Situational Communication Apprehension Measure (SCAM)

The Situational Communication Apprehension Measure was developed to provide and instrument which could measure state CA in any context. This is a self-report instrument which can apply to how a person felt in any recent communication event (the closer in time between the event and completion of this instrument, the more valid the measure will be). In the example below, in the directions we describe the communication context as "the last time you interacted with someone who had a supervisory role over you." This may be replaced by any other context, e.g. "talked with one of your subordinates," "talked with your teacher outside class," "met with your physician." You can expect alpha reliability estimates of .85 to .90 for the SCAM in most cases.

Directions: Please complete the following questionnaire about how you felt the last time you interacted with someone who had a supervisory role over you. Mark 7 (in the space before the statement) if the statement is extremely accurate for how you felt; 6 if moderately accurate; 5 if somewhat accurate; 4 if neither accurate nor inaccurate; 3 if somewhat accurate; 2 if moderately inaccurate; or 1 if extremely inaccurate. There are no right or wrong answers. Just respond to the items quickly to describe as accurately as you can how you felt while interacting with that person.

_____1. I was apprehensive

_____2. I was disturbed

_____3. I felt peaceful

_____4. I was loose

_____5. I felt uneasy

_____6. I was self-assured

_____7. I was fearful

_____8. I was ruffled

_____9. I felt jumpy

_____10. I was composed

_____11. I was bothered

_____12. I felt satisfied

_____13. I felt safe

_____14. I was flustered

_____15. I was cheerful

_____16. I felt happy

_____17. I felt dejected

_____18. I was pleased

_____19. I felt good

_____20. I was unhappy

Scoring: To determine your score on the SCAM, complete the following steps:

Step 1. Add scores for items 3, 4, 6, 10, 12, 13, 15, 16, 18, and 19

Step 2. Add the scores for items 1, 2, 5, 7, 8, 9, 11, 14, 17, and 20

Step 3. Complete the following formula: SCAM = 80 - Total from Step 1 + Total from Step 2

Your score should be between 20 and 140. If your score is below 20 or above 140, you have made a mistake in computing the score.

There are no norms for this measure, since different contexts will generate different score ranges, means, and standard deviations.

Source:

Richmond, V. P. (1978). The relationship between trait and state communication apprehension and interpersonal perception during acquaintance stages. Human Communication Research, 4, 338-349.