This study develops a self-report inventory of public speaking apprehension that establishes measures of content, construct, and predictive validity. An item pool was generated by students that were anxious about giving speeches, and the resulting instrument was then administered to the general student population and factor analyzed. Each factor was also used as an independent variable in a regression equation predicting skill temperature prior to and during speaking episodes. Results indicate that students and researchers perceive the speaking experience differently, that cognitively perceived apprehension is factorially complex (characterized by prior apprehension, avoidance, and tension), and that scales resulting from the procedure predict skin temperature moderately well. Implications for further research are discussed. (Author/RL)