Speech Chapter 1 Communication First Look Part By Guide Communication First Look Glance

Chapter 1 Communication: A First Look

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PART II: CHAPTER-BY-CHAPTER GUIDE

Chapter 1—Communication: A First Look

2. Define the components of communication.

4. List and summarize the important characteristics of communication.

6. List and summarize common misconceptions about communication.

8. Analyze a situation for appropriate and inappropriate communication and effective

and ineffective communication

9. List and summarize the five characteristics of competent communicators.

Chapter 1 Communication: A First Look

Lecture Outline

I. Why We Communicate

A. We communicate with others to affect several dimensions of our lives.

2. We communicate to order dinner at a restaurant, negotiate a car loan, and buy

music.

3. Communication behaviors enable people to instruct us, persuade us, and

2. To adapt means to modify your behavior to accommodate what others are

doing.

4. Digital technologies give us unprecedented communication abilities.

C. Communication addresses physical needs.

1. Humans are social beings whose mental and physical health can suffer when

they are denied the opportunity for interaction.

a. That is a major reason why solitary confinement is such a harsh

3. Positive social interaction keeps adults healthy too.

a. People without strong social ties are more likely to suffer major ailments.

1. We don’t have the same needs in all our relationships.

3. Many features of our day-to-day lives are designed to promote the

development of human relationships.

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4. The lack of communication opportunity is a common experience for many

5. Research has shown that having an active social life is one of the most

powerful predictors of a person’s overall happiness.

6. The single most important predictor of happiness in life is the degree to which

2. People form their identities partly by comparing themselves to others.

4. Good communicators also have the ability to emphasize different aspects of

1. Spirituality includes the principles someone values in life; a person’s morals,

or notions about right and wrong; and beliefs about the meaning of life.

3. Spirituality does not necessarily mean formal religion.

4. For people who include spirituality as a part of their identity, communication

2. Some instrumental needs have short-term objectives, while others encompass

longer-term goals.

4. Meeting instrumental needs is important for two reasons:

a. First, we have many instrumental needs. Most of our day-to-day

communication is mundane and routine.

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1. The action model visualizes communication as a one-way, linear process.

a. The source is the individual who wishes to communicate his or her

thought.

b. To encode a message involves putting your idea into a form or gesture

2. The interaction model includes all of the same elements as the action model.

However, it also recognizes that communication is a two-way process, and it

adds feedback and context to the mix.

a. Feedback describes the verbal and nonverbal behaviors that the receiver

3. The transaction model does not distinguish between the roles of source and

receiver, nor does it represent communication as a series of messages going

back and forth.

a. The transaction maintains that two individuals in a conversation are

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b. It illustrates that conversation flows in both directions at the same time.

c. As a consequence, each person must continuously adapt his or her

communication behaviors to those of the other person to keep the

conversation flowing smoothly.

d. Not only does the transaction model reflect the complex nature of

communication, but it also leads us to think about context more broadly.

e. It suggests that our communication is affected not just by the physical or

psychological environment but also by our experience, gender, social

class, and the history of our relationship with the person or persons to

whom we are talking.

f. Communication is also influenced by our culture—the collection of shared

values, beliefs, and behaviors of a group of people.

4. Instead of debating which model is right, it’s more helpful to look at the

useful ideas each model offers. Each model fits certain situations better than

others.

B. Communication Has Many Characteristics.

1. Communication relies on multiple channels.

a. People communicate with each other using multiple channels of

communication, including:

i. Facial expressions

2. Communication passes through perceptual filters.

a. Anything you put through a filter—such as air, water, light—comes out a

little bit differently than how it went in.

b. When we communicate, we “filter” incoming communication through our

perceptions, experiences, biases, and beliefs.

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3. People give communication its meaning.

a. Words have no meaning by themselves; they are just sounds or marks on a

piece of paper or a computer monitor.

b. A word is a symbol, or a representation of an idea, but the word itself isn’t

the idea or the meaning.

4. Communication has literal meanings and relational implications.

a. Nearly every verbal statement has a content dimension, or the literal

information that is being communicated.

5. Communication sends messages, intentional and unintentional

a. Much of what we communicate to others is deliberate.

b. You may communicate a number of other messages without intending to

do so.

6. Communication is governed by rules.

a. Rules tell us what behaviors are required, preferred or prohibited in

various social contexts

b. Some rules for communication are explicit rules, which are clearly

articulated.

1. Intrapersonal communication involves communication with oneself.

2. Interpersonal communication involves communication between two people

in the context of their ongoing relationship.

3. Small group communication occurs within groups of 3 to 20 people who are

working independently to accomplish a task.

4. Public communication occurs when we speak or write to an audience that is

larger than a small group.

5. Mass communication involves communication that utilizes mass media, such

as newspapers, television, radio, magazines, blogs, and websites.

a. Because its audience is so large, mass communication works well for

distributing news, commentary, and entertainment.

III. Dispelling Some Communication Myths

A. Myth: Everyone is a communication expert

1. Because people communicate constantly, it’s easy to believe that just about

everyone is an expert in communication.

B. Myth: Communication will solve any problem

1. Sometimes it seems as though we could solve almost any problem—especially

in our relationships—if only we could communicate better.

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3. Therefore, we must be careful not to assume that better communication can

resolve any problem we might face in our relationships.

C. Myth: Communication can “break down”

1. Communication isn’t a mechanical object like a car or a refrigerator. Instead,

it’s a process that unfolds between and among people over time.

D. Myth: Communication is inherently good

2. It is how we use communication that makes it positive or negative.

E. Myth: More communication is always better

2. Sometimes less is more.

3. The effectiveness of communication matters more than the amount of

communication.

IV. Building Your Communication Competence

A. Communication competence involves communicating in ways that are effective

and appropriate in a given situation.

1. Communication is considered effective if it achieves your goals.

a. In many situations, there are a variety of communication strategies that

2. Appropriate communication means attending to the rules and expectations of a

social situation

a. Communicating appropriately can be especially challenging when you’re

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3. Communicating effectively and appropriately in electronically mediated

contexts requires specific skills:

1. Competent communicators are self-aware. Practicing self-awareness involves

self-monitoring, or being attentive to one’s own behavior and its effect on

others.

2. Competent communicators are adaptable.

a. It’s one thing to be aware of your own behavior; it’s quite another to be

3. Competent communicators are empathic.

a. Good communicators practice empathy, or the ability to be “other–

4. Competent communicators are cognitively complex.

a. Demonstrating cognitive complexity involves the ability to consider a

5. Competent communicators are ethical.

Chapter 1 Communication: A First Look

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a. Ethics are principles that guide us in judging whether something is

morally right or wrong. Behaving ethically means acting in accordance

with these principles.

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Key Terms

adapt

communication

relational needs

instrumental needs

feedback

context

transaction model

channel-rich contexts

channel-lean contexts

symbol

content dimension

relational dimension

empathy

cognitive complexity

ethics

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1. Discuss how the use of technology plays a role in how communication is carried out. For

instance, what benefits are associated with the use of new media? What drawbacks might

communicators experience through the utilization of technology in general?

2. Challenge students to a 24-hour “media fast” during which they go without television,

cell phones, Internet, and radio. Have students report on their experiences to the class.

What were the benefits of being free from media? What were the disadvantages?

1. Ask students to list everyday communication occurrences, such as talking in a study

group, texting a friend, or watching a movie. Have them identify the type(s) of

2. Miscommunication is prevalent because of the symbolic nature of communication and

because different people can interpret symbols in different ways. Ask students to report

on an experience during which they were either (a) the recipient of an unintended

nonverbal or verbal message, or (b) the sender of an unintended nonverbal or verbal

message. Was the miscommunication eventually resolved? If so, how did the parties

ultimately come to understand one another? If they did not, why not?

3. Help students understand how to debunk communication myths by allowing them to

“stage” several interactions and engage in skits that illustrate the misconceptions. For

instance, for the myth, “More communication is always better,” you might have two

volunteers act out the following:

Person 1: Aw, your grandson is so cute!

Person 2: Uh, he’s not my grandson, he’s my son.

Person 1: Oh, I’m sorry, I just thought you were kind of old to have a…

Person 2: You just thought what?

4. Of the five skills that competent communicators must practice, which one is the most

difficult to carry out? Which is the easiest? Have students explain their answers.

5. The Dark Side of Communication—Tell Me Lies: Misrepresentations in Online Dating

Profiles. Survey students regarding how they feel about online dating. Do they view it as

a high risk or a low risk? Has anyone ever been the victim of someone else’s

misrepresentation? Do any students have success stories to share? How many students

have participated in online dating? How many have never participated due to the risk

factors involved?

Chapter 1 Communication: A First Look

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For Review

1. What needs does communication help us meet?

2. How does communication work, and what misconceptions do we have about it?

Communication can be described as action, interaction, or transaction, depending on the

situation. Many people mistakenly believe that everyone is a communication expert,

3. What particular skills characterize competent communicators?

Competent communicators express themselves effectively and appropriately in whatever

Pop Quiz

Multiple Choice

1. Garry is having difficulty paying attention to what his sister is saying because he is feeling

tired and ill. The type of noise that is interfering with his ability to understand his sister is

2. A sign that reads “Please turn off all cell phones” exemplifies an

a. explicit communication rule.

b. implicit communication rule.

c. empathic communication rule.

d. ethical communication rule.

3. Empathy is best defined as

a. feeling sorry for someone else.

b. identifying, feeling, and relating to what others are feeling.

c. keeping other people’s feeling separate from your own.

d. paying attention to how others are evaluating your social skills

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4. All of the following are examples of a psychological context except

a. the formality of the situation.

b. the level of privacy.

c. the degree to which the situation is emotionally charged.

d. the temperature of the room.

5. Research has found that having a strong, positive social network can

a. increase a person’s susceptibility to depression.

b. decrease a person’s susceptibility to colds.

c. decrease a person’s life expectancy.

d. increase a person’s cognitive complexity.

Fill in the Blanks

6. The tendency to behave in morally correct ways is a characteristic of someone who is

______.

7. Most American adults believe a lack of ______ is the number-one cause of divorce.

8. The ______ model is the most contemporary model of human communication.

9. The ability to modify your behavior according to the demands of the situation is known as

______.

10. Communication is ______ if it attends to the rules and expectations that apply in a given

social situation.