while others were talking. Some even mentioned that people should try not to fidget, play with their hair, pick at scabs, or bite their nails. All of theses behaviors were observed during the class sessions. Yet, these behaviors may reflect a preoccupation with gangs, sex, and violence. This connects with the need for dominance and rank with their peers. The field notes taken of the study participants' comments and behavior served as the data for analysis. Certain comments made to specific questions were grouped together within a larger context. Therefore, it was very easy to identify comments and behaviors that occurred repeatedly amongst the classes and discussion topics. The researchers then separated them into two distinct categories, nonverbal and verbal. Many patterns emerged into seven themes. Themes of nonverbal communication included; active listening, eye contact, facial expressions, gestures and body position. Verbal communication dealt with utterance types, topics of conversation, politeness and honesty, and conversational management.
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According Patton, Asian American, Falconer Basically, Kovarsky Patton, , Creswell Hammersley, communication skills, juvenile delinquents, poor communication skills, poor communication, body position, eye contact, communication behaviors, research assistant, field notes, gangs sex violence, participant observation, body position posture, paying attention, received special education,
Approximate Word count = 2105
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page double spaced)
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