This collection of abstracts is part of a continuing series providing information on recent doctoral dissertations. The eight titles deal with the following topics: (1) the initiating and responding communication behaviors of primary school students who score high as compared to those who score low on language and reading tests; (2) listening comprehension as a factor in attrition/retention in higher education; (3) the effects of organization, pauses, and questions on college lecture comprehension; (4) the effect of student participation in self-analysis, peer evaluation, model study, and self-analysis and peer evaluation upon speaking skills in the informative speech; (5) the speech content of selected seventh and eighth grade language arts textbooks; (6) the audience sensitivity and rhetorical sensitivity of college basic speech students; (7) a comparison of skills training plus cognitive restructuring, skills training only, cognitive restructuring only, and no systematic treatment in the reduction of trait-like communication apprehension in the classroom setting; and (8) the effect of prediscussion instruction in information processing on perceived quality of decision making, discussion efficiency, and group member satisfaction. (FL)