This edition is designed to increase students' confidence and credibility in communicating in a range of communication situations. The text integrates and applies the principles of effective communication common in all contexts by first developing the basic skills common to every type of oral communication and then showing how to adapt these skills to each type of interaction, culminating in effective presentation of formal speeches. Ethics, adaptation, diversity, and critical and creative thinking are common threads throughout all discussions (which include well-developed coverage of theory and research findings), and skill-building exercises and activities designed for individual, dyadic, and group work.