introduction

defining communication

communication

let’s draw our map

being the communicator

as you move through life communicating with lots of people in numerous settings, you bring yourself to the encounter; you most often look at the situation from your own perspective as a communicator

in western society, the individual assumes tremendous importance as the key player in social life

... questions

- who am I as a communicator?

- what resources enable me to communicate?

- how do other people view my behavior?

- how does my communication change as I move from one situation to another?

the message

in much human communication, words have a function beyond mere transfer of information

the message has value as an act

... questions

- how is the message structured and delivered?

- what symbols and words does it include?

- how is it interpreted?

conversation

for most people, conversations are informal, everyday interactions

in communication theory, the term has a special meaning; it is an interaction sequence with a defined beginning and end, turn taking, and some sort of purpose or a set of goals

conversations are governed by rules, they have structure and display coherence and sense

(contin.)

conversations include:

- social talk;

- debates and arguments;

- problem-solving efforts;

- conflict episodes;

- romantic exchanges;

- any other type of discourse in which communicators use language and nonverbal communication to interact with one another

workshop

choose a topic to discuss as group; focus on a specific aspect and develop a conversation about it

relationships

conversations are rarely isolated; instead they are connected to one another over time and create communication context much larger than any one conversation

these larger contexts include: relationships, groups, organizations, media, culture and society

in general

people are fascinated with relationships because they differ greatly

some of relationships are easy and comfortable and others are hard and controlled

relationships change and evolve, often dramatically, and such changes have the ability to affect us in significant ways

issues at stake

we must constantly decide how much information about ourselves to share with others in relationships

sometimes we really feel like sharing something private with a friend and other times we feel more guarded

we negotiate what topics you can talk about and what levels of information can be revealed, not only between ourselves but also with others outside the relationship

managing differences

the tension between disclosure and privacy is only one example of a difference we have to manage effectively in relationships

we often feel confused about:

-whether we should be dependent or independent

-whether we should keep things the way are or change them

-whether we should be an individual or be part of a couple

broadest context

every act of communication – whether personal or mediated – is affected by and contributes to large social forms and patterns

because the social and cultural context of communication is so huge, we often don’t see it

the forest

we lose our view of the forest when we concentrate too much on individual trees

how we understand and how we act are very much shaped by the language of our culture

language

language is not an inert medium for transmitting information but affects and is affected by daily interaction

patterns of interaction among friends, in communities, and throughout society determine lines of influence, which, in turn, shape our values, opinions, and behavior

culture

cultural difference is palpable, but we may not be used to thinking of ourselves as cultural beings whose sense of identity and how we relate to others is a product of some combination of cultures that impact ourselves

workshop

let’s reflect on how the social and cultural context may affect acts of communication

source

Littlejohn, S. W. & Foss, K. A. (2008) Theories of Human Communication (9th edition).

thank you very much

for your attention