A Comparison of the Relationship Between Instructor Nonverbal Immediacy and Teacher Credibility in Brazilian and U.S. Classrooms

Abstract

Sixty-six students at a Brazilian university and 100 students at a large university in the Southeastern United States completed measures of nonverbal immediacy and source credibility regarding the instructor in the class immediately prior to the one in which the research took place. Among U.S. students, perceived instructor nonverbal immediacy behavior was positively associated with all 3 dimensions of source credibility: competence, trustworthiness, and caring. Among Brazilian students, instructor nonverbal immediacy was positively related to competence and caring only. The relationship of nonverbal immediacy to instructor competence was stronger Brazilian than it was for U.S. students.