According to, Student Motivations… : A Theory of Planned Behavior Investigation of Students’ Intention to Orally Cite Sources

Abstract

This study employs the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) to understand the role of attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control on students’ intent to orally cite sources using complete, rather than partial, citations. Undergraduates (N = 326) enrolled in general education oral communication courses completed a self-report survey testing the TPB variables and students’ citation intentions. Findings demonstrate that subjective norms and perceived behavioral control predict student intention to cite sources and do so completely. Tensions between credibility gains and time constraints are also evident. Implications for teaching students in basic courses about oral citations are discussed.

Keywords:

• Oral Citation
• Public Speaking
• Subjective Norms
• Theory of Planned Behavior

Notes

^1. Items were drawn from the literature, a discussion with students about what impacts their decision to include sources, and an unpublished data set. The data set came from an IRB approved survey of 138 undergraduates, which posed 23 Likert items measuring student attitude about speech citations and seven variables potentially affecting intention to orally cite sources. Alpha coefficients and subscale means were generated and a multiple regression analysis performed. Variables and items that performed well in the analyses were included in the present study (data available upon request.).