Review for Exam 2 Comm 250 Introduction to Communication Theory Symbolic Interaction Theory SIT George Herbert Mead 1934 HUMANIST THEORY INTRApersonal Theory 1 5 What is the goal purpose of SIT to explain how humans interaction with one another create symbolic worlds and how these worlds affect behavior What are SIT s concepts and explanations How are the concepts defined How do the explanations for each concept relate to one another Mind Concept people s ability to use symbols that have common social meanings Defined shared system of verbal and nonverbal symbols organized in patterns to express thoughts and feelings Mind means people s ability to use language Explanation we cannot interact with others until we learn language language uses significant symbols with a shared meaning Through language we share meaning anticipate responses of others Example when a friend walks past and says hi how are you in order to acknowledge your presence but not to actually to stop and have a full conversation Mind reflects and creates society use language to learn norms of society change norms Mind allows thought inner conversation without social interaction we are not able to think thought allows role taking taking the perspective of others Role taking leads to empathy and the development of Self Self Concept Defined the ability to reflect on ourselves from the perspective of others by thinking about how others think about us humans are not born with self concept Explanation Self develops from role taking which is taking the perspective of others Looking Glass Self Cooley 1912 looking in the mirror and seeing your reflection and thinking what do others think of me looking glass self is also known as reflected appraisals Pygmalion effect living up to other people s expectations to the labels we are given We become what others define us as Society Concept Explanation exists prior to individuals Defined the web of social relationships humans create created by individuals interacting creates individual selfs Particular Others Significant Others Family Spouse Generalized Others society as a whole Example Polite People Kind People What research has been generated from SIT Chicago School George Herbert Mead and Herbert Blumer Iowa School Manford Kuhn The New Iowa School Carl Couch Quantitative Method 20 statement test Qualitative Method case studies histories non directive interviews Qualitative Method disagreed with Manford Kuhn videotaped conversations How do symbolic interactionist theorists define communication Relate to issues involved in defining communication define communication as need symbols correspondence must be human to human but most importantly has to include COGNITION THOUGHT AND PERCEPTION What are SIT s metatheoretical assumptions Ontological Do humans make choices real choices YES Is human experience individual or social SOCIAL Is human experience contextualized YES Epistemological Axiological qualitative testing use of Case Study Will say that values play a part because it was humanist Is SIT a good theory i e evaluate SIT using the evaluation criteria presented in class Scope is too Broad Precision Ignores important concepts emotions self esteem evaluation of self The Coordinated Management of Meaning CMM Goal Purpose of CMM Pearce 1 Pearce Harris Cronen 1980 INTRApersonal Theory 2 5 To explain how people co create meaning in conversation Explanation in CMM People use rules to create and interpret meaning Use different rules to get different meanings Meaning is constantly coordinated focuses on the relationship between an individual and his or her society Assumptions guiding CMM People create systems of meaning not a systems theory people organize meaning hierarchically Temporally the beginning and end of the conversation in order to understand People co create a social reality Behavior is not interpretable except in context of larger system Personal Meaning meaning that we create ourselves Interpersonal Meaning meaning that we co create with other people Hierarchy of Meaning Content words that we use that have meaning Speech Acts what we do to other people based on language words we use intent behind words Contract relationship that the people of a conversation have Episodes Punctuation clear beginning and end of conversations Life Scripts help to determine meaning past experiences similar to idea of field of experience Cultural Patterns type of life script via culture what s polite not polite based on your cultural upbringing According to the theory how is meaning coordinated between people Through conversation and the messages we send and receive What are the three outcomes that can occur when people try to coordinate meaning Coordinated meaning partially coordinated meaning non coordinated meaning Coordination of meaning depends on what three things sense of morality ethics available resources following rules How do they work in the coordination of meaning The use of rules in the CMM What are rules according to the theory What are constitutive definition rules and regulative behavior rules Constitutive rules are about definitions they tell you what a message should mean within a given context Note that I love you to a SO or a coworker means different things Regulative rules are guidelines for behavior Based on the meaning of the words how is the person expected to respond I love you to a SO means you now expect to be taken on dates introduced to the family etc How do they function in the coordination of meaning I think they allow you a way to process communication provide a common symbolic framework and give opportunity for choice What research has been done to support CMM There has been research in intercultural communication interpersonal relationships families organizations and therapeutic situations Evaluation of CMM i e evaluate the theory using the evaluation criteria presented in class and in your text Good it s a communication theory not sociology It is valid Bad It is too broad Inconsistent it says we create unique language systems but we share a language system How do CMM theorists define communication Relate to issues involved in defining communication They define communication as involving cognition thought perception being human to human involving ESPECIALLY correspondence What are CMM s metatheoretical assumptions Ontological Epistemological Axiological Ontological Do humans make choices real choices YES Is human experience individual or social SOCIAL Is human
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