The mediating effect of mindfulness and self-compassion on leaders' communication competence and job satisfaction

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the interrelationships between leaders' communication competence, mindfulness, self-compassion and job satisfaction. Barge and Hirokawa's (1989) communication-centered theoretical approach of leadership and Gilbert's (2005) social mentality offered frameworks to examine mindfulness and self-compassion as co-mediators of the relationship between business leaders' communication competence and job satisfaction.Design/methodology/approachA cross-sectional online survey was conducted with 219 business leaders in the USA via snowball sampling.FindingsThe results showed that communication competence served as an antecedent of mindfulness and self-compassion. Additionally, self-compassion served as a significant mediator between the positive relationship between communication competence and job satisfaction.Practical implicationsManagers and business leaders may gain insights about the benefit of developing self-compassion and communication competence skills to enhance their job satisfaction via courses, workshops and certifications.Originality/valueThis study is the first to examine the effect of two well-being constructs (self-compassion and mindfulness) on the relationship between leaders' communication competence and job satisfaction.

General and specific characteristics of communication competence of students of various medical specialties

This article presents the results of a study of the general characteristics of communicative competence of students in medical specialties, manifested in a high level of sociability, the average level of formation of communicative control, the ability to manage emotions in communication, communicative tolerance and a low level of empathic abilities; specific characteristics are expressed in plasticity, trustworthiness, perseverance, curiosity and understanding.

Revisiting Leadership Communication: A Need for Conversation

Effective communication is critical for leaders to influence and create an impact within and outside organizations. Despite this, questions are raised regarding the efficacy & effectiveness of organizational leaders in conducting meaningful communication & conversations with their teams. Often, organizations are unsure of the specific leadership communication attributes and their outcomes at the individual, team and organizational levels. The primary objective of this study is to evaluate the impact of leaders’ communication on the feelings and thoughts of subordinates and to identify attributes for a possible measure of ‘effective leadership communication’. On the basis of ‘communicative leadership’ theorization by Johansson et al. (2014) , primary data was collected from employees’ across organizations. The study reveals gaps in the leader’s communication competence and suggests a need for more meaningful conversation with subordinates. The study proposes a tool for leadership communication assessment comprising two factors: transforming thoughts and transforming individuals.

Professors' Perceptions and Evaluations of Students Who Do and Do Not Stutter Following Oral Presentations

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptual ratings and performance evaluations of students who do and do not stutter by professors who require oral presentations. Additionally, this study sought to investigate the influence of behaviors related to communication competence on perceptual and evaluative ratings. Method: One hundred fifty-eight college instructors who require oral presentations in their classes participated in this study. Participants viewed one video of four possible randomized conditions: (a) presence of stuttering + low communication competence, (b) absence of stuttering + low communication competence, (c) presence of stuttering + high communication competence, and (d) absence of stuttering + high communication competence. Participants evaluated student performance against a standardized rubric and rated the student along 16 personality traits. Results: Results of separate 2 × 2 analyses of variance revealed professors' view and evaluate students presenting with high communication competence more positively overall, regardless as to whether stuttering is present or not. Significant interactions between fluency (i.e., presence vs. absence of stuttering) and communication competence (i.e., high vs. low) were found for negative personality traits, as well as delivery evaluation scores. The video for which the student stuttered and presented with low communication competence was rated more positively than the video for which the student did not stutter and presented with low communication competence. Conclusions: Professors perceive and evaluate students who stutter differently from their nonstuttering peers, and those ratings are moderated by levels of communication competence. High-communication-competence behaviors improved perceptual and evaluation scores; however, in the presence of low-communication-competence behaviors, professors overcorrect in the form of positive feedback bias, which may have negative long-term academic consequences.

Relationship of Communication Competence with Caring Behavior in Clinical Nurses: The Mediating Effect of Compassion Competence

Purpose: This study was done to identify the mediating effect of compassion competence on the relationship between communication competence and caring behavior in clinical nurses.Methods: A structured self-report questionnaire was used to measure caring behavior, communication competence, and compassion competence. During September 2019, data were collected from 170 nurses working at general hospitals. Data were analyzed using hierarchical multiple linear regression with SPSS for Windows version 23.0 and Hayes's SPSS process macro (version 3.5).Results: Communication skills (β=.52) and compassion ability (β=.77) were identified as important predictors of nurses’ caring behavior. These variables explained approximately 54% of the variance in nurses’ caring behavior. Compassion competence also had a total mediating effect on the relationship between communication competence and caring behavior.Conclusion: In order to enhance the caring behavior of clinical nurses, enhancing compassion competence by strengthening communication development should be considered as a strategy.

Intercultural communication competence

The study outlines the role of intercultural communication as a crucial component of diplomats and international professionals’ training, which increases the effectiveness of interaction with representatives of different cultures in performing professional duties. Conditions of civilizational development, achievements of science, innovative technologies, requirements of public life, the priority of foreign policy activity have led to the deepening of people's and cultures’ interaction. Because of such interaction of both individuals and cultures, diplomatic relations between different states have gained a special status. The diplomatic relations are based on intercultural communication as a tool of international cooperation aimed at promoting foreign policy interests of different states, as well as ensuring international cooperation and developing long-term formal and informal ties between government institutions, international actors, diplomatic missions, and political leaders. All these cause the intensification of intercultural communication processes that become systemic. With the research methods being study, analysis, and generalization, the study was aimed at revealing the concept of intercultural communication competence as the diplomats and international affairs specialists’ ability to choose and implement a speech act depending on the goals and content of professional speech through language, as well as mastery of communication strategies and tactics.