Communication Apprehension among UUM Students

Communication apprehension (CA) has been the subject of several investigations in the last twenty years. For some people, CA is pathological (trait)while for others, it fluctuates from person to person and from situation to situation (state). CA is a prevalent phenomenon which has been studied among college students in the United States of America. Little, if any, research has focused on CA
among undergraduate students in Malaysia. This study assessed CA among undergraduate students in Universiti Utara
Malaysia (UUM). The undergraduate students were asked to fill the Personal Report of Communication Apprehension-24 (PRCA-24) which measures the overall CA in group, meeting, dyadic and public speaking These :Students were also required to indicate their: 1) major of study; 2) year in university; 3) gender; 4) race; and 5) state of residence.
The findings Indicate that CA exist among the undergraduate students in UUM with the average overall score is slightly below than the studies conducted in the western countries It was noted that there is no difference and relationship
between 1) major of study; 2) year in university; 3) gender; 4) race; and 5 place of residence among UUM undergraduate students. It wits also found that the first year and second year students were particularly apprehensive in meeting and public speaking as compared to the third and fourth year students. On the other hand, male
undergraduate students had significantly low CA than female undergraduate students in meeting and public speaking. This study provides added information about CA among undergraduate students in Malaysia. Recommendations for further research are suggested.