Introduction To Human Communication Chapter 11

CHAPTER 11: PUBLIC SPEAKING PREPARATION The Nature of Public Speaking:  Public Speaking: a form of communication in which a speaker addresses a relatively large audience with a relatively continuous discourse, usually in a face-to-face situation. o Differs in nature of the audience feedback:  Face-to-face public speaking, audience gives the speaker immediate feedback through facial expressions, nodding, and posture  Mediated public speaking, feedback comes a while after the speech in form of political commentary Benefits and Skills of Public Speaking  Benefits include ability to present yourself to others with confidence and self-assurance, to conduct research efficiently and effectively, to understand human motivation, to analyze and evaluate the validity of persuasive appeals, and to use persuasion effectively.  Develops and refines general communication abilities by explaining complex concepts, organize a variety of message for clarity and persuasiveness, develop logical, emotional, and ethical appeals to support an argument; and improve your listening and delivery skills Communication Apprehension  Communication apprehension: fear of speaking in public  Reducing communication apprehension: o Gain experience o Think positively o Be realist (avoid unrealistic expectation and catastrophizing) o See public speaking as conversation o Focus on your listeners o Stress similarity (feel like your audience) o Project confidence o Prepare and practice thoroughly o Move about and breathe deeply o Avoid chemicals as tension relievers  How to help an apprehensive speaker as a listener: o Positively reinforce the speaker (nonverbal and verbal cues) o If there’s a question period, ask information-seeking questions o Done focus on errors, don’t make it known that you noticed them Starting Early  Starting early provides you with time to overcome the roadblocks, to rehearse your speech and delivery, reduce fear of public speaking, avoid health problems associated with procrastination  Strategies for overcoming the tendency to procrastinate: o Make a commitment to starting early o Don’t lie to yourself about the value of procrastinating o Beware of your tendency to seek out distractions o Avoid self-handicapping strategies o Work in small steps STEP 1: SELECT YOUR TOPIC, PURPOSES, AND THESIS Your Topic  Choose an appropriate topic based on your kind of speech (informative, persuasive, etc)  Consider the culture of your audience – avoid taboo topics (culturally disapproved behavior)  Ways to find topics:  o Keep yourself in mind – What are you interested in? o Try brainstorming o Use topic lists o Read surveys to see what your audience finds important o Check news sites – important issues Limiting your topic – cover a limited topic in depth rather than a broad topic superficially o Divide topic into component parts, then those parts into component parts Your Purposes  You General Purpose: to inform and to persuade o Informative speech: creates understanding, clarifies, enlightens, corrects misunderstandings, demonstrate how something works or is structures o Persuasive speech: influences attitudes or beliefs, moves the audience to act in a particular way  Your specific purpose: identifies the information you want to communicate or the attitude or behavior you want to change Your Thesis Thesis: the main idea that will be conveyed to an audience  Persuasive speech  thesis may be said, what you want your audience to believe and remember even if they forget everything else  Informative speech  thesis focuses on what you want your audience to learn  Thesis and Purpose differ: o Form of expression  how they are phrased. Thesis is a complete declarative sentence, purpose is an infinitive phrase o Focus  thesis focuses on the message, the central idea of speech; purpose focuses on the audience, the change you hope to bring about in your audience STEP 2: ANALYZE YOUR AUDIENCE  Audience: those who witness your speech firsthand and those who watch it after the fact online hor read through media outlets Audience Sociology  Do not assume that all people covered by the same label are necessarily alike; consider the characteristics that seem more common in the group  Most common characteristics among a group to consider: cultural factors, age, gender, religion and religiousness, educational levels, occupation and income, relational status, values, special interests, political beliefs, organizational memberships Audience Psychology  How willing is your audience? o If audience is willing or eager to hear your speech that is easy o If not…consider the following:  Secure their attention as early as possible and keep their interest throughout  Relate your topic and supporting materials to your audience’s needs and wants  Show the audience why they should listen by connecting yours and their purpose  Involve the audience directly in your speech by showing you understand their perspectives  How knowledgeable is your audience? o If they know little about the topic, consider the following:  Don’t talk down  Don’t confuse lack of knowledge with lack of intelligence  Let the audience know you’re aware of their knowledge and your speech will  Emphasize your competence in this general subject area not repeat what they already know  How favorable is your audience? o If your audience has unfavorable attitudes toward your topic, purpose, or you…  Build on commonalities  Build from areas of agreement, through slight disagreement, to major  Strive for small gains  Ask for a fair hearing differences Analysis and Adaption during the Speech   Focus on listeners as message senders  look at listeners and adjust as necessary Use answers to your “what if” questions  being better prepared will allow you to make on-thespot adjustments and adaptations  Address audience responses direction  acknowledge their needs, let them know they are heard and you’re validating and responding to their needs STEP 3: RESEARCH YOUR TOPIC  Research: the systematic search for information; an investigation of the relevant information on a topic Research Principles   Principles to help you research your speeches: o Begin your search by examining what you already know o Continue your search by getting a general overview of the topic o Follow up the general overview with more detailed sources o Gather a variety of different types of research Types of sources to investigate: o News sources o Biographical material o Academic research articles  Primary resource: original information about a topic or event  Secondary source: discusses information originally presented elsewhere Research Evaluation  All materials must be evaluated – especially online materials  Five essential criteria that need to be examined when evaluating research: o Qualifications (of the author) o Currency (when was it published) o Fairness (bias) o Sufficiency o Accuracy Research Integration and Citation  Cite at least the authors names and possible the publication titles and dates  Need oral and written citations STEP 4: COLLECT SUPPORTING MATERIALS:  Supporting materials: materials that will allow you to amplify and literally support your thesis  Informative speech forms of support: o Examples, illustrations, and the testimony of various authorities o Definitions to clarify complex terms o Numerical data o   Presentation aids—charts, maps, objects, slides, films, tapes, DVDs, etc. Persuasive speech forms of support: o Logical support o Motivation support o Credibility appeals Communicating Ethically – Plagiarism o Plagiarism  the process of passing off the work of others as your own STEP 5: DEVELOP YOUR MAIN POINTS  Use your thesis to generate your major points or ideas Eliminate or Combine Points Select Points that are Most Relevant – goal is not to cover every aspect of the topic but to emphasize selected parts Phrase Propositions in Parallel Style  i.e. Social media functions: social media entertain. (1) Social media inform. (2) Social media helps establish relationships. (3) Develop your Main Points Separately and Distinctly  Don’t overlap your main points, it creates confusion rather than clarity STEP 6: ORGANIZE YOUR SPEECH MATERIALS Time Pattern  Chronological order  I.e., historical topics, how to plant a garden, children’s development of speech Spatial Pattern   Temporal patterning Most physical objects fit well into spatial pattern (i.e., structure of a hospital, plan to visit Central America) Topical Pattern  Divides the speech into subtopics or component parts  I.e.: World’s major religions, great works of literature, branches of government Problem-Solution Pattern  Divides the main idea into problems and solutions  I.e.: persuasion speeches Cause-Effect/Effect-Cause Pattern  Divide the speak into causes and effects  I.e.: Highway accidents, low self-esteem, illnesses Structure-Function Pattern  One point for structure and one for function  Informative speeches with goal to discuss how something is constructed and what it does Comparison-and-Contrast Pattern  Main points might be the main divisions of your topic  I.e.: informative speeches to analyze to different topics Pro-and-Con Pattern   Speech has tow main points: the advantages of Plan A and disadvantages of Plan A (or B) I.e.: informative speeches to explain objectively the pros and cons; persuasive speech to show the superiority of one thing over another Claim and Proof Pattern  Thesis is claim and each main point is support for your claim  I.e.: persuasive speech in which you want to prove the truth; trials Multiple Definition Pattern  Each of your main points consists of a different kind of definition  I.e.: informative speeches where you want to explain the nature of a concept Who? What? Where? Why? When? Pattern  Main points are explanations for who, what, why, where and/or when  I.e.: used by journalists and when you want to report/explain an event Fiction Fact Pattern  Main points are fiction and under these are facts  I.e.: informative speeches when you wish to clarify misconceptions that people have; persuasive speeches used to defend/or attack a topic