The role of rhetorical elements in interpersonal communication in forming the personal image of academics (The case of Sakarya University)

Communication is a basic element that an individual must have in order to survive in society. Rhetoric is the ability to speak effectively and persuasively. An individual with this skill can easily express himself in the society, convey his message to the target and at the same time gain a strong place and impression in the society. Personal image is the impression that an individual leaves from the moment he or she communicates. The role of communication in the formation of personal image is indisputable. Strengthening the personal image depends on the effective use of the rhetorical elements of the individual in the context of communication. Within the scope of the research, a study was conducted on the role of rhetorical elements used by academicians in the context of interpersonal communication in the formation of academics' personal image. In this context, literature studies on rhetoric and personal image constituted the theoretical part of the research. The field application part of the research was the questionnaire study applied to Sakarya University Communication Faculty students, and the data obtained at the end of the study were evaluated with the IBM SPSS Statistics 25 package program. While the research population consists of 52,914 students of Sakarya University, the research sample consists of the students of Sakarya University Faculty of Communication, which consists of 323 people. Quantitative analysis method was used in the research and the data were collected through a questionnaire. When the results of the research were evaluated, it was revealed that Sakarya University Communication Faculty students see the use of rhetorical elements in interpersonal communication as an effective tool in the formation of the personal image of academicians.