Students' Imagined Interactions as Intrapersonal Explanations for Instructional Dissent

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine how college students' intrapersonal communication experiences (i.e., imagined interactions) with disliked instructors contribute to their proclivity to communicate instructional dissent (i.e., expressive, rhetorical, vengeful). Student participants (N = 181) completed a self-report questionnaire measuring their use of imagined interactions with their worst instructor in the past academic year, along with reports of their course-related dissent. Results of a canonical correlation revealed that the frequency, valence, and rehearsal of students' imagined interactions with a low affect instructor are related to forms of instructional dissent.

Keywords:

• Affective Learning
• Imagined Interactions
• Instructional Dissent
• Student Dissent

Notes

For validity purposes, all measures were subjected to confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) using maximum likelihood estimation (ML). Model fit was assessed using the minimum fit function chi square, CFI, SRMR, and RMSEA (Kline, 2011). The CFA results for each measure are as follows: (1) Survey of Imagined Interactions: Frequency and Valence subscales (2 factors: x² = 55.85, df = 13, p < .01, RMSEA = .13, CFI = .93, SRMR = .11); Students' Imagined Interactions with Teachers Scale (3 factors: x² = 1011.97, df = 321, p < .001, RMSEA = .12, CFI = .93, SRMR = .09); Instructional Dissent Scale (3 factors: (x² = 517.11, df = 206, p < .01, RMSEA = .09, CFI = .95, SRMR = .08); Revised Affective Learning Measure: Construct 7 subscale (1 factor: (x² = 5.92, df = 2, p = .05, RMSEA = .11, CFI = .98, SRMR = .04). Considering the fit statistics for the Survey of Imagined Interactions and the Students' Imagined Interactions with Teachers Scale, future researchers should consider how to improve the measurement of IIs.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Alan K. Goodboy

Alan K. Goodboy (PhD, West Virginia University, 2007) is an Associate Professor in the Department of Communication Studies at West Virginia University.

San Bolkan

San Bolkan (PhD, University of Texas-Austin, 2007) is an Associate Professor in the Department of Communication Studies at CSU-Long Beach.

Zachary W. Goldman

Zachary W. Goldman (MA, West Virginia University, 2012) is a PhD student in the Department of Communication Studies at West Virginia University.