Communication apprehension

Communication apprehension is a degree or measure of the anxiety triggered by the real or anticipated communication act, as defined by James C. McCroskey. The fear of judgment from the audience and self-image are two factors which fuel the anxiety. Since communication can be oral or written, communication apprehension (CA) is divided into oral communication apprehension (OCA) and written communication apprehension (WCA).

Communication apprehension can cause a variety of involuntary responses such as "stomach butterflies" which is your body shutting the digestive system down and going into the fight-or-flight response, shaking, nausea, sweating, forgetting the information, among many others.

The term oral communication apprehension is usually connected with stage fright; however, this response is not necessarily connected with a delivery on a stage or in front of a large audience. This anxiety can be caused by any of the four forms of communication: interpersonal, group, public, and mass communication.

The most common and reliable test used to measure an individual's OCA level when exposed to these forms of communication is called the Personal Report of Communication Apprehension, also known as the PRCA-24 test, and it follows a survey format. WCA is commonly measured using versions of the WCA questionnaire developed by Daly and Miller.