Developing an interpersonal communication skill scale targeting female nursing students.

OBJECTIVES: The purposes of this study are to evaluate the interpersonal communication capabilities in basic nursing education and to develop an interpersonal communication skill scale with reference to microcounseling theory. RESULTS: A quantitative analytical design was employed that involved administering a 28-item self-efficacy survey with reference to microcounseling techniques to 208s-year female nursing students. Measurement data include the nursing student version of the communication skill preliminary scale draft, the generalized self-efficacy scale, and age. Criterion-related validity was verified through descriptive statistics, exploratory factor analysis, and correlation analysis. Factor analysis resulted in a 4-factor structure based on eigenvalues and scree plot. The reliability coefficient shows a correlation between the total score of each factor and the total score of the generalized self-efficacy scale at the 1% level. On the nursing student communication skill scale, the factor structure comprises four factors and 21 items; adjusting the items by confirming the contents of the question sentences realized the structure of the four factors, which show satisfactory reliability, and 20 scale items. Of these, 18 are classified according to microcounseling techniques. This study demonstrates the content and criterion-related validity of the scale.

[Interaural attention switching suppresses N400 attenuation with spoken word repetition].

Event-related brain potentials were recorded from participants who listened to two pairs of words (and occasionally nonwords) simultaneously presented to both ears with stimulus onset asynchrony (SOA) of 1 s on a trial. When participants were instructed to fixate their attention to one ear and detect nonwords, the N400 attenuation was observed for a word repeated in the attended ear. The requirement of interaural attention switching between the first and second presentations of word pairs, however, suppressed the repetition effect on N400, even when the first and repeated presentations of a word were attended. The suppression of N400 attenuation was interpreted to indicate that attention switching interferes with the immediate availability of the decision for the first presentation in working memory.