Beyond Silence: Developing a Multidimensional Communication Avoidance Scale for Higher Education

Background Face-to-face communication remains crucial in academic settings, yet university students encounter significant challenges in personal interactions. Despite the importance of interpersonal communication, existing measurement tools fail to comprehensively address the complex psychological, cultural, and linguistic barriers students experience. This study aimed to develop and validate a specialized scale to assess face-to-face communication avoidance among university students, providing a nuanced understanding of the factors influencing their communicative behaviors. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted at Al-Azhar University, recruiting 411 students from two Education faculties. Participants completed a 43-item questionnaire designed to measure communication avoidance tendencies. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were employed to validate the scale's structure. Statistical techniques included Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin test, Bartlett's Test of Sphericity, factor loadings calculation, and reliability coefficient assessment. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 27.0 and AMOS version 26.0, with significance set at p < .05. Results The analysis revealed a robust three-factor structure explaining 47.836% of total variance: Situational Triggers (16.597%), Social Conformity Anxiety (16.319%), and Social Introversion (14.921%). Factor loadings ranged from .565 to .775 across dimensions. The scale demonstrated exceptional psychometric properties, with McDonald's ω values between 0.877 and 0.898, Cronbach's α between 0.876 and 0.897, and a Composite Reliability of 0.854. Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the model's excellent fit, with indices including CMIN/DF of 1.721 and RMSEA of 0.042. Conclusions The Face-to-Face Communication Avoidance Scale provides a sophisticated, culturally sensitive instrument for understanding communication barriers in university settings. By illuminating the multidimensional nature of communication avoidance, the scale offers researchers and educators a powerful tool for developing targeted interventions that support students' communicative development and promote more inclusive academic environments.