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Chapter 2: Thinking about the Field: Traditions and Contexts
West, Introducing Communication Theory, 6e
Chapter 2
Thinking About the Field: Traditions and
Contexts
Chapter Outline
I. Seven Traditions in the Communication Field
• Robert Craig (Craig, 1999; Craig and Muller, 2007) outlines communication theory in one
of the more thoughtful, intellectually valuable ways, assisting people in understanding
“themselves, their society, and their culture in a communicative way” (Garcia-Jimenez &
Craig, 2010, p. 430).
• Craig terms the discussed framework (refer to Figure 2.1) as “traditions” to highlight the
belief that theoretical development doesn’t just occur naturally.
• Craig and Muller (2007) point out, “[T]heorists invent new ideas to solve problems they
perceive in existing ideas in a particular tradition” (p. xiii). And, although traditions
suggest adhering to a historical preference, Craig and Muller are quick to point out that
traditions change frequently and, like communication, are dynamic.
A. The Rhetorical Tradition
• This tradition suggests that people are interested in public address and public speaking
and their functions in society.
• The rhetorical tradition necessarily involves elements pertaining to language and the
audience.
• The tradition also includes a discussion pertaining to audience appeals; how do audience
members respond to emotions, for example?
o To what extent does the power of language move people to emotional and
decisive action?
o How are people influenced or swayed by the appeals by mass media?
o What role does personal example play in having others accept one’s point of
view?
o What effect does speaking to a large group of people have on the perceptions or
actions of that group?
o To what extent does the rhetorical tradition challenge the common belief that
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Chapter 2: Thinking about the Field: Traditions and Contexts
“telling the plain truth is something other than the strategic adaptation of a
message to an audience”?
B. The Semiotic Tradition
• Semiotics is the study of signs.
o Signs are part of a social life; they stand for something else.
• According to the semiotic tradition, meaning is achieved when people share a common
language.
o People arrive at a communication exchange with various fields of experience and
values placed on these experiences.
o Pioneer linguist I. A. Richards (1936) observed that words are arbitrary and have
no intrinsic meaning.
o Achieving commonality in meaning is more difficult than first imagined,
particularly if one is using language that is not recognized or valued by another.
• Semiotics suggests that what people think of as “natural” or “obvious” in public
discourse needs to be considered in context.
o People’s values and belief structures are often a result of what has been passed
down from one generation to another (a tradition).
o Semiotics challenges the notion that words have appropriate meanings; indeed,
words change as the people using those words change.
C. The Phenomenological Tradition
• Phenomenology is a personal interpretation of everyday life and activities.
• Craig (2007) believes that the phenomenological tradition is marked by communication
that he contends is an “experience of otherness” (p. 79).
o What this means is that a person tries to attain authenticity by eliminating biases
in a conversation.
o Many phenomenologists believe that an individual’s system of beliefs should not
influence the dialogue taking place.
o This is quite challenging, or, as Craig points out, is a “practical impossibility”(p.
80).
D. The Cybernetic Tradition
• Communication as information science was first introduced by Shannon and Weaver,
two scholars associated with the linear model.
o What Shannon and Weaver advanced was the belief that communication involves
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Chapter 2: Thinking about the Field: Traditions and Contexts
West, Introducing Communication Theory, 6e
noise.
o Cybernetics tries to unravel the complexities of message meaning by underscoring
the unpredictability of the feedback people receive.
• Craig (2007) states: “[I]t is important for us as communicators to transcend our
• The cybernetic tradition asks people to understand that communication is not only
information processing, but also that individuals enter into communication settings with
different abilities.
E. The Socio-Psychological Tradition
• Communication theory is examined from a view that holds that someone’s behavior is
influenced by something else—something social psychologists call a “variable.”
• Craig (2007) believes that underlying this tradition is the assumption that our own
communication patterns and the patterns of others vary from one person to another.
• Carl Hovland’s work and the work of other social psychologists underscored the
importance of experimental research and trying to understand causal links.
o It is this scientific evidence for human behavior that continues to pervade much
communication theorizing from this tradition.
F. The Socio-Cultural Tradition
• The essence of the socio-cultural tradition can be summed up this way: “Our everyday
interactions with others depend heavily on preexisting, shared cultural patterns and
social structures” (Craig, 2007, p. 84).
o The core of the socio-cultural tradition suggests that individuals are parts of larger
groups who have unique rules and patterns of interaction.
o To theorize from this tradition means to acknowledge and become sensitive to the
many kinds of people who occupy this planet.
o Theorists should not instinctively nor strategically “group” people without
concern for individual identity.
• Socio-cultural theorists advocate that the binary “you/me” or “us/them” approach to
understanding people be abandoned. Instead, appealing to the co–creation of social
order/reality is a worthier goal for consideration.
o As people communicate, they produce, maintain, repair, and transform reality
(Carey, 1989).
o Dialogue and interaction must be characterized by an understanding of what Craig
West, Introducing Communication Theory, 6e
(2007) calls “voice” (p. 84), an individual point of view that inevitably finds its
way into everyday conversation.
G. The Critical Tradition
• Individuals who are concerned with injustice, oppression, power, and linguistic
dominance are those who would likely identify themselves as critical theorists.
o Critiquing the social order and imposing structures or individuals on that order are
at the heart of critical theory.
o In doing so, communicators expose the beliefs and values that guide their decision
making and actions.
H. Putting it All Together
• Scholars enter into the theory-building process with particular positions, some of which
influence the direction of the theories they construct and refine.
• Theory is not always so “clean” and therefore, there will be a hybrid of a few traditions
along the way.
II. Seven Contexts in the Communication Field
• Contexts are environments in which communication takes place.
o Contexts provide a backdrop against which researchers and theorists can analyze
phenomena.
• The discussion of context focuses on situational contexts. To suggest that a context is
communication.
• In fact, most communication departments are built around some or all of the following
seven communication contexts: intrapersonal, interpersonal, small group, organizational,
public/rhetorical, mass/media, and cultural.
A. Intrapersonal Communication
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Chapter 2: Thinking about the Field: Traditions and Contexts
• Intrapersonal communication is communication with oneself. It is an internal
dialogue and may take place even in the presence of another individual.
• Intrapersonal communication is usually more repetitive than other communication; a
• Intrapersonal communication also includes the many attributions one makes about
another person’s behavior.
• Although some people may believe that talking to oneself is a bit peculiar, Virginia
Satir (1988) believes that these internal dialogues may help individuals bolster their
self-esteem—the degree of positive orientation people have about themselves.
o Intrapersonal communication is difficult; it requires individuals to accept their
accomplishments and confront their fears and anxieties.
• The research in intrapersonal communication centers a great deal on the cognitions,
symbols, and intentions that individuals have.
2011), mother–daughter relationships (Arroyo & Andersen, 2016), stress (Wright,
2012), silence (Bisel & Arterburn, 2012), attachment (Goodboy & Bolkan, 2011), and
motivation of business executives (Millhous, 2004).
B. Interpersonal Communication
• Interpersonal communication is referred to face-to-face communication between
people.
• Investigating how relationships begin, the maintenance of relationships, and the
dissolution of relationships characterizes much of the interpersonal context.
Dickson, 2006), physician–patient relationships (Gordon & Street, 2016), and the
organization–public relationship (Ifert-Johnson & Acquavella, 2012).
o In addition, researchers are interested in a host of issues and themes (e.g., risk,
West, Introducing Communication Theory, 6e
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and mass media, organizations, and the classroom (Frymier & Houser, 2002) as
well as the role that social media (Facebook) and email play in establishing and
maintaining relationships (Lee, Choudry, Wu, Matlin, Brennan, & Schrank,
2016).
• Finally, relationships that have not been studied enough, including gay and lesbian
relationships, cohabiting relationships, and Facebook friendships and computer-
anchored relationships, are being investigated at a rapid pace in the communication field
(Bryant & Marmo, 2012; Croom, Gross, Rosen & Rosen, 2016; Muraco & Fredriksen-
Goldsen, 2011; Willoughby, Carroll, & Busby, 2012).
C. Small Group and Team Communication
• Small groups are composed of a number of people who work together to achieve some
common purpose.
• Communication theory centering on small groups frequently concerns the dynamic
nature of small groups, including group roles, boundaries, and trust.
• Researchers disagree about how many people make up a small group.
o Some scholars argue that the optimal number for a small group is five to seven
members, whereas others put no limit on the maximum number of members.
o Nearly all agree, however, that there must be at least three people for a small
group to exist (Poole, 2007; Schultz, 1996).
• Small group communication is defined as communication among at least three
individuals.
• The number in a group is not as important as the implications of that number.
• The more people, the greater the opportunity for more personal relationships to develop.
o This may influence whether small groups stay focused on their goals and whether
o Some small groups are very cohesive, which means having a high degree of
togetherness and a common bond.
o This cohesiveness may influence whether the group functions effectively and
efficiently.
o The small group context affords individuals a chance to gain multiple perspectives
on an issue.
o In problem-solving groups, or task groups in particular, many perspectives may be
advantageous.
o This exchange of multiple perspectives results in synergy, and explains why small
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Chapter 2: Thinking about the Field: Traditions and Contexts
groups may be more effective than an individual at achieving goals.
• Networking and role behavior are two important components of small group behavior.
o Networks are communication patterns through which information flows.
o These roles may be very diverse, including task leader, passive observer, active
listener, recorder, and so forth.
• Team and small group communication scholars have studied meeting management
(Rogelberg, Rhoades-Shanock, & Scott, 2012), emotional intelligence (Tajeddin,
Safayeni, Connelly, & Tasa, 2012), gossip in public school classrooms (Jaworski &
Coupland, 2005), conflict (Gross, Guerrero, & Alberts, 2004), creativity (Martins &
Shalley, 2011), and cultural diversity (Zhang & Huai, 2016).
• From peer groups to task groups to support groups, the small group experience is a
ubiquitous one.
D. Organizational Communication
• Organizational communication pertains to communication within and among large,
extended environments.
o This communication is extremely diverse in that organizational communication
necessarily entails interpersonal encounters, public speaking opportunities, small
group situations, and mediated experiences.
o Theories of organizational communication are generally concerned with the
functionality of the organization, including its climate, rules, and personnel.
• What distinguishes this context from others is that a clearly defined hierarchy exists in
most organizations.
• Hierarchy is an organizing principle whereby things or persons are ranked one above
the other.
o Organizations are unique in that much of the communication taking place is
highly structured, and role playing is often specialized and predictable.
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Chapter 2: Thinking about the Field: Traditions and Contexts
influence employee output, but so did the interpersonal relationships with other
employees and supervisors.
o One conclusion arising from these studies was that organizations should be
viewed as social entities; to speed up production, employers must consider
workers’ attitudes and feelings.
• Although the human relations approach has enjoyed a great deal of theoretical and
research attention, today there are a number of additional organizational orientations,
including cultural systems and scientific management.
• Organizational (communication) theory and research today address various eclectic
issues, including the Challenger disaster (Gouran, Hirokawa, & Martz, 1986),
uncertainty on the job (Waldeck, Seibold, & Flanagin, 2004), whistle-blowing (Miceli,
Near, Rehg, & Van Scotter, 2012), rumor (Berbary, 2012), job training (Waldron &
Lavitt, 2000), sexual harassment (McDonald & Charlesworth, 2016), and workplace
bullying (Akella, 2016).
E. Public/Rhetorical Communication
• The fifth context is known as the public communication context, or the dissemination
of information from one person to a large group.
• In public speaking, speakers usually have three primary goals in mind: to inform, to
entertain, or to persuade.
o This latter goal—persuasion—is at the core of rhetorical communication.
o Many of the principles of persuasion—including audience analysis, speaker
• Rhetoric is defined as a speaker’s available means of persuading his or her audience.
This definition was advanced many years ago by Aristotle.
o The study of rhetoric is expansive and can include the study of texts of speeches,
presidential inaugural addresses, and rhetorical analyses of cultural themes and
issues.
o Samples of rhetorical scholarship include analyses of the spanish gay and lesbian
youth on YouTube (Acevedo-Callejas, 2016), Sarah Palin’s Facebook posts
(Lawrence & Schafer, 2012), President Nixon’s speech on Vietnam (Drury,
2016), and abolitionist Frederick Douglass (Selby, 2000).
• One area in the public/rhetorical context that has received significant scholarly attention
is communication apprehension (CA), or the general sense of fear of speaking before
an audience.
o The boundaries between and among the contexts are often blurred, and CA
research is one example of that blurring. Although communication apprehension
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Chapter 2: Thinking about the Field: Traditions and Contexts
West, Introducing Communication Theory, 6e
is a public speaking concern, CA focuses on intrapersonal issues.
o Researchers have advanced ways to reduce communication apprehension.
F. Mass/Media Communication
• The sixth context is the mass communication or mediated context, which targets large
audiences.
• Mass media refers to the channels, or delivery modes, for mass messages. Mass media
include newspapers, videos, CD-ROMs, (tablet) computers, TV, radio, and so forth.
• Mass communication refers to communication to a large audience via one of these
channels of communication.
• Although mass communication frequently refers to “traditional” venues (e.g.,
newspapers), discussion is expanded by including new media, which encompasses
2007), grandparent personal websites (Harwood, 2000), and an analysis of The Daily
Show and The Colbert Report (Hmielowski, Holbert, & Lee, 2011).
• Although a large number of homes and businesses subscribe to new technologies, a gap
will always exist between those who have the resources and those who do not.
• Consequently, future mass communication theorists may have to rethink the universality
of their theories.
G. Cultural Communication
• Culture can be viewed as a “community of meaning and a shared body of local
knowledge” (Gonzalez, & Chen, 2015, p. 5).
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Chapter 2: Thinking about the Field: Traditions and Contexts
West, Introducing Communication Theory, 6e
• Cultural communication, therefore, refers to communication between and among
individuals whose cultural backgrounds vary.
• Co-cultures are groups of individuals who are part of the same larger culture, but
who—through unity and individual identification around such attributes as race,
ethnicity, sexual identity, religion, and so forth—create opportunities of their own.
o The word, co-culture, is now widely accepted in the academic community as a
replacement for subculture, a term suggesting that one culture has dominance over
another culture.
conversations (e.g., Senator Barack Obama becoming president), but these
conversations are still fraught with challenges because not everyone becomes
engaged with these dialogues.
• The cultural context differentiates itself in several ways.
o This context is the only context that specifically addresses culture.
o Study in intercultural communication context means that researchers inherently
accept the fact that human behavior is culturally based.
H. Collating the Contexts
• In discussing these seven contexts, a basic category system for dividing the broad field
of communication is provided.
• These seven categories help one discuss the communication process more clearly and
specifically.
• Yet the template is not perfect, and as noted in the discussion, there is often overlap
among the categories.
• Hence, one should not view these categories as completely exclusive and distinctive
from one another.
Classroom Activities
1. If You Were a Communication Scholar . . .
Objective: The objective is to help students differentiate between traditions in the field of
communication.
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Chapter 2: Thinking about the Field: Traditions and Contexts
Materials: None
Directions:
1. Divide the class into seven groups.
2. Assign a particular tradition to each group, and ask the students to imagine
themselves as communication scholars rooted in that particular tradition.
3. Have students discuss and write major beliefs and topics of interest for their
4. Allow class time for the groups to share and discuss their ideas.
2. Visualizing the Transactional Process in the Various Contexts of Communication
Objective: The objective is to afford students the opportunity to examine the transactional
model of communication in various communication contexts.
Materials: None
Directions:
1. In small groups, have students describe how the elements of the transactional model
of communication work in at least three different communication contexts.
2. Have the groups create a diagram for each context. In each diagram, the students
should identify all the elements and indicate how they relate to the others.
3. Have groups share their diagrams with the class, explaining the elements and their
relationships to each other.
3. Communication Contexts and Research Topics
Objective: The objective is to have students analyze their research preferences and begin to
outline research topics.
Materials: None
Directions:
2. Ask the students to specify three issues or topics related to each context they identify,
encouraging them to state their interests as questions they could answer through
