COMM 111 Final Study Guide Why we communicate Needs Physical Needs Health physical mental Relational Needs Social Interactions Identity Needs Negotiating identity Spiritual Needs Instrumental Needs Stigma 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 communicate Encode 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 ability a Takes practice work culturalization 2 Communication will solve any problems a Sometimes makes problems worse 3 Communication can break down more toxic 4 Communication is inherently good a Can still communicate when things break down it just becomes a Can be used as weapon to dehumanize cause pain or hurt others 5 More communication is always better a Sometimes it s better to stop talking exit situation Skills for communication competence 1 Self monitoring Awareness of self and how choices are affecting others 2 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 etc U S 3 Monochronic vs Polychronic a Monochronic See time as finite that it can be wasted saved earned 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 expectation 2 Behave in accordance to expectation 3 Expectation happens 4 Reinforces original expectation Self imposed Making yourself act differently Expectations of others Someone else makes you act differently Image Management Process of projecting one s desired public image Face Needs Components of one s