Communiation in Everyday Life, Third edition
by Steve Duck and David McMahan
Chapter 1-An Overview of Everyday Communication
Caption Answer
Is the connection between relationships and communication really significant?
Yes. Relationships would not exist without communication, and communication would
not be nearly as important without relationships. Significant parts of every individual’s
life take place through routine, seemingly mundane everyday communication.
Is communication simply the exchange of messages?
No. While it does include the exchange of messages, that explanation is far too simple.
Communication involves the exchange of symbols, so miscommunication can occur if
there is not agreement on these symbols. Further, communication as the exchange of
messages does not account for feedback, noise, or the two-way nature of
communication.
As close to a moose placed on a pole as we are going to get, this particular traffic sign is
actually warning motorists of a moose crossing rather than instructing them to stop. Are
traffic signs really signs, or are they symbols?
Traffic signs are symbols because there is no direct connection between that symbol
and the particular behavior they are communicating to drivers (or pedestrians).
What type of communication context involves physical locations? The physical context, or the actual location in which a symbol is used.
Many conversations between close friends are “framed” by previous experiences and
conversations–hence, the phrase “frame of reference.” In what ways can you deduce
that these women are friends and that they therefore share some history together that
frames their interaction?
The women are probably old friends as demonstrated by their physical closeness, close
gaze, mirroring of posture (all holding their glasses with both hands at about the same
height), and obvious enjoyment of the conversation. The fact that the speaker is looking
at the listener while talking from such a close distance is a sign of intimacy.
Would sending a text message be considered an act, an interaction, or a transaction? Sending the text message would be an act.
Chapter 2-Histories and Contexts of Communication
Caption Answer
When looking at images such as this one, changes in focus will lead to changes in what
is observed and how it is seen. How might this be similar to the development of
histories?
This image changes depending on what part of it the viewer is focusing on. This is like
history in that histories differ depending on the stories or experiences we are
examining.
It is important that students of communication be aware of some of the challenges still
facing the discipline and work together to address and overcome these challenges.
What are these challenges?
Some of the challenges facing the discipline include varied histories, a variety of sub-
disciplines, negative stereotypes, and disagreement within scholars are areas of
communication.
Why are college students the participants in most research?
College students are the participants in most research because they are what is referred
to as a convenient sample. This means they are nearby and easily accessible to those
doing research, often University faculty.
What advantage might gathering data through interviews have over gathering data
through a questionnaire?
Some advantages of interviews over questionnaires include the ability of researchers to
ask follow-up questions and the option to probe deeper into the information being
provided.
Chapter 3-Identities, Perceptions, and Communication
Caption Answer
How do daily interactions with other people form or sustain your identity? What is
being communicated here about gender, identity, and culture?
We learn how to perform our identities through our interactions with others, and those
identities are reinforced by being around those like us. In this image, the father figure is
demonstrating an aspect of masculine identity (shaving ones face) with a son figure.
How many people in this photo are performing a social role and its accompanying
identity requirements? Be sure to justify your answer.
Both the woman in the car and police officer are performing a social role. Both are
“acting in ways that both society
and they perceive to be associated with a certain
identity.” The police officer is performing the role of law enforcement by pulling the
woman over (likely for breaking a traffic law). The woman is performing the social role
of a citizen who has been pulled over: keeping her hands on the wheel and
communicating with the officer.
What is meant by a symbolic self, and why do we have to account to other people for
who we are?
Your identity represents something symbolic to other people, and arises from your
interaction with others. We have to account to other people because we share
meanings.
How do you explain the fact that a person can experience different sides of self and
hold different views simultaneously?
We can experience different sides of self and hold different views because we
have many aspects of our individual personalities and identities.
How is your sense of identity represented by connections to the past?
Our sense of identity can be represented by connections to the past through origin
stories. These stories, which, have a narrative structure that builds off a sense of origin
and a sense of continuity, are often one of the first ways we shape and build our
identities.
Chapter 4-Verbal Communication
Caption Answer
Why might this pairing of street signs be amusing to a citizen in the United States, and
what is taken for granted by those who understand the joke?
The U.S. Constitution stipulates the separation of church and state, but this pair of
street signs indicates that this is the point where Church and State intersect. Someone
who finds it amusing would have to know about the U.S. Constitution and the fact that
Americans do not say the word street when talking about the intersection of two roads.
What factors might be influencing the conversation of these two people?
There are a variety of factors that may be influencing the conversation between these
two. First, we must consider their relationship. It appears they are a trainer and client,
which likely means they are not close friends. Further, we should consider the context,
looking at the specific language that nay be used in the context of athletic training.
The woman on the left is telling her friend how the chaos around her house prevents
her from ever having time to herself. Her friend is assuring her that her concerns sound
warranted and that she is a valuable person. Alternative scenario : The friend tells her to
stop complaining and get over herself. Which cultural styles of talk does each of these
two scenarios demonstrate?
The first scenario is an example of feminine talk that is nurturing, supportive, and
harmonious. The second alternative scenario is an example of tough masculine talk.
People tell stories every day whether about the crazy commute that made them late to
work or a funny interaction with a checkout clerk. How do you know that one of the
people in this photo is telling a story, and what role does storytelling seem to play in
their relationship?
The individuals are relaxed, indicating a friendship and shared bond. Everyone is looking
at the person in the center, who seems to be mid-comment. Those listening to the
woman seem amused and interested. Amusement and interest about the
narration/storytelling serve to bond the friendship.
Talk in friendships or relationships can be described in terms of three functions:
instrumental, indexical, and essential. Which function of talk would you use to describe
the two students in this photo?
Indexical or essential function; they seem very at ease and familiar in speaking with
each other.
Chapter 5-Nonverbal Communication
Caption Answer
What features of nonverbal communication can you use to form an impression of this
person?
There are both static cues and dynamic cues. Static features include his military gear
and lack of facial hair. Dynamic cues include his serious facial expression and crossed
arms.
How can body art be both cultural and personal?
Body art can be cultural in its representation of culture, but it can also be viewed and
interpreted differently depending on culture. It is personal in that an individual tattoo
can mean something completely different to different people.
How can nonverbal communication regulate interactions by beginning or ending a
conversation?
Nonverbal communication regulates interaction first through recognition (we recognize
someone as the individual he or she is by sight, by touch), and then there are various
rituals of behavior that begin interactions (catching someone’s eye, handshakes, or
poinring,) and behaviors that are used to end interactions, such as a handshake, a bow,
or a wave.
Although people do not always have as much space as they would like, what term is
used to represent the need for people to establish space as their own?
Territoriality is the establishment and maintenance of space that people claim for their
personal use.
Notice the difference between these two photos. The first photo is a scene from a
Western city in which people are noticeably uncomfortable with their lack of personal
space. The second photo captures Japanese train pushers whose job is to cram as many
people onto the subway car as possible. Little consideration is given to personal space in
this Eastern city. What imaginary aura that people regard as part of themselves is
obviously more restricted in the latter photo?
The body buffer zone is the imaginary aura that people regard as part of themselves
that is more restricted in the second photo.
What nonverbal communication seems to indicate that these two people like each
other?
You can tell they like each other from at least the following: physical closeness, and
smiling at an intimate distance. Their similar dress codes and open postures indicate
comfort with each other.
Chapter 6-Culture and Communication
Caption Answer
The view that one’s own cultural styles of communication are the normal ways of
communicating and the other ways of communicating are variations of normal
communication is known as what type of bias?
This is known as the ethnocentric bias.
The Harajuku area of Tokyo is a popular destination for teenagers, many of whom dress
in such cultural styles as Gothic Lolita, visual kei, and decora. Are artifacts such as
clothing the primary distinctions between cultural groups?
These artifacts demonstrate the consistency and distinctiveness of behavior that helps
distinguish specific cultural groups.
Continuously looking at clocks, this man seems very concerned about time. Would his
perception of time be considered monochronic of polychronic?
It appears that this man views time as a commodity, and is concerned about deadlines
and timetables. This means he would view time from a monochronic perspective.
The person on the left did not want to engage in conflict, so he did not say anything
when his friend wanted to order a pizza topping he did not like. What cultural
orientation to conflict do his actions represent, and what style did he use to manage the
conflict?
The person on the left appears to have a conflict-as-destructive view, evident by his
choice to avoid it. We can also see he is using the avoiding conflict management style by
not even mentioning he did not want the same topping.
Would someone studying biker culture within the United States be more likely to take a
structural approach to culture or a transacted approach to culture?
Someone studying biker culture would be likely using a transacted approach, as any
group with a system of shared meaning can be considered a culture through this
viewpoint.
How might break time at a factory be an opportunity to learn about and enact cultural
membership within this culture?
As cultural groups are groups are recognized and differentiated through their unique
communication and meaning systems, hearing how people talk during break time, and
what they talk about would be a way to learn and enact cultural membership.
Chapter 7-Listening
Caption Answer
Enabling someone to talk about a problem or concern is known as what type of
listening?
Enabling someone to talk about a problem or concern is known as therapeutic listening.
Customer service representatives often appear to be listening actively, but they do not
really understand the point of view of the customer. If they attempted to make a
personal connection with the customer and actively worked to create shared
understanding, what type of listening would they be doing?
If they did attempt to make a personal connection and worked to create shared
understanding, they would likely be using engaged listening.
Are there some types of relationships or areas of life that do not require critical
evaluation?
No. All relationships and even the most mundane parts of life require critical evaluation.
Why are wandering thoughts so common?
Listeners are able to process information at a faster rate than people generally
speak.Wandering thoughts are so common because we can process words much faster
than they can be spoken, making it easy for us to lose focus.
Chapter 8-Personal Relationships
Caption Answer
How does your end-of-day communication with other people transact your
relationships? How are the relationships between people here conveyed and transacted
in talk?
The end of day communication represented here shows a woman communicating with
someone (perhaps a long distance relationship) before bed. This could show the act of
catching one another up on the activities of the day, or simply saying goodnight.
How do relationships grow or change, and how does this show up in talk?
People self-disclose their inner thoughts, secrets, worries, and concerns as they become
closer. This conversation between friends (look at the distance between them, the place
where the talk is happening, and their postures) seems intense and deep, not shallow
and uninvolving.
The man in this photo just said, “We’ll see you this weekend.” Which type of relational
continuity constructional unit is being displayed here?
This is an example of a prospective units because it provides recognition that an
interaction is about to end but the relationship continues (in this case, this weekend).
As relationships come apart, people, especially couples, find it harder to interact and
tend to become more hostile and unsympathetic in their behaviors toward each other.
What are the signs that these partners are in distress about their relationship?
The expressions on the two people’s faces are clear, with the man scowling and the
woman in the middle of an agressive comment. The hand placement indicates
disagreement, with the man in a more defensive pose, and the women acting as if she is
trying to make a point to him.
Do relationships develop and break down in linear fashion? No, relationships do not break down linearly, though people often report as if they do.
Chapter 9-Family Communication
Caption Answer
How many different types of family can you identify in this illustration? Are there any
that are omitted, and would you have included all those that are illustrated here?
This example shows twenty different families, but it does not include all possible family
structures. For example, none of the famlies show children and pets, or adult children
and elderly parents.
Families come in many forms. What three forms of family are depicted in this
photography?
The three forms of family shown are nuclear; nontraditional family with two same-sex
parents, possibly blended; and family of choice.
What could these children learn from the stories told about their mother’s experiences
in the military?
They learn to value the world in a way that the mother does (service, duty, and
allegiance to the country), but they also learn about the changing role of women in
society, as military service used to be only a “man’s job”.
What might the children be learning from seeing their parents fight like this?
The children may be learning about the instability of marriage, they may be learning
about power struggles within a relationship, or they may be learning about what is
appropriate and not appropriate to see, hear, or say in a family environment.
What problems might “weekend parents” experience in handling their kids.”
They may have to live in a place that is too small to accommodate a whole family; they
may have different rules about behavior; they may not want to be painted as the “bad
parent” so they let the kids get spoiled; and they may have parallel lives that involve
them with other people or with work that distracts them from their parental role on
weekends.
Chapter 10-Groups and Leaders
Caption Answer
What exactly is a group, and what makes it different from an assembly, a collective, or a
team? How many of each of these can you see in this picture?
A group has a common purpose, and members are aware of each other, have
organization, and communicate with one another. All the baseball players and the
umpire are members of a “baseball group.” A collective may have a common purpose
but lacks organization, so the audience is a collective. Each side in the game is a team as
well as a group, since the members (presumably) care for one another’s welfare and
play together more effectively by creating chances for each other or not trying to do it
all on their own.
Sidelining a player for an offense during a soccer game is a good example of a particular
group behavior. What is that?
Sidelining a player is a good example of a group sanction, or a punishment for violating
norms.
What (usually undesirable) characteristic of groups is depicted in this photograph?
This image shows a cohesive group, which can be positive, but can also fall victim to
groupthink.
Three Scotsmen in 1877 judge a prize canary, their equivalent of a beauty pageant.
Which of Fisher’s stages do they portray?
This could be an example of conflict or emergence, as it is clear they are discussing the
canary, but it is not clear if consensus has been reached (or is even emerging).
Which communicative and relational skills make a leader a good leader?
The ability to identify with the audience shows understanding of their concerns, a
sharing of their feelings, and having answers that will work. A good leader focuses
people on issues, motivates them to address solutions, and helps achieve their goals.
Leadership is not in a person but is transacted between people, as the leader acts as
steward of their interests, for the moment.
Chapter 11-Communication in the Workplace
Caption Answer
What is this picture telling us about the nature of work and the glossy expectations of
professional success? How is it sending messages of what professionals look like and
what they do?
This picture tells us that real professionals are young and good looking and well dressed.
She is sitting in a causual but professional way. It also demonstrates the increasing
diversity of the workplace, showing a non-white woman.
In what ways might personal relationships at work have a negative effect on
productivity?
Relationships at work can be engrossing to the extent that they take people away from
their main tasks; when one of the people feels bad, the other may also feel bad, so the
effect is doubled; the people in a relationship may become suspects to their coworkers
who may know about an affair but be unsure whether to tell the management. Finally, if
the relationship breaks up, then both people may lose their ability to concentrate on
their work or get on collegially, especially if they have to stay working in the same
workplace.
Chapter 12-Health Communication
Caption Answer
How might the development of each patient–provider relational identity facilitate this
patient’s disclosure about his concerns to his therapist? What are the risks of each
approach?
A machine-mechanic relationship may allow the therapist to quickly narrow in on the
patient’s concerns, but minimizing patient activities may overlook deeper or even the
actual problems. A children-parents relationship may provide comfort to some patients
but again may cause a provider to miss fundamental problems. A consumer relationship
will increase patient activity and involvement, but sometimes providers know best. A
partner relationship will allow patients and providers to work together to solve the
problem. It may take additional time and work but is often worth the extra efforts.
Elderly patients or those undergoing complex treatments sometimes have difficulty
remembering the regimen of pills and medications they should take. How could a
physician facilitate a patient’s adherence to the prescribed treatment?
Effective patient-provider relationships increase the likelihood that patients will adhere
to treatments. Specifically, patient-provider interactions that include clear treatment
information, agreement about treatment options, patient participation, and provider
empathy and encouragement will increase the likelihood that patients will follow
treatment regimens and other lifestyle recommendations.
In what ways can relationships support a patient’s health?
Benefits received through social support can be linked to specific types of support.
Action-facilitating support can provide information to increase knowledge and
understanding of health issues as well as assistance with tasks. Nurturing support can
enable people to express feelings and have those feelings validated as well as enhance
self-image and esteem.
In what ways do people use the Internet in connection with health issues?
The Internet is used to seek out information regarding health issues, as a coping
mechanism, and as a source of support.
Chapter 13-Technology and Media in Everyday Life
Caption Answer
What social influence may be influencing the use of technology in this picture?
The generations in which these gentlemen were born will likely influence their
perceptions and use of technology. Their current work or school status will likely also
play a role.
Do you think using the Internet as a family will become a shared media experience like
watching television as a family?
While using the internet as a family may be more difficult than watching television
together, this is slowly changing. For example, many people use streaming internet
services to watch films and programs instead of television.
In what ways could the use of a smartphone create share experiences?
Smartphones can create shared experiences though the ability to communicate and
connect with them (IM, text, video chat, etc). Further, individuals can send one another
links, videos, memes, etc. in order to share these experiences even if they are not in the
same physical location.
What activities are related to identity construction on social networking sites such as
Facebook?
Social networking sites are used to establish and maintain relationships, as well as
create identities.
In what ways does a webcam affect the nature of online communication?
Webcams increase the richness of online interaction by increasing the number of
nonverbal cues available. They also enable online communication to become more
synchronous.
Chapter 14-Public and Personal Influence
Caption Answer
Can public and personal influence be studied without considering relationships? No, you must consider relationships when studying both public and personal influence.
How does this presenter’s appearance emphasize a connection with his audience of
students?
This presenter’s appearance is similar to that of his students, emphasizing a connection.
He is wearing a formal shirt, but it is un-tucked and loose, making it more casual and
similar to that of students. Further, his body language is open and expressive, not
formal and stiff.
The woman in this photo turned down the volunteer’s initial request to become a
volunteer herself but did agree to the smaller request to sign a petition. What method
of sequential persuasion may have been used here? If she agreed to the second request
because she did not want to be viewed in a negative way, what would this be called?
The method of sequential persuasion used by the volunteer would be door in the face.
This strategy worked because of self-presentation.
Is the use of emotion something that involves only internal feelings? No. Emotion is also a symbolic and relational phenomenon.
This man is attempting to get this woman to comply by reminding her that they are best
friends. Which compliance gaining strategy is he using?
The compliance gaining strategy being used is activation of personal commitments.
Chapter 15-Interviewing
Caption Answer
What is the difference between information-gathering interviews such as the one
pictured her and persuasive interviews? Is the difference always obvious to the person
being interviewed?
Information-gathering interviews are intended to simply gain information from the
other person. Persuasive interviews have influence as the final goal. It is not always
obvious to the interviewee if the interviewer is gathering information or attempting to
persuade them.
The person in this picture is reviewing application material before interviewing a job
candidate. What are the other responsibilities of an interviewer before the interview?
In addition to reviewing application materials, the interviewer should also prepare
questions and an interview outline, gather materials and begin the interview on time.
If an interviewee arrives early for an interview, is it a good idea for him or her to catch
up on rest while waiting?
No, this could backfire if you do not wake in time, or if you are seen sleeping it could
communicate a lack of professionalism. Instead, use that time to use the restroom, have
a drink of water, make sure your phone is off, or run through practice questions in your
head.
Would keeping his hands clasped throughout the interview improve or diminish the
interviewee’s chances of being offered the position?
While he could be using worse body language such as slouching or tapping his leg, the
man should be incorporating meaningful gestures and supporting interviewer
comments with positive nonverbal feedback such as nodding and smiling.
Is it the responsibility of the interviewer or the interviewee to bring a formal end to the
interview?
It is the responsibility of the interviewer to bring the formal end to the interview.