Defining communication reticence as anxiousness due to a lack of basic communication skills, a study was conducted to determine (1) whether significant differences exist in the distribution of sex roles between reticent and nonreticent populations, (2) whether reticents and nonreticents differ in masculinity and femininity, and (3) which qualities may serve as identifiers of reticence. Subjects--76 male and female students in a basic communication course, and 60 male and female students in a communication course for reticents--completed the Bem Sex-Role Inventory (BSRI), questions about their interpersonal networks, and demographic items. Results indicated a relationship between masculinity and nonreticence and, unlike communication apprehension (CA) where no relationship between femininity and CA was detected, femininity and reticence appeared to be related. The results of the discriminant analysis suggested that 94.6% of the reticents could be correctly classified using 25 items from the BSRI. This suggests the possibility of creating a screening instrument to aid in the detection of reticence. (Author/HTH)