Tag: Amstutz P

Paige Amstutz

Listening & Loneliness

Listening to others share personal stories is one way that we, as humans, make meaningful connections. Three individuals who would not ordinarily be given a platform to share their story were interviewed using Anna Deavere Smith’s method of listening. Portions of each interview will be performed with the intent of giving a voice to those who would otherwise be overlooked by society. The performance is a means of response as it relates to the Hurier Model of listening and is a technique used to enhance listening skill.

COMM 499, Senior Capstone

Doyle Srader

L203

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10:30 – 11 AM

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Paige Amstutz & Sarah Reinecker

University Covid-19 Persuasive Appeals 

Colby College and University of Notre Dame used similar persuasive appeals to encourage students to follow Covid-19 precautions. This project explores the specific appeals used by each university, their effectiveness, and overall lessons learned. 

COMM 450, Persuasion

Doyle Srader

L203

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2 – 3 PM

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Paige Amstutz, Annelise Helbling & Madison Hoke

Vocalic qualities of Disney villains

Animated Disney movies often try to remove the idea of race and bias from their character choices, but what about movies in which there are no human or live-action characters?  The following study explores whether the choices made by actors and directors show implicit bias against African American males through vocalics in nonhuman, animated Disney characters.  Researchers chose eleven Disney movies in which there were no human characters and analyzed the vocalics. Researchers measured pitch, rate of speech, and volume. The results were compared to past research in order to determine whether or not the vocalic qualities matched male African American speech.  The results were inconclusive as to whether implicit bias plays a role in vocalic choices made for Disney villains. However, the results determined that villains take on many vocalic characteristics of men and do not follow the average American vernacular speech.

COMM 430, Nonverbal Communication

Doyle Srader

L203

1:30 – 2 PM

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Paige Amstutz & Annelise Helbling

Verbal Aggressiveness and Humor

The purpose of this study was to identify the correlation between verbal aggressiveness and humor. The hypothesis was that individuals who utilize a greater level of humor while communicating are less verbally aggressive and individuals that use less humor are more verbally aggressive. This study consisted of seventy-five people participating in a survey that was made up of two questionnaires. The questionnaires measured humor and verbal aggression. The participants’ sense of humor was measured as it related to the situation, level of detail, prior planning, and number of different humor behavior types. Verbal aggression was measured based on how individuals influenced others to do what they wanted. After we applied a Pearson correlation test, a minimal negative correlation resulted. However, the study did not support the hypothesis to a significant extent.

COMM 413, Advanced Interpersonal Communication

Doyle Srader

10 AM – Noon

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