Nonverbal Project

This semester, you are to complete a study on nonverbal communication. Your study must be on one of the following topics: environment, proxemics, dress and appearance, smell, oculesics, facial kinesics, kinesics, haptics, or vocalics. To research some these topics, you will use the common words like personal space, eyes, facial expressions, movement, posture, gestures, touch, and voice. The other topics may be searched by their original names. You may only address one of these. The literature review, the method, and the results will be on this one topic. You cannot write on more than one topic.

Conducting the Research

Once the topic is selected, please research the literature using the following strategies. On the home page of Amberton, click on Current Students. Then go to the Library. It will provide you with a plethora of material. You need to locate and use 10-12 articles and books on this topic.

1) Click on the Amberton collection and write nonverbal communication and your topic in the search box.

2) Click on ebrary and in the search box fed in nonverbal communication and your topic.

3) Click on EBSCO

a. Go to all data bases at the top of the page

b. Then check these databases: Academic Search Premier, ebook collection, ERIC, Masterfile Premier, Professional Development Collection, PsycARTICLES, and Psychology and Behavior Science Collection.

c. After selecting your databases, then write your topic in the search box. You can search all of these data bases at once.

4) Credo—This is an excellent source for videos and images, but the resources it provides are much less scholarly material. So you probably do not want to rely on this extensively.

You must use the correct APA format   See the writing guidelines for this course.  I should be able to click on the link in the references and go directly to the source. If you are using a book, please include the title page of the book in the appendix so that I can see that you used the book. Please alphabetize the books in the appendix by authors’ last names.

Literature Review

Grading

Information Literacy Rubric

Excellent (3)

Acceptable (2)

Unacceptable (1)

Determine the Extent of Information Needed

Demonstrates the ability to locate and use 10-12 sources directly relevant to the topic from scholarly sources. These sources must be on the topic of the paper. They cannot be general resources.

Demonstrates the ability to locate 8-9 sources relevant to the topic.

The literature review has fewer than 8 sources.

Access the Needed Information

Sources are relevant, balanced, and thorough in scope. The logic for source selection is apparent.
Topics are supported with conceptual depth and strength.
The paper must cover all the major areas of the topic in depth.

Most sources target the topic. Some sources are bias or lack precision, verification, or purpose. The discussion varies in quality and extent of coverage of study.  The quality and relevance of the sources selected vary. Not all the areas of the paper are thoroughly developed.

Sources were too vague, general, or irrelevant. The quality and relevance of the sources is poor

Evaluate Information and its Sources Critically

The information included is scholarly and relevant to the literature review. The sources selected are scientific and not popular option.

The information includes has both scholarly material and some material written only on the basis of personal opinion. 

The material included is lacking in scholarly respectability. The information included is incomplete, inconsistent, or inaccurate. 

Use Information Effectively to Accomplish a Specific Purpose

The review of the literature is thorough and focused It was well organized and easily understood.  It uses terminology appropriate to the discipline. It presents the material with a scholarly tone.

The sources reviewed are appropriate to the study.  The paper may not be logically organized or some sections may lack development.

The literature review is unprofessional including poor quality sources, poor organization, and missing information. The material may be used inappropriately or poorly organized.  The writing style may vary throughout the paper.

Access and Use Information Ethically and Legally–

Paper includes no plagiarism and documents correctly.

The literature review includes extensive documentation using the APA format.  The sources are documented in the paper and in the references. The electronic sources are hyperlinked to the references. The books are supported with copies of the titles pages hyperlinked to the references. Demonstrates a full understanding of ethical and legal restrictions on the use of information.

The literature review is document in the paper and in the references, but includes some minor documentation issues.  This paper would include no major unethical or illegal uses of the information.

The literature review lacks documentation in the paper or references. Does not demonstrate a full understanding of the ethical and legal l restrictions on the use of information. The literature review may include plaigerism.

Study

1.    Describe your methodology. 

a.    You may distribute questionnaire about nonverbal communication or observe behaviors in a natural setting.

                                                                   i.          If you use a questionnaire, you should include it at this point in the paper.  Then be sure you indicate who answered your questionnaires and when.  Just give a general description.

                                                                 ii.          If you do an observational study, you must describe where you did your observations, when you did them, and what you were observing specifically.

b.    You must either have 10 questionnaires answered or ten observations.  This is a minimum guideline

2.    Describe your results.  Make a table that describes how many people exhibited what behavior or how the subjects answered your questions. Once you have placed the data in the table, describe your results.  You need to describe the results so that I can see that you understand them.

3.    Describe how the information discovered by the literature review and by your study can be used in business.

Excellent (3)

Acceptable (2)

Unacceptable (1)

Method

Thoroughly describes how the data was collected including an excellent questionnaire or observation typology

Discusses how the data was collected including a questionnaire or observation typology with some minor flaws.

Does not include a questionnaire or an observation typology on nonverbal communication

Results

Includes an excellent table and an excellent  discussion on the results of the study

Includes a table and a discussion of the results

Results reflect a lack of accurate material on nonverbal communication and lying

Discussion

Thoroughly describes how the information in the literature review and in the study can be used to improve communication in the business and organizations

Describes how some of the information in the literature review can be used in business and organizations.

Has little discussion of the application of this material to business and organizations.

Organize the paper this way.

 
Literature Review

References

Method
Results
Discussion

PRESENTATION: 20 points

The presentation should be 10 minutes.

Presentation

excellent

acceptable

unacceptable

The student presents a creative and engaging presentation with eye contact, good posture, appropriate gestures and movement.

Student may have had good presentation skills, but the paper was lacking in creativity or the student presented a creative project, but had trouble with his or her presentational skills.

The student read the project to the class.