Effective Communication Skills: A New Conceptual Framework and Scale Development Study

Article History: Received 26.01.2017 Received in revised form 14.02.2017 Accepted 09.03.2017 Available online 26.03.2017 The purpose of this study was to propose a new conceptual framework to evaluate the effective communication skills in different perspectives and develop a scale assessing the communication skills proposed in that framework. In accordance with the proposed conceptualization, in the study five basic communication skills namely ego supportive language, active-participative listening, selfrecognition/self-disclosure, empathy and I-language, were focused on. The draft form of the scale aimed to develop in order to evaluate those skills was applied to a group of students (n=445) studying in 3. and 4. grades at the faculty of education in Pamukkale University. Within the scope of validity analysis, Item analysis, Explanatory Factor Analysis, Scale Intercorrelation analysis were used. Reliability of the scale was analyzed through Cronbach’s alpha coefficient. Results showed that the scale classified into 5 factors as proposed in the conceptual framework, and psychometric qualifications were seen acceptable. The findings of the study were discussed and recommendations were given. © 2017 IOJES. All rights reserved