Graduation Date
1977
Document Type
Thesis
Program
Master of Arts degree with a major in Applied Anthropology
Committee Chair Name
Doug Losee
Committee Chair Affiliation
Cal Poly Humboldt Faculty or Staff
Second Committee Member Name
Karen Foss
Third Committee Member Name
Dr. Stephen Littlejohn
Keywords
Art
Subject Categories
Art
Abstract
This study investigates the variables currently utilized by the field of debate in making assessments of intercollegiate debater credibility. All of the variables are the result of field-dependent data. As such, this study investigates the actual perceptions and judgments of debate coaches and judges as they evaluate and critique intercollegiate debaters, and the criteria that compose the assessment of the.debater. Following the compilation of constructs of debaters obtained from several coaches, the list is reduced to a more managable number and then is returned to the coaches and judges in the field of debate for their assessments and judgments of debaters in terms of which of the constructs or characteristics are the more important in perceptions of debaters and in perceptions of debater credibility. Once the results of this ranking are obtained the variables are subjected to evaluation by means of the Pearson Product-Moment Correlation statistical procedure to see which variables correlate most frequently and which emerge as the most often employed, or are held to be the most widely used and accepted variables by coaches and judges of debate in the western states. Conclusions are then drawn from the data and an assessment of the importance of the variables is then made. The end result of this procedure is the emergence of an operational definition of credibility, which most closely mirrors the feelings and perceptions of the coaches and judges of debate today. The actual definition is the result of field-generated methods of investigation, and reflects the respondents* views as to the relative importance and use of the variables cited in this study.
Recommended Citation
Turner, John S. Jr., "An Investigation of Field-Generated Constructs For Intercollegiate Debater Credibility" (1977). Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects. 2353.
https://digitalcommons.humboldt.edu/etd/2353