OSU COMM 111 - Final Study Guide

COMM 111 Final Study GuideWhy we communicate? Needs-Physical Needs: Health (physical & mental)-Relational Needs-Social Interactions-Identity Needs: Negotiating identity-Spiritual Needs-Instrumental NeedsStigma: A characteristic that discredits a person, making him or her be seen as abnormal or undesirable.Action Model: Thinking of communication in terms of a one-way process. (Channel Lean)-One way: One person sends message (announcement)-Two way: One person sends message, someone else gets message and sends one back (tennis match, texts)Transactional Model: Both people in conversation are simultaneously sources and receivers. Conversation flows in both directions at the same time. Face to face; includes body language and eye contact. (Channel Rich)Source: Person with thought or idea to communicateEncode: Put the idea into language or a gesture that the receiver can understand.Channel: The pathway through which the message is conveyed.Receiver: The person who receives and interprets the message.Feedback: Verbal and non-verbal responses to a message.Noise: Anything that interferes with the encoding or decoding of a message.-Physical Noise: Sounds in environment-Psychological Noise: Thoughts in our heads-Physiological Noise: Something having to do with our body (Being sick, tired, hungry, etc)Context: The physical or psychological environment in which communication occurs.Channel-Rich Context: A communication context involving many channels at once.Channel-Lean Context: A communication context involving few channels at once.Content Dimension: Literal information that is communicated by message.Relational Dimension: Signals about the relationship in which a message is being communicated. Metacommunication: Communication about communication.Implicit Rule: A rule about behavior that has not been clearly articulated but is nonetheless understood.Explicit Rule: A rule about behavior that has been clearly articulated.Myths of Communication:1) Communication is a natural abilitya. Takes practice, work, culturalization.2) Communication will solve any problemsa. Sometimes makes problems worse.3) Communication can break downa. Can still communicate when things “break down”, it just becomes more toxic.4) Communication is inherently gooda. Can be used as weapon, to dehumanize, cause pain, or hurt others.5) More communication is always bettera. Sometimes it’s better to stop talking, exit situation.Skills for communication competence:1) Self-monitoring: Awareness of self and how choices are affecting others2) Self-Awareness: Person is competent and effective, reaches goal in interaction, and adapts to situation.Cognitive Complexity: The ability to understand a given situation in multiple ways.Empathy: Ability to understand another person’s perspective.Sympathy: Feeling the same as the other person.Culture: The system of learned and shared symbols, language, values, and norms that distinguish one group of people from another.In-group: The culture/group of people you feel belong to.Out-group: A culture/group of people you don’t belong to.Ethnocentrism: Preference for ones own group over another, systematically, and judgementally. Cannot see other groups views.Co-culture Group (Subculture): Group that shares values and customs but are a smaller group inside of a larger culture.Hofstede: German theorist who created cultural categories:1) High-Power vs. Low-Power: How people recognize and whether they accept that some people have more power than others.a. High-Power Distance- Much or most of the power is concentrated in a few people, such as royalty or a ruling political party.b. Low-Power Distance- Power is not highly concentrated in specific groups of people. 2) Individualistic vs. Collectivistic:a. Individualistic- Primary emphasis is to take care of self and to take responsibility for self. Pre-dominant in the U.S.b. Collectivistic- Be successful so you can provide for family, community, etc. 3) Monochronic vs. Polychronic: a. Monochronic- See time as finite, that it can be wasted, saved, earned, etc. (U.S.)b. Polychronic- See time as infinite, endless resource there to serve you.4) Masculine vs. Feminine Cultures:a. Masculine- People cherish traditional masculine characteristics such as ambition, achievement, and the acquisition of material goods. Prefer men to hold the wage-earning and decision-making positions and women to hold nurturing positions. b. Feminine- People value nurturance, quality of life, and service to others. Believe men’s and women’s roles should not be strongly differentiated. Uncertainty Avoidance: Degree to which people find new or unfamiliar situations problematic.Edward T. Hall: Specialty is non-verbal communication. 1) Low-Context vs. High-Context:a. Low- Verbal communication is expected to be explicit and is often interpreted literally. (U.S.)b. High- Verbal communication is often ambiguous, and meaning is drawn from contextual cues, such as facial expressions and tone of voice.Gender and Communication:1) Gender Role: Set of expectations for appropriate behavior that a culture typically assigns to an individual based on his or her biological sex.a. Masculine Gender Role: Emphasizes strength, risk taking, sexual aggressiveness, dominance, competition, and logical thinking.i. Create Hierarchy and are aggressive.b. Feminine Gender Role: Emphasizes expressive, nurturing behavior.i. Girls work in groups to create equality.ii. Subtle differences in power structure.iii. Secrets are glue.Expressive Talk: Verbal communication whose purpose is to express emotions and build relationships.Instrumental Talk: Verbal communication whose purpose is to solve problems and accomplish tasks.Self-Concept: list of how we define ourselves (relatively stable).Self-Esteem: Judgment of the list.Social Comparison: Fulfilling expectations of group and process of comparing oneself with others.Reflected Appraisal: The process whereby a person’s self-concept is influences by his or her beliefs concerning what other people think of the person. What we take on as part of our self-identity. Has to come from someone we trust.Reference Groups: The groups of people with whom one compares oneself in the process of social comparison.Self-Fulfilling Prophecy: Expectations influence your behavior to make the outcome more likely to occur, when it otherwise may not have. 1) Hold expectation2) Behave in accordance to expectation3) Expectation happens4) Reinforces original expectation-Self imposed: