Effects of Forms of Address on Advisees' Perceptions of Advisors
One hundred and twenty-five undergraduate student volunteers participated in a three-group experiment in which they observed a videotaped advising session. One group observed the advisor address the student formally (i.e., using “Mr.”). Another group observed the advisor we the student's first name, and the third group observed the advisor use no name in addressing the student. As predicted, we of the formal name resulted in an increase in perceived advisor persuasiveness. Name use did not significantly affect perceptions of advisor credibility, approachability, or likability.
Contributor Notes
Rebecca Adam, Mary Ann Smith, and Kimberly Lichner are working toward masters degrees, and Kathryn Greene is working on her doctorate. John Hocking is an Associate Professor. All are in the Department of Speech Communication. Address correspondence concerning this article to Rebecca J. Adams, Department of Speech Communication, GGS Building, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602.
