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SELF-CONCEPT AND COMMUNICATION SKILLS: A FOCUS AMONG UTM
FINAL YEAR TESL STUDENTS
ATIRAH IZZAH BINTI CHE ABAS
A thesis submitted in fulfillment of the requirements
for the award of the degree of
Bachelor of Science with Education (TESL)
Faculty of Education
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
APRIL 2009
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To my beloved mama and papa Thank you so much for the unconditional love
And endless support
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ACKNOWLEDGMENT
In completing this undergraduate project, there are many people that provide me
with never-ending support and guidance. I would like to express my sincerest
appreciation to these people.
Firstly, I would like to express my utmost gratitude to my supervisor Dr. Azizah
Rajab for providing me with endless helps, ideas, materials and motivation in order to
complete this project. I am also thankful to my examiners, Mr. Affendi Hashim and Ms.
Yasmin Hanafi Zaid for helping me to improve my research through their helpful
advices and suggestions.
I am also indebted to my fellow classmates for being cooperative during the data
collection as well as for providing me with continuous support and motivation. Last but
not least, I am also grateful to my family members especially my father, Che Abas Che
Ismail for his understanding, love and faith in me. Not to be forgotten, I would also like
to express my sincerest appreciation to my best friend, Mahfuzah Rafek for her endless
love and encouragement. In all, without these people, it will be difficult for me to
complete this project successfully.
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ABSTRACT
The purposes of this study were to identify the levels of communication skills
and the levels of self-concept among the UTM final year TESL students as well as to
identify the relationship between these two variables. The scope of the communication
skills was based on the skills evident during the MUET speaking examination. Five
components were used for the self-concept variables namely physical self, moral-ethical
self, personal self, family self and lastly social self. The sample consisted of 33 final
year TESL students from Universiti Teknologi Malaysia where two instruments were
used to measure their levels of communication skills and their levels of self-concept.
MUET speaking skill scores were used to measure the respondents’ levels of
communication skills while Tennessee Self-Concept Scale Test (1965) was used to
measure their levels of self-concept. A number of statistical analyses were employed in
order to analyze the data including descriptive statistics, one-way ANOVA and Pearson
correlation. From this research it was found that the majority of the final year TESL
students possess high level of communication skills and high level of self-concept. The
Pearson correlation revealed that there was no significant correlation between the
respondents’ self-concept and communication skills. In conclusion, this research
investigates the influence of self-concept in the final year TESL students’
communication skills.
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ABSTRAK
Tujuan penyelidikan ini dijalankan adalah untuk mengenalpasti tahap kemahiran
komunikasi dan tahap konsep kendiri dikalangan pelajar tahun akhir jurusan TESL di
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia. Penyelidikan ini juga dijalankan bagi mengenalpasti
hubungan di antara dua pemboleh ubah ini. Bagi kemahiran komunikasi, skop
penyelidikan adalah tertakluk kepada kemahiran komunikasi yang diuji ketika
peperiksaan lisan MUET. Bagi konsep kendiri, komponen yang terlibat ialah fizikal,
moral, pesonaliti, keluarga dan juga sosial. Sampel yang terlibat terdiri daripada 33
orang pelajar tahun akhir dari jurusan TESL. Dua alat penyelidikan digunakan iaitu
markah ujian lisan MUET dan juga Tennessee Self-Concept Scale Test (1965). Bagi
mengenalpasti tahap kemahiran komunikasi pelajar, markah ujian lisan MUET telah
digunakan dan bagi mengenalpasti tahap konsep kendiri pelajar Tennessee Self-Concept
Scale Test telah digunakan. Beberapa kaedah analisis statistik telah digunakan bagi
menganalisis data antaranya ialah statistik diskriptif, Pearson correlation dan ujian
ANOVA satu hala.Melalui analisis yang dijalankan, didapati kebanyakan pelajar tahun
akhir jurusan TESL dari UTM memiliki tahap komunikasi yang cemerlang dan juga
tahap konsep kendiri yang tinggi. Walaubagaimanapun, didapati tidak terdapat
perhubungan yang signifikan di antara konsep kendiri dan kemahiran komunikasi pelajar
tahun akhir jurusan TESL. Kesimpulannya, penyelidikan ini menyiasat tentang pengaruh
konsep kendiri terhadap tahap komunikasi pelajar tahun akhir jurusan TESL.
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TABLE OF CONTENT
CHAPTER TITLE PAGE
DECLARATION ii
DEDICATION iii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iv
ABSTRACT v
ABSTRAK vi
TABLE OF CONTENT vii
LIST OF TABLE xii
LIST OF CHART xv
CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION 1
1.1 Background Problem 3
1.2 Problem Statement 5
1.3 Objective 7
1.4 Research Question 8
1.5 Significance of Study 8
1.6 Scope of Research
1.6.1 Self-Concept 10
1.6.2 Communication Skills 11
1.6.3 Final Year TESL students 11
1.7 Definition of Concept
1.7.1 Self-Concept 12
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CHAPTER TITLE PAGE
1.7.2 Communication Skills 13
1.7.3 Final Year TESL students 13
1.8 Conclusion 14
CHAPTER TWO LITERATURE REVIEW
2.0 Introduction 15
2.1 Definition of Communication 15
2.2 Model of Communication 16
2.3 Types of Communication 21
2.4 Qualities of Competent Communicator 24
2.5 Communication and MUET 27
2.6 Self-Concept 29
2.7 Components of Self-Concept based on
The Tennessee Self-Concept Scale Test 33
2.8 Perception and Self-Concept 39
2.9 Self-Concept and Communication 42
2.10 Previous Research 44
2.11 Conclusion 47
CHAPTER THREE METHODOLOGY
3.0 Introduction 49
3.1 Research Design 49
3.2 Sample 51
3.3 Instrument 53
3.4 Test Procedure 56
3.5 Data Analysis 57
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CHAPTER TITLE PAGE
3.6 Conclusion 60
CHAPTER FOUR RESULTS
4.0 Introduction 61
4.1 Respondents’ Background
4.1.1 No. of Respondents based
On Gender 61
4.1.2 Age of Respondents 62
4.2 Levels of Communication Skills
4.2.1 Band in MUET 63
4.2.2 Percentage of Respondents based
on Levels of Communication Skills 63
4.3 Levels of Self-Concept
4.3.1 Percentage of Respondents based on
the Levels of Self-Concept 64
4.3.2 Total Mean Value for Respondents’
Answers in Physical Self 65
4.3.3 Total Mean Value for Respondents’
Answers in Moral-Ethical Self 66
4.3.4 Total Mean Value for Respondents’
Answers in Personal Self 67
4.3.5 Total Mean Value for Respondents’
Answers in Family Self 68
4.3.6 Total Mean Value for Respondents’
Answers in Social Self 69
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CHAPTER TITLE PAGE
4.3.7 Total Mean Value according to the
Different Components 70
4.3.8 Total Mean Value for Self-Criticism 70
4.3.9 One-Way ANOVA: Self-Concept and
Components 71
4.4 Self-Concept and Communication Skills
4.4.1 One-Way ANOVA: Communication
Skills and Components of Self-Concept 72
4.4.2 Cross-tabulation: Self-Concept and
Communication Skills 73
4.4.3 Pearson Correlation: Self-Concept and
Communication Skills 74
CHAPTER FIVE DISCUSSION
5.0 Introduction 75
5.1 Levels of Communication Skills
5.1.1 MUET Band 75
5.1.2 Levels of Communication Skills
Based on MUET Speaking Skill
Scores 77
5.2 Levels of Self-Concept
5.2.1 Respondents’ Levels of Self-
Concept 80
5.2.2 Components of Self-Concept 82
5.2.3 Openness to Criticism 86
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CHAPTER TITLE PAGE
5.2.4 Self-Concept and Components 87
5.3 Self-Concept and Communication
Skills
5.3.1 Communication Skills and
Components of Self-Concept 90
5.3.2 Self-Concept and Communication
Skills 92
CHAPTER SIX CONCLUSION AND LIMITATION
6.0 Introduction 96
6.1 Conclusion 96
6.2 Limitation 98
CHAPTER SEVEN RECOMMENDATION
7.0 Introduction 100
7.1 Recommendation
7.1.1 Future Research 100
7.1.2 Faculty 101
7.1.3 Students 102
REFERENCES 104
APPENDICES 108
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LIST OF TABLE
No. of Table Title Page
2.0 MUET Band Description
(Malaysian Examination Council) 28
3.0 Levels of Self-Concept 50
3.1 Levels of MUET Speaking Skill Scores
(Communication Skills) 51
3.2 Components of Self-Concept based on
Tennessee Self-Concept Scale Test 58
3.3 Likert Scale used for the Tennessee
Self-Concept Scale Test 58
4.1.1 Number of Respondents based on
Gender 61
4.1.2 Age of Respondents 62
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No. of Table Title Page
4.2.1 Band in MUET 63
4.2.2 The Percentage of Respondents based on
the Level of Communication Skills 63
4.3.1 The Percentage of Respondents based
on the Level of Self-Concept 64
4.3.2 Total Mean Value for Respondents’
Answers in Physical Self 65
4.3.3 Total Mean Value for Respondents’
Answers in Moral Ethical Self 66
4.3.4 Total Mean Value for Respondents’
Answers in Personal Self 67
4.3.5 Total Mean Value for Respondents’
Answers in Family Self 68
4.3.6 Total Mean Value for Respondents’
Answers in Social Self 69
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No. of Table Title Page
4.3.7 Total Mean Value according to the 70
Different Components
4.3.8 Total Mean Value for Self-Criticism 70
4.3.9 One-Way ANOVA: Self-Concept
and Components 71
4.4.1 One-Way ANOVA: Communication
Skills and Components of Self-Concept 72
4.4.2 Cross-tabulation: Self-Concept and
Communication Skills 73
4.4.3 Pearson Correlation: Self-Concept and
Communication Skills 74
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LIST OF CHART
No. of Chart Title Page
2.0 Model of Communication 17
2.1 Hierarchy of Self-Concept 32
2.2 Cyclic Process of Communication and
Self-Concept 43
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CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
Everyday we are engaged in communication with different people around us.
Communication serves different purposes such as for conveying information,
instruction, persuasion and entertainment (Wahlstrom, 1992). According to Wood
(1997: 17) communication is “… a systematic process in which individuals interact with
and through symbols to create and interpret meanings.” Successful communication
happens when both interacting individuals are able to create and interpret meanings
between themselves that serves the purpose of conveying either information, instruction,
persuasion or entertainment. Effective communication occurs when the communication
between the individuals is considered successful. Effective communication is very
crucial in our lives as stated by Tubbs and Moss (2003:22) “effectiveness in
communication was one of the most important skills in achieving a successful and
fulfilling life…”
In order to communicate well, we must consider the factors that influence our
communication ability. Communication is very much related to the notion of self-
concept. According to Purkey (1988) taken from Azizi (2008:2), self-concept is defined
as “the totality of a complex, organized and dynamic system of learned beliefs, attitudes
and opinions that each person holds to be true about his or her personal existence.” Self-
concept determines how we see ourselves as it gives us a picture of who we are as
individuals with our own unique characteristics. This picture influences the way we
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behave in society and most importantly it influences our communication with other
people.
Communication and self-concept are very much related to one another as they
affect each other. According to Wahlstrom (1992:46) “self-concepts are developed
through communication. Self-knowledge is not something we are born with; we have to
obtain it by observing ourselves and by observing others’ behaviour with respect to us.
When we interact with other people, we present ourselves to them…Their responses to
our messages either support or conflict with the self we have presented.” Therefore,
through the socialization and communication process that we have with the people
around us especially the ones closest to us such as family, friends and teachers, we
develop the overall understanding of who we are as individuals that eventually becomes
our self-concept.
On the other hand, according to Verderber (1975:34) “…much of your
communication ability depends upon your self-concept.” This implies that our ability to
interact with other people either verbally or non-verbally is influenced by our perception
of ourselves or our self-concept. Self-concept determines whether we are able to
communicate effectively with other people or not.
From here, we can gather that the relationship between self-concept and
communication represents chicken-and-egg nature where as stated by Adler (1991:32)
“…significant others in the past, help to govern your present behaviour, and influences
the way others view you.” This shows that through the experience of communication
that we have with people around us, we develop a certain self-concept which in turn
influences the way we interact or communicate with other people. Therefore, we can say
that the relationship between self-concept and communication skills is very concrete that
in order to improve either one of the aspects the other aspect needs to be taken into
consideration.
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As a conclusion, the need to communicate effectively is very important as
communication is the process where two parties exchange meanings to fulfill different
purposes. Therefore lack of effectiveness in communication process will lead to many
problems. However it is important to bear in mind that communication and self-concept
are very close to one another as they strongly influence each other. Therefore, in order to
improve our communication skills, the notion of self-concept has to be taken into
consideration as it plays a very important role in determining the quality of our
communication.
1.1 Problem Background
There are a few problems arise regarding to communication abilities. One of
them is speech anxiety. Speech anxiety is a common phenomenon where as stated by
Zimbardo (1977: 13) “between 80 to 93 percent of all people feel some communication
anxiety and 15 to 20 percent of all college students have high levels of communication
anxiety.” In most cases, anxiety is situational where as stated by Rosenfeld and Berko
(1990), people could feel anxious when put in certain situation such as giving speech or
explaining a theory in front of an audience.
According to Seiler (1996), speech anxiety is the fear of speaking in front of an
audience or a group of people. The reason behind it is very much related to the
experience that an individual has. Seiler (1996: 284) stated that “most speech anxiety
begins at an early age as a result of negative feedback in the home. For example,
children who are not encouraged to communicate or are punished for doing so, are likely
to learn that communication is undesirable and that silence is beneficial.” This is very
much related to the notion of self-concept as the feedback that we receive from others
very much influences our self-concept as stated by Seiler (1996: 66) “what and how we
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communicate with others and the reactions of others toward us help develop our self-
image and self-esteem, both of which ultimately make up our self-concept.” Therefore,
we can conclude here that poor self-concept could be one of the causes of speech
anxiety.
In classroom, communication is the medium where the information and
instruction are conveyed to the students. This is emphasized by a statement from Adler
(1991:13) that “communication is the means of learning important information in
school.” According to Wahlstrom (1992) there are four functions of communication
which are for the purposes of conveying information, instruction, persuasion and
entertainment. In teaching and learning process the first two functions which are to
convey information and instruction are the most significant ones. Besides that parallel to
the definition of communication by Tubbs and Moss (2003:8) stating that
communication is “the sharing of experience”, teachers manipulate their communication
ability to share their experiences in terms of knowledge and facts that are meaningful to
the students. Consequently the ability to communicate well is very crucial for teachers in
order to ensure the success of the teaching and learning process in classroom.
In Malaysian classroom, generally students still depend on teachers as source of
information. Teachers have to hold the responsibility of delivering informative speeches
to the students. According to Zeuschner (2003:90) “… the goal of informative speeches
is to convey information, and to do so clearly and accurately.” Consequently, it is crucial
that the teachers are very good in their communication with the students. However,
according to Wood (1997: 316) “…teachers who have taught for years usually feel
tension before meeting a class.” Teachers with speech anxiety could hamper the teaching
and learning process in classroom. Therefore, it is best if this kind of problem could be
avoided since anxiety can be treated. Rosenfeld and Berko (1990:126) stated that
“communication anxiety is curable because it hinges on perceptions, which can be
altered.”
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As for the final year TESL students, anxiety could be one of the main problems
in classroom communication compared to experienced teachers. Therefore, it is crucial
for them to fix this problem as early as possible and this can be done effectively through
improving their self-concept. As emphasized by Zeuschner (2003:111), “communication
apprehension is tied closely to self-concept…” Consequently, final year TESL students
should improve their self-concept in order to be better teachers.
In all, this is the reason why the relationship between self-concept and
communication skills is investigated since communication skills are very important for
teachers to perform well in classroom and having high self-concept could help the
teachers to achieve them. This research helps to give an insight on how self-concept can
improve an individual’s communication skills and thus provides a lot of benefits for
future teachers.
1.2 Problem Statement
This research investigates the relationship between a target group’s self-concept
and its communication skills measured through the MUET speaking skills results.
Self-concept and communication skills are dependent on each other. According
to Seiler (1996:65) “self-concept is determined by our experiences and communication
with others…” On the other hand Seiler (1996:76) has also stated that “our self-concept
affects everything we do, especially our communication with others.” This proves the
interrelated relationship between self-concept and communication skills.
According to Wilmot (1987:61) “each person’s view of himself affects his as
well as his partner’s behaviour.” Moreover, Seiler (1996) also stressed that our self-
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concept influences our behaviour or how we present ourselves in front of people. Our
behaviour will in turn influence our style of communication with other people. Style of
communication is defined as “… the way a person interacts verbally and non-verbally
with others or how individuals portray themselves through their communication.”
(Seiler, 1996:77) Every individual has his or her own style of communication and
different style of communication has different impact on the effectiveness of the
communication.
In teaching profession, communication becomes the medium to convey
information and instruction to the students. Through the process of communication in
classroom, students gain the knowledge as well as important information from the
teachers. Communication also affects the smoothness of the lesson as communication is
the medium where instruction is conveyed. Through communication teacher can take
control of the class and ensure that the teaching and learning process takes part
smoothly. Therefore, communication is a very important element in teaching and
learning process. Since self-concept very much influences communication, this study
has focused on the relationship between these two elements. This is done so that
teachers’ communication skills could be improved through their self-concept. By having
healthy self-concept, teachers should be able to improve their ability in communication
which will eventually improve their effectiveness in teaching.
As for UTM final year TESL students who will be teachers in future, they need
to be aware of the influence of self-concept in their communication ability. This is
because, through this awareness, they can improve their self-concept so they will be able
to communicate effectively with their students. As emphasized by Seiler (1996:77) “it is
generally agreed upon scholars that those with high self-concepts function better in
interpersonal situations than do those with low self-concepts.” It is the nature of
teacher’s work to be frequently engaged with interpersonal situations with their students
for example while giving them information, explanation, instruction and many more.
Therefore, having high self-concept will provide a lot of benefits for teachers in
improving the quality of their communication and consequently the effectiveness of their
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lesson will also be upgraded. Moreover, considering their lack of experience and
exposure in classroom, communication anxiety could be one of the barriers that hinder
them in producing effective lesson. Therefore, it is best if they are well prepared
particularly in the aspect of self-concept so that the issue of communication skills is not
a problem in classroom.
In all, the crucial role that communication plays in teaching and learning process
makes it very important for teachers particularly future teachers to improve their
communication ability. Since self-concept plays a significant role in communication
ability, teachers need to have healthy self-concept in order to ensure the effectiveness of
teaching and learning process.
1.3 Objectives
Since the main concern of this research is to investigate the relationship between
self-concept and communication skills, there are a few objectives to be achieved. The
objectives are:
1. to identify the levels of UTM final year TESL students’ communication skills
through their MUET speaking examination scores.
2. to identify the levels of self-concept among the UTM final year TESL students.
3. to identify the relationship between the final year TESL students’ levels of self-
concept with their performance in MUET speaking examination (communication
skills).
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1.4 Research Question
This research focuses on finding the relationship between self-concept and
communication skills among final year TESL students in UTM. The purpose is to
investigate the influence of a person’s self-concept to his communication ability. The
questions explored are:
1. What are the levels of communication skills among the UTM final year TESL
students?
2. What are the levels of self-concept among the UTM final year TESL students?
3. What is the relationship between the levels of self-concept among the UTM final
year TESL students with their communication skills?