The purpose of this study was to examine student use of conflict-handling styles in regard to four perceived instructor communicative characteristics: clarity, relevance, caring, and verbal aggressiveness. Participants were 286 undergraduate students who (a) completed a series of four instruments in reference to a course instructor and (b) indicated the likelihood of using each of the five conflict-handling styles with the same instructor if a conflict arose. The results indicated that students who perceive their instructors as engaging in clarity, relevance, and caring, but not verbal aggressiveness, are likely to use the collaborating and compromising conflict-handling styles with them. Moreover, it was found that students who perceive their instructors as engaging in verbal aggressiveness and, to a much lesser extent, relevance are likely to use the competing and, to a lesser extent, the accommodating and avoiding conflict-handling styles with them. Future research should consider examining the link between students' communicative characteristics and their conflict-handling styles. (Contains 1 table.)