Measuring Telephone Apprehension

Abstract

This article introduces the concept of telephone apprehension, argues that the concept is potentially useful to management scholars, and reports a series of five studies that yield a reliable and valid self-report instrument for measuring telephone apprehension, the Telephone Apprehension Measure (TAM). The first two studies demonstrate the reliability and validity of the TAM for college undergraduates. The third study uses the TAM to explore a possible etiology of telephone apprehension among employed adults. The fourth study combines and reanalyzes data from the earlier studies to rigorously evaluate the TAM, exposing both strengths and weaknesses and yielding a more efficient version of the test. The final study demonstrates the ability of the TAM to predict telephone use among practicing managers.