Role-Taking: A Measure of Communication Development

Because of the deficiencies of standardized testing in measuring individualistic & interactive communication ability characteristics, the use of role taking as an indicator of communication development is explored. Work of other researchers is summarized to demonstrate that role taking, the ability to take the perspective of other humans, merits the attention of English teachers because of its relationship to communication development. Distinctions are made between role-taking activity & accuracy, & between description & discrimination. A four-point scale for rating role-taking ability is adapted from other research & used in investigating the communication development of eighth graders. The exploratory investigation suggested that most eighth graders generated messages emphasizing their own perspectives; few messages stressed the advantages of the receiver in acceding to the speaker's wishes. Modified AA