Communication

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CHAPTER

ONE

Introduction to Human
Communication
What will you learn?
When you have read and thought about this chapter, you will be able to:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

State reasons why the study of communication is essential.
Define communication.
Name the components of communication.
Explain some principles of communication.
Explain the ways in which intrapersonal, interpersonal, public, and mass communication differ from each other.
6. Define communication competence.
7. Name some of the tenets of the National Communication Association
Credo on Ethics.

I

n this chapter you will be introduced to communication,

including some of the fundamental concepts and terms you will need to know for the remainder of this text. You will learn why it is important to study communication and how communication is defined. This chapter will show you how communication begins with you and extends to other people, and it will identify the components of communication. Finally, you will learn about the characteristics of the various communication contexts.

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“T

alk and change the world.” This is the slogan of a group of female U.S. senators who have been meeting for over a decade.
The group is composed of both Democrats and Republicans. It has had some notable success in helping U.S. women achieve economic, social, and political equality. For instance, the women in the group have supported providing retirement funds for homemakers and medical trials include more women.
After the 2006 elections, the group expanded to 16 women, the largest number of women in the Senate in the history of the country. Diane Sawyer of Good Morning America took note of this historic moment by interviewing the group soon after the elections. Several of the senators stressed the importance of communication in advancing various causes, whether it be enhancing national security or creating economic opportunity.
Today’s political culture more often than not involves vicious party battles. In contrast, Senator Olympia Snow of Maine described the group of female senators as “a zone of civility where members disagree without being disagreeable.” Several senators noted they are “agents of change,” serving as a model for “a new chapter in American politics.” They claimed to be “fresh voices” in bringing diverse people together to find common ground. As the interview progressed, the group of 16 Democrats and
Republicans pledged to build consensus to solve the many problems facing the country. (For more information about this interview, go to goodmorningamerica.com.) This story is meaningful on several levels. For one thing, it shows the potential for change based on an approach in which both parties work together. For another, it indicates that women are gradually cracking the gender barrier in U.S. politics. Perhaps most important, however, it shows the many roles that communication plays in the group’s efforts. Through communication of their vision, these women persuaded voters to elect them. Through communication, they were able to find common ground, cutting across deeply divided party lines. Through communication, they staked out an agenda to advance the causes, not just of other women, but of the entire country.
Both their individual and collective stories teach us one thing: Communication is the foundation on which personal and social success is built. In this chapter you will learn about communication on a deeper level, including the terms, processes, and contexts of communication.

Communication Is Essential

Studying communication is essential for you. Communication is central to your life. Effective communication can help you solve problems in your professional life and improve relationships in your personal life. Communication experts believe that poor communication is at the root of many problems and that effective communication is one solution to these problems.

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Communication is consequential. Understanding the theory, research, and application of communication will make a significant difference in your life and in the lives of people around the world. The world changed on September 11, 2001, and people became far more aware of the importance of communication principles— particularly intercultural communication principles. Communication principles and practices can resolve disputes among nations as well as among friends and family.
Effective communication may not solve all the world’s problems, but better communication practices can help us solve or avoid many problems.
Communication is ubiquitous. You cannot avoid communication, and you will engage in communication nearly every minute of every day of your life. Communication plays a major role in nearly every aspect of your life.
Regardless of your interests and goals, the ability to communicate effectively will enhance and enrich your life. But learning how to communicate is just as important as learning about communication. Studying communication comprehensively offers at least seven advantages:
1. Studying communication can improve the way you see yourself. Communication is “vital to the development of the whole person” (Morreale, Osborn, &
Pearson, 2000, p. 4). As we will see in chapter 2, most of our self-knowledge comes from the communicative experience. As we engage in thought
(intrapersonal communication) and in interactions with significant other people (interpersonal communication), we learn about ourselves. People who are naive about the communication process and the development of self-awareness, self-concept, and self-efficacy may not see themselves accurately or may be unaware of their own self-development. Knowing how communication affects self-perception can lead to greater awareness and appreciation of the self.
Learning communication skills can improve the way you see yourself in a second way. As you learn how to communicate effectively in a variety of situations—from interpersonal relationships to public speeches—your self-confidence will increase. In a study based on the responses from 344 students at a large public university, students who completed a communication course perceived their communication competence to be greater in the classroom, at work, and in social settings. Most dramatic were their perceived improvements in feeling confident about themselves, feeling comfortable with others’ perceptions of them, reasoning with people, and using language appropriately (Ford & Wolvin, 1993). In short, your success in interacting with other people in social situations and your achievements in professional settings will lead to more positive feelings about yourself.
2. Studying communication can improve the way others see you. In chapter 2 we will discuss self-presentation, image management, and locus of control. You will learn that you can to a considerable extent control your own behavior, which will lead to positive outcomes with others. You will find that your interactions can be smoother and that you can achieve your goals more easily as you manage the impression you make on others.
You can improve the way others see you a second way. Generally, people like communicating with others who can communicate well. Compare your interactions with someone who stumbles over words, falls silent, interrupts, and uses inappropriate language to express thoughts to your interactions with someone who has a good vocabulary, listens when you speak, reveals appropriate personal information, and smoothly exchanges talk turns with you. Which person do you

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prefer? Most of us prefer competent communicators. As you become increasingly competent, you will find that others seek you out for conversations, for assistance, and for advice.
3. Studying communication can increase what you know about human relationships.
The field of communication includes learning about how people relate to each other and about what type of communication is appropriate for a given situation. Most people value human relationships and find great comfort in friendships, family relationships, and community relationships. Within these relationships we learn about trust, intimacy, and reciprocity.

To see how interpersonal communication and conflict are related, view the
“Opposites Attract” video clip on the Online
Learning Center at www. mhhe.com/pearson3. Human relationships are vital to each of us. Human babies thrive when they are touched and when they hear sounds; similarly, adults who engage in human relationships appear to be more successful and satisfied than do those who are isolated.
Human relationships serve a variety of functions. They provide us with affection
(receiving and providing warmth and friendliness), inclusion (experiencing feelings that we belong and providing others with messages that they belong), pleasure (sharing happiness and fun), escape (providing diversion), and control (managing our lives and influencing others) (Rubin, Perse, & Barbato, 1988).
We learn about the complexity of human relationships as we study communication. We learn, first, that other people in relationships are vastly different from each other. We learn that they may be receptive or dismissive toward us. We learn that they may behave as if they are superior or inferior to us. We learn that they might be approachable or highly formal. People are clearly not interchangeable with each other.
We also learn that our interactions with others may be helpful or harmful. Communicators can share personal information that builds trust and rapport. The same personal information can be used outside the relationship to humiliate or shame the other person. While some relationships enhance social support, others are riddled with deception and conflict. Interactions are not neutral.
We learn that people coconstruct the reality of the relationship. Families, for example, love to tell stories of experiences they have had when on vacation, when moving across the country, or when some particularly positive or negative event occurred. Indeed, they often take turns “telling the story.” Couples, too, create and tell stories of their lives. Couples’ stories may be positive as the couple emphasizes their feelings of belongingness and their identity as a couple. On the other end of the spectrum, stories may be highly negative as people deceive others with information that allows them to cover up criminal acts such as drug use, child abuse, or murder.
Human relationships are complex. As you study communication, you will clarify the variables involved in relationships—the people, the verbal and nonverbal cues provided, the effect of time, the nature of the relationship, and the goals of the participants. You will be far better equipped to engage in relationships with an understanding of the communication process.
People who have communication skills also experience greater relational satisfaction (Egeci & Gencoz, 2006). If you receive training in communication skills, you are more likely to report greater relationship satisfaction than do those who do not receive such training (Ireland, Sanders, & Markie-Dodds, 2003). The link between communication skills and life satisfaction is strong. The connection holds true in health contexts (Dutta-Bergman, 2005), including situations in which family members are experiencing life-threatening illnesses (Manne et al., 2006).

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Think, Pair, Share

Open Public Discourse
Does public discourse today operate in an open forum in which a variety of perspectives can be offered on important issues? After you have considered this question and offered arguments for both sides, share your responses with a classmate. How do you agree?
How do you disagree? For advanced reading on methods of mapping the universe of discourse, see Anderson and Prelli (2001).

4. Studying communication can teach you important life skills. Studying communication involves learning important skills that everyone will use at some point in his or her life, such as critical thinking, problem solving, decision making, conflict resolution, team building, media literacy, and public speaking.
Allen, Berkowitz, Hunt, and Louden (1999) analyzed dozens of studies and concluded that “communication instruction improves the critical thinking ability of the participants.” Our visual literacy is improved as we understand the technical and artistic aspects of the visual communication medium (Metallinos, 1992).
Studying communication early in your college career can enhance your success throughout college. Consider the centrality of oral communication to all of your college classes. You regularly are called on to answer questions in class, to provide reports, to offer explanations, and to make presentations. In addition, your oral and written work both depend on your ability to think critically and creatively, to solve problems, and to make decisions. Most likely, you will be engaged in group projects in which skills such as team building and conflict resolution will be central. These same skills will be essential throughout your life.
5. Studying communication can help you exercise your constitutionally guaranteed freedom of speech. Few nations have a bill of rights that invites people to convey their opinions and ideas, yet freedom of speech is essential to a democratic form of government. Being a practicing citizen in a democratic society means knowing about current issues and being able to speak about them in conversations, in speeches, and through the mass media; it also involves being able to critically examine messages from others.
Our understanding of communication shapes our political lives. Mass communication and communication technology have sharply altered the political process.
Today many more people have the opportunity to receive information than ever before. Through the mass media, people in remote locations are as well informed as those in large urban centers. The public agenda is largely set through the media.
Pressing problems are given immediate attention. Blumer (1983) notes, “At a time when so many forces—volatility, apathy, skepticism, a sense of powerlessness, and intensified group hostility—appear to be undermining political stability, media organizations have become pivotal to the conduct of human affairs.”
While some people may feel more enfranchised by the common denominator of the media, others feel more alienated as they become increasingly passive in the process. Whereas face-to-face town meetings were the focus of democratic decision making in times past, today people receive answers to questions, solutions to
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problems, and decisions about important matters from the media. Many feel powerless and anonymous.
In the wake of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, Americans began to rediscover and recognize the value of a democratic form of government. At the same time, they recognized how vulnerable they were to people who did not endorse basic democratic principles. Americans also learned that terrorist dictators could use the media as easily as could those who came from more reasonable and more democratic ideologies.
The study and understanding of communication processes is profoundly political. Hart (1993) opines that “those who teach public address and media studies teach that social power can be shifted and public visions exalted if people learn to think well and speak well” (p. 102). Paraphrasing the ancient Greek rhetorician
Isocrates, Hart notes, “To become eloquent is to activate one’s humanity, to apply the imagination, and to solve the practical problems of human living” (p. 101).
Freedom goes to the articulate.
You have the opportunity to be a fully functioning member of a democratic society. You also have the additional burden of understanding the media and other information technologies. Studying communication will help you learn how to speak effectively, analyze arguments, synthesize large quantities of information, and critically consume information from a variety of sources. The future of our society depends on such mastery.
6. Studying communication can help you succeed professionally. A look at the job postings in any newspaper will give you an immediate understanding of the importance of improving your knowledge and practice of communication.
The employment section of The Washington Post provides some examples
(Today’s Employment, 1998):
• “We need a results-oriented, seasoned professional who is a good communicator and innovator” reads one ad for a marketing manager.
• Another ad, this one for a marketing analyst, reads, “You should be creative, inquisitive, and a good communicator both in writing and orally.”
• An ad for a training specialist calls for “excellent presentation, verbal, and written communication skills, with ability to interact with all levels within organization.”
As a person educated in communication, you will be able to gain a more desirable job (Bardwell, 1997; Cockrum, 1994; Peterson, 1997; Ugbah & Evuleocha, 1992).
You may believe that some professions are enhanced by communication skills but that many are not. Professionals in fields such as accounting, auditing, banking, counseling, engineering, industrial hygiene, information science, public relations, and sales have all written about the importance of oral communication skills
(Hanzevack & McKean, 1991; Horton & Brown, 1990; LaBar, 1994; Messmer, 1997;
Nisberg, 1996; Ridley, 1996; Simkin, 1996). More recently, professionals in the computer industry (Coopersmith, 2006; Glen, 2006), genetics and science (Bubela,
2006), farming and ranching (Harper, 2006), education (Lavin Colky & Young,
2006), and midwifery (Nicholls & Webb, 2006) have stressed the importance of communication skills to potential employees. The variety of these careers suggests that communication skills are important across the board.
Communication skills are important in your first contact with a prospective employer. By studying communication, your interviewing skills will be enhanced.
Further, personnel interviewers note that oral communication skills, in general,

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significantly affect hiring decisions (Peterson, 1997). One survey showed that personnel managers identified effective speaking and listening as the most important factors in hiring people (Curtis, Winsor, & Stephens, 1989). In another survey, employers identified the most important skills for college graduates as oral communication, interpersonal skills, teamwork, and analytical abilities (Collins & Oberman, 1994).
Employers view your written and oral communication competencies and your ability to listen and analyze messages as essential job skills (Bubela, 2006; Coopersmith, 2006; Glen, 2006; Harper, 2006; Lavin Colky & Young, 2006; Maes, Weldy,
& Icenogle, 1997; Nicholls & Webb, 2006; Parnell, 1996; Winsor, Curtis, &
Stephens, 1997). Similarly, college graduates perceive communication coursework as essential (Pearson, Sorenson, & Nelson, 1981). In short, communication competence is important.
Communication skills are important not only at the beginning of your career but throughout the work life span. Dauphinais (1997) observes that communication skills can increase upward mobility in one’s career. Business executives note the importance of communication competence (Argenti & Forman, 1998; Reinsch & Shelby,
1996). Finally, communication skills are among the top priorities for entrepreneurs.
Communication skills have become even more critical to employers over time
(Johnson & Johnson, 1995). What communication skills are employers seeking?
Clearly, listening skills are one of the most important components of communication (Edwards, Peterson, & Davies, 2006; Mlynek, 2006; Nichols, 2006), and you will learn about listening in chapter 5. Speaking clearly, succinctly, and persuasively is crucial to many jobs including sales jobs (Nichols, 2006), and we cover these topics in chapters 3, 13, and 16. An ability to work in teams or groups is vital (Cano
& Cano, 2006; Houssami & Sainsbury, 2006; Miller, 2006), and you will learn about this in chapter 9. Employers are also seeking interpersonal skills (Johnson & Johnson,
1995), which we will consider in chapter 6. Public speaking skills, covered in chapters 10–15, are important in most professions because of the requirement that employees give talks and presentations (Bates, 2004). Finally, employers seek employees with strong written communication skills (Gray, Emerson, & MacKay,
2005). You will have an opportunity to improve your writing skills as you prepare outlines and manuscripts for public speeches, which we also cover in chapters 10–15.
7. Studying communication can help you navigate an increasingly diverse world. As you stroll through a mall, deposit money in a bank, go to a movie, or work at your job, odds are that about one in every five people you come into contact with will speak English as a second language. According to the 2005
American Community Survey, conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, nearly
20% of respondents speak a language other than English in their home. The increasingly diverse population of the United States means that multilingual communication encounters are, for most of us, the norm rather than the exception. Learning how to communicate in today’s world, whether English is your first language or not, requires an understanding of communication and culture and how those two concepts are related.
As you develop an understanding of basic communication concepts and learn how to apply those concepts in everyday interactions, you will be better
ESL equipped to bridge language and cultural barriers. As you progress through this book, you will learn a number of specific skills that promote effective inter personal relationships, teamwork, and online communication. Most chapters include advice on how you can adapt specific skills during interactions with people whose first language is not English.

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E-Note

The National Communication
Association
The discipline, or academic study, of communication traces its roots to the ancient
Greek and Roman eras. As an association, communication first emerged in 1914 when a small group of teachers of speech broke away from a larger group of teachers of English. The National Communication Association (NCA), as it is known today, has approximately 8,000 members and provides a variety of services to educators and practitioners in the communication discipline. Find the NCA on the web at www.natcom.org. Learn about one or two features of the organization that you can share with the class. Would you benefit by being a member of this organization?
What can you learn about the study of communication from the website?

Communication: The Process of Using Messages to
Generate Meaning

communication
The process of using messages to generate meaning. process
An activity, exchange, or set of behaviors that occurs over time.

Now that you have considered why learning about communication is important, you need to know exactly what the term means. Over the years, scholars have created hundreds of definitions of communication. How they define the term can limit or expand the study of the subject. In this text, the definition is simple and broad—simple enough to allow understanding and broad enough to include many contexts.
Communication comes from the Latin word communicare, which means “to make common” or “to share.” The root definition is consistent with our definition of communication. In this book, communication is defined as the process of using messages to generate meaning. Communication is considered a process because it is an activity, an exchange, or a set of behaviors—not an unchanging product. Communication is not an object you can hold in your hands—it is an activity in which you participate. David Berlo (1960), a pioneer in the field of communication, probably provided the clearest statement about communication as a process:
If we accept the concept of process, we view events and relationships as dynamic, ongoing, ever changing, continuous. When we label something as a process, we also mean that it does not have a beginning, an end, a fixed sequence of events. It is not static, at rest. It is moving. The ingredients within a process interact; each affects all the others.

What is an example of how process works in everyday communication? Picture three students meeting on the sidewalk between classes and exchanging a few sentences. This “snapshot” does not begin and end with the students’ first words and last sentence. Since they all stopped to chat with each other, you might assume that their relationship began before this encounter. Since they all seem to have a common understanding of what is being said, you might assume that they share experiences that similarly shape their perceptions. You also might assume that this brief encounter does not end when the students go their ways, but rather that they think about their conversation later in the day or that it leads to another meeting
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Chapter One Introduction to Human Communication

later in the week. In other words, a snapshot cannot capture all that occurs during communication, a process that starts before the words begin and ends long after the words end. Messages include verbal and nonverbal symbols, signs, and behaviors. When you smile at another person, you are sending a message. When a radio announcer chooses language to emphasize the seriousness of a recent event,
Understanding emerges from shared meanings. she is creating a message. The public speaker might spend days choosing just the right words and considering his bodily movements, gestures, and facial expression.
People hope to generate common meanings through the messages they provide.
Meaning is the understanding of the message. You know that all of the messages you generate are not shared by others with whom you try to communicate. You try to flirt with someone you meet in class, but the other person seems oblivious to your subtle nonverbal signals. College professors are generally very knowledgeable about a subject matter, but they vary greatly in their ability to convey shared meanings.
Understanding the meaning of another person’s message does not occur unless the two communicators can elicit common meanings for words, phrases, and nonverbal codes. When you use language, meaning facilitates an appropriate response that indicates that the message was understood. For example, suppose you ask a friend for a sheet of paper. She says nothing and gives you one sheet of paper. You and your friend share the same meaning of the message exchanged. But a message can be interpreted in more than one way, especially if the people involved have little shared experience. In such a case, a more accurate understanding of the intended meaning can be discerned by negotiating, that is, by asking questions.
᭣

SKILL BUILDER

᭤

While you may believe that you accurately interpret the meaning that others are trying to convey, you probably do not. On at least six different occasions in the next week, ask a person with whom you are communicating if you can paraphrase the meaning of his or her message. Write down how well you did in each of these instances. How could you improve your understanding of others’ messages?

In this section you will learn how communication in action really works. The components of communication are people, messages, codes, channels, feedback, encoding and decoding, and noise.

Components of
Communication

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meaning
The understanding of the message.

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People
People are involved in the human communication process in two roles—as both the sources and the receivers of messages. A source initiates a message, and a receiver is the intended target of the message. Individuals do not perform these two roles independently. Instead, they are the sources and the receivers of messages simultaneously and continually.
People do not respond uniformly to all messages, nor do they always provide the same messages in exactly the same way. Individual characteristics, including race, sex, age, culture, values, and attitudes, affect the ways people send and receive messages. (Throughout this text you will find discussions about the ways in which culture and sex affect communication.)

The Message source A message initiator. receiver A message target. message The verbal or nonverbal form of the idea, thought, or feeling that one person (the source) wishes to communicate to another person or group of people (the receivers). channel
The means by which a message moves from the source to the receiver of the message.

The message is the verbal and nonverbal form of the idea, thought, or feeling that one person (the source) wishes to communicate to another person or group of people (the receivers). The message is the content of the interaction. The message includes the symbols (words and phrases) you use to communicate your ideas, as well as your facial expressions, bodily movements, gestures, physical contact, tone of voice, and other nonverbal codes. The message may be relatively brief and easy to understand or long and complex. Some experts believe that real communication stems only from messages that are intentional, or have a purpose. However, since intent is sometimes difficult to prove in a communication situation, the authors of this text believe that real communication can occur through either intentional or unintentional messages.

The Channel
The channel is the means by which a message moves from the source to the receiver of the message. A message moves from one place to another, from one person to another, by traveling through a medium, or channel. Airwaves, sound waves, twisted copper wires, glass fibers, and cable are all communication channels. Airwaves and cable are two of the various channels through which you receive television messages. Radio messages move through sound waves. Computer images (and sound, if there is any) travel through light waves, and sometimes both light and sound waves.
In person-to-person communication, you send your messages through a channel of sound waves and light waves that enable receivers to see and hear you.

Feedback feedback The receiver’s verbal and nonverbal response to the source’s message.

Feedback is the receiver’s verbal and nonverbal response to the source’s message.
Ideally, you respond to another person’s messages by providing feedback so that the source knows the message was received as intended. Feedback is part of any communication situation. Even no response, or silence, is feedback, as are restless behavior and quizzical looks from students in a lecture hall. Suppose you’re in a building you’ve never been in before, looking for a restroom. You ask a person quickly passing by, “Excuse me, can you tell me . . . ,” but the person keeps on going without acknowledging you. In this case, the intended receiver did not

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Cultural Note

What’s in a Name?
Americans name their children after relatives, entertainers, famous people, and biblical figures. Many Spanish-speaking males are named after Jesus, and thousands of Muslim males are named after Mohammed. In China, too, names have meanings that can influence how a person feels about him- or herself. Wen Shu Lee (1998), a professor originally from Taiwan, published an article about the names of women in China. She claims that naming practices often reflect gender- and class-based oppression. The name Zhao Di, for example, “commands a daughter to bring to the family a younger brother, while ‘expelling’ more younger sisters.” The name reflects a higher value on male children. Does your name influence what you think of yourself? Does your name affect how, when, and with whom you communicate? What’s in a name?

respond, yet even the lack of a response provides you with some feedback. You may surmise that perhaps the receiver didn’t hear you or was in too much of a hurry to stop. code Code
A computer carries messages via binary code on cable, wire, or fiber; similarly, you converse with others by using a code called “language.” A code is a systematic arrangement of symbols used to create meanings in the mind of another person or persons. Words, phrases, and sentences become “symbols” that are used to evoke images, thoughts, and ideas in the mind of others. If someone yells “Stop” as you approach the street, the word stop has become a symbol that you are likely to interpret as a warning of danger.
Verbal and nonverbal codes are the two types of code used in communication.
Verbal codes consist of symbols and their grammatical arrangement. All languages are codes. Nonverbal codes consist of all symbols that are not words, including bodily movements, use of space and time, clothing and other adornments, and sounds other than words. Nonverbal codes should not be confused with nonoral codes. All nonoral codes, such as bodily movement, are nonverbal codes. However, nonverbal codes also include oral codes, such as pitch, duration, rate of speech, and sounds like “eh” and “ah.”

Encoding and Decoding
If communication involves the use of codes, the process of communicating can be viewed as one of encoding and decoding. Encoding is defined as the process of translating an idea or a thought into a code. Decoding is the process of assigning meaning to that idea or thought. For instance, suppose you are interested in purchasing a new car. You are trying to describe a compact model to your father, who wants to help you with your purchase. You might be visualizing the car with the black interior, sporty design, and red exterior that belongs to your best friend. Putting this vision into words, you tell your father you are interested in a car that is “small and

A systematic arrangement of symbols used to create meanings in the mind of another person or persons. verbal codes
Symbols and their grammatical arrangement, such as languages. nonverbal codes
All symbols that are not words, including bodily movements, use of space and time, clothing and adornments, and sounds other than words. encoding
The process of translating an idea or thought into a code. decoding The process of assigning meaning to the idea or thought in a code.

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well designed.” You encode your perceptions of a particular car into words that describe the model. Your father, on hearing this, decodes your words and develops his own mental image. But his love of larger cars affects this process, and as a result, he envisions a sedan. As you can see, misunderstanding often occurs because of the limitations of language and the inadequacy of descriptions. Nonetheless, encoding and decoding are essential in sharing your thoughts, ideas, and feelings with others.

Noise

noise
Any interference in the encoding and decoding processes that reduces message clarity.

In the communication process, noise is any interference in the encoding and decoding processes that reduces the clarity of a message. Noise can be physical, such as loud sounds; distracting sights, such as a piece of food between someone’s front teeth; or an unusual behavior, such as someone standing too close for comfort. Noise can be mental, psychological, or semantic, such as daydreams about a loved one, worry about the bills, pain from a tooth, or uncertainty about what the other person’s words mean. Noise can be anything that interferes with receiving, interpreting, or providing feedback about a message.

Communication Principles

A definition of communication may be insufficient to clarify the nature of communication. To explain communication in more detail, we consider here some principles that guide our understanding of communication.

Communication Begins with the Self
How you see yourself can make a great difference in how you communicate. Carl
Rogers (1951) wrote, “Every individual exists in a continually changing world of experience of which he [or she] is the center” (p. 483). For instance, when people are treated as though they are inferior, or intelligent, or gifted, or unattractive, they will often begin acting accordingly. Many communication scholars and social scientists believe that people are products of how others treat them and of the messages others send them.
As persons, our understanding of the world is limited by our experiences with it. Shotter (2000) suggests that we cannot understand communication through external, abstract, and systematic processes. Instead, he describes communication as a “ceaseless flow of speech-entwined, dialogically structured, social activity” (p. 119).
In other words, communication is participatory; we are actively involved and relationally responsive in our use of communication. Shotter would contrast his perspective of a participatory-holistic view of communication with one that is abstract and systematic.
To apply this perspective, let us consider an example. Suppose you have a roommate who is from another country. The roommate’s religion, belief system, and daily habits challenge your perspective of communication, derived from interacting primarily with people in the United States who hold Western and Christian values. To the extent that you each try to impose your own preconceptions on the communication you share, you may be dissatisfied and experience conflict. By preimposing “rules” of communication derived from your earlier experiences in two distinctive cultures, you are bound to fail in this new relationship. If you are able to move beyond such a view

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and allow your perception of your communication to become a product of your interactions, you may be able to communicate in interesting and effective ways.
Every day we experience the centrality of ourselves in communication. As a participant in communication, you are limited by your own view of the situation. A student, for instance, may describe a conflict with an instructor as unfair treatment: “I know my instructor doesn’t like the fact that I don’t agree with his opinions, and that’s why he gave me such a poor grade in that class.” The instructor might counter,
“That student doesn’t understand all the factors that go into a final grade.” Each person may believe that he or she is correct and that the other person’s view is wrong.
As you study communication, you will learn ways to better manage such conflict.

Communication Involves Others
George Herbert Mead (1967) said that the self originates in communication.
Through verbal and nonverbal symbols, a child learns to accept roles in response to the expectations of others. For example, Dominique Moceanu, a successful
Olympic gymnast, was influenced quite early in life by what others wanted her to be. Both her parents had been gymnasts, and apparently her father told her for years that her destiny was to be a world-class gymnast (Hamilton, 1998). Most likely she had an inherent ability to be a good one, but she may not have become a medalwinning gymnast without the early messages she received from her parents and trainers. Like Moceanu, you establish self-image, the sort of person you believe you are, by the ways others categorize you. Positive, negative, and neutral messages that you receive from others all play a role in determining who you are.
Communication itself is probably best understood as a dialogic process. A dialogue is simply the act of taking part in a conversation, discussion, or negotiation. When we describe and explain our communicative exchanges with others, we are doing so

Understanding can emerge from dialogue.

dialogue
The act of taking part in a conversation, discussion, or negotiation.

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from a perspective of self and from a perspective derived from interacting with others. Our understanding of communication occurs not in a vacuum but in light of our interactions with other people. (For further reading, see Czubaroff, 2000.)
In a more obvious way, communication involves others in the sense that a competent communicator considers the other person’s needs and expectations when selecting messages to share. The competent communicator understands that a large number of messages can be shared at any time, but sensitivity and responsiveness to the other communicators are essential. In short, communication begins with the self, as defined largely by others, and involves others, as defined largely by the self.

Communication Has Both a Content and a Relational Dimension
All messages have both a content and a relational dimension. Messages provide substance and suggest a relationship among communicators. Another way to think about this distinction is that the content of the message describes the behavior that is expected, while the relational message suggests how it should be interpreted. For example, if I assert, “Sit down,” the content of the brief message is a request for you to be seated. Relationally, I am suggesting that I have the authority to tell you to be seated.
Consider the difference between “Sit down!” and “Would you care to be seated?” While the content is essentially the same, the relational aspect seems far different. Generally, the content of the message is less ambiguous than is the relational message.

Communication Is Complicated

The potential complexity of communication can be observed by carefully analyzing and discussing the video clip “Sam’s Graduation Party” on the Online Learning Center.

Communication, some believe, is a simple matter of passing information from one source to another. In a sense, communication defined in this way would occur whenever you accessed information on the web. However, you know that even in this most basic case, communication does not necessarily occur. For example, if you access a homepage written in a language you do not understand, no communication occurs. If the material is highly complex, you might not understand its message. Similarly, you might be able to repeat what someone else says to you, but with absolutely no understanding of the intent, or the content, of the message.
Communication is far more than simple information transmission. Communication involves choices about the multiple aspects of the message—the verbal, nonverbal, and behavioral aspects; the choices surrounding the transmission channels used; the characteristics of the speaker; the relationship between the speaker and the audience; the characteristics of the audience; and the situation in which the communication occurs. A change in any one of these variables affects the entire communication process.

Communication Quantity Does
Not Increase Communication Quality
You might believe that a textbook on communication would stake claims on the importance of increased communication. You may have heard counselors or therapists encouraging people to communicate more: “What we need is more communication.”
However, greater amounts of communication do not necessarily lead to more harmony or more accurate and shared meanings. Sometimes people disagree, and the more they talk, the more they learn that they are in conflict. Other times people have very poor

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listening or empathy skills and misunderstand vast quantities of information. Communication, defined simply as verbiage, does not necessarily lead to positive outcomes.

TRY

᭣᭤

THIS

Recall an experience in which you and another person tried to resolve a conflict by talking about it, only to find that your conflict escalated instead of being resolved.

Communication Is Inevitable,
Irreversible, and Unrepeatable
Although communication is complicated, and more communication is not necessarily better communication, communication occurs almost every minute of your life. If you are not communicating with yourself (thinking, planning, reacting to the world around you), you are observing others and drawing inferences from their behavior. Even if others did not intend messages for you, you gather observations and draw specific conclusions. A person yawns, and you believe that he is bored with your message. A second person looks away, and you conclude that she is not listening to you. A third person smiles (perhaps because of a memory of a joke he heard recently), and you believe that he is attracted to you. We are continually gleaning meanings from others’ behaviors, and we are constantly behaving in ways that have communicative value for them.

Communication Cannot Be Reversed
Have you ever insulted someone accidentally? You may have tried to explain that you did not intend to insult anybody, or said you were sorry for your statement, or made a joke out of your misstatement. Nonetheless, your comment lingers both in the mind of the other person and in your own mind. As you understand the irreversibility of communication, you may become more careful in your conversations with others, and you may take more time preparing public speeches. We cannot go back in time and erase our messages to others.

Communication Cannot Be Repeated
Have you ever had an incredible evening with someone and remarked, “Let’s do this again.” But when you tried to re-create the ambience, the conversation, and the setting, nothing seemed right. Your second experience with a similar setting and person yielded far different results. Just as you cannot repeat an experience, you cannot repeat communication.

Communication occurs in a context—a set of What Are Communication circumstances or a situation. Communication occurs
Contexts?
between two friends, among five business acquaintances in a small-group setting, and between a lecturer and an audience that fills an auditorium. At many context colleges and universities, the communication courses are arranged by context: interA set of circumstances personal communication, interviewing, small-group communication, public speaking, or a situation. and mass communication. The number of people involved in communication affects

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E-Note

The Internet and Communication
Models
Individually or in groups, provide answers to these questions about technology and communication models:
1. How has the Internet—with its e-mail, chat rooms, and websites—altered the way individuals communicate with each other?
2. What is lost and what is gained when a human transaction is mediated by a computer? the kind of communication that occurs. You may communicate with yourself, with another person, or with many others. The differences among these situations affect your choices of the most appropriate verbal and nonverbal codes.

Intrapersonal Communication
Intrapersonal communication is the process of using messages to generate meaning within the self. Intrapersonal communication is the communication that occurs within your own mind. For example, suppose you and the person you’ve been dating for two years share the same attitude toward education and a future career. After the two of you finish your undergraduate degrees, you plan to attend graduate school together intrapersonal communication and then to run your own business. But one day your partner informs you that he or she has decided to work in the family’s business immediately after graduating. In your
The process of using messages to generate opinion this action changes everything, including you and your partner’s future meaning within the self. together. When you begin to share your feelings with your partner, he or she becomes angry and says your attitude is just another example of your inflexibility. You tell your partner that you can’t discuss the issue now and that you need to think things over for a while. You leave, thinking about what has just happened and what the future holds for the two of you. You are engaged in intrapersonal communication.
Intrapersonal communication occurs, as this example suggests, when you evaluate or examine the interaction that occurs between yourself and others, but it is not limited to such situations. This form of communication occurs before and during other forms of communication as well. For instance, you might argue with yourself during a conversation in which someone asks you to do something you don’t really want to do: Before you accept or decline, you mull over the alternatives in your mind.
Intrapersonal communication also includes such activities as solving problems internally, resolving internal conflict, planning for the future, and evaluIntrapersonal communication occurs in our reflections. ating yourself and your relationships with others.
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Intrapersonal communication—the basis for all other communication—involves only the self.
Each one of us is continually engaged in intrapersonal communication. Although you might become more easily absorbed in talking to yourself when you are alone
(while walking to class, driving to work, or taking a shower, for instance), you are likely to be involved in this form of communication in crowded circumstances as well (such as during a lecture, at a party, or with friends). Think about the last time you looked at yourself in a mirror. What were your thoughts? Although intrapersonal communication is almost continuous, people seldom focus on this form of communication.
Indeed, not all communication experts believe that intrapersonal communication should be examined within communication studies. The naysayers argue that communication requires two or more receivers of a message, and since there are no receivers in intrapersonal communication, no communication actually occurs. They reason that intrapersonal communication should be studied in a discipline such as psychology or neurology—some field in which experts study the mind or the brain.
Nonetheless, intrapersonal communication is recognized by most scholars within the discipline as one context of communication.

Interpersonal Communications
When you move from intrapersonal to interpersonal communication, you move from communication that occurs within your own mind to communication that involves one or more other persons. Interpersonal communication is the process of using messages to generate meaning between at least two people in a situation that allows mutual opportunities for both speaking and listening. Like intrapersonal communication, interpersonal communication occurs for a variety of reasons: to solve problems, to resolve conflicts, to share information, to improve perceptions of oneself, or to fulfill social needs, such as the need to belong or to be loved. Through our interpersonal communication, we are able to establish relationships with others that include friendships and romantic relationships.
Dyadic and small-group communication are two subsets of interpersonal communication. Dyadic communication is simply two-person communication, such as interviews with an employer or a teacher; talks with a parent, spouse, or child; and interactions among strangers, acquaintances, and friends. Small-group communication is the process of using messages to generate meaning in a small group of people (Brilhart & Galanes, 1998). Small-group communication occurs in families, work groups, support groups, religious groups, and study groups. Communication experts agree that two people are a dyad and that more than two people are a small group if they have a common purpose, goal, or mission. However, disagreement emerges about the maximum number of participants in a small group.
Technology also poses questions for communication scholars to debate: Does a small group have to meet face-to-face? That teleconferences can involve smallgroup communication is uncontroversial, but what about discussions in chat rooms on the Internet? Small-group communication is discussed in greater detail later in this text.

Public Communication
Public communication is the process of using messages to generate meanings in a situation in which a single source transmits a message to a number of receivers, who give

interpersonal communication The process of using messages to generate meaning between at least two people in a situation that allows mutual opportunities for both speaking and listening. dyadic communication Two-person communication. small-group communication
The process of using messages to generate meaning in a small group of people. public communication
The process of using messages to generate meanings in a situation in which a single source transmits a message to a number of receivers.

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Part One Fundamentals of Communication Studies

nonverbal and, sometimes, question-and-answer feedback. In public communication the source adapts the message to the audience in an attempt to achieve maximum understanding. Sometimes virtually everyone in the audience understands the speaker’s message; other times many people fail to understand.
Public communication, or public speaking, is recognized by its formality, structure, and planning. You probably are frequently a receiver of public communication in lecture classes, at convocations, and at religious services. Occasionally, you also may be a source: when you speak in a group, when you try to convince other voters of the merits of a particular candidate for office, or when you introduce a guest speaker to a large audience. Public communication most often informs or persuades, but it can also entertain, introduce, announce, welcome, or pay tribute.

Mass Communication mass communication
The process of using messages to generate meanings in a mediated system, between a source and a large number of unseen receivers.

Mass communication—the process of using messages to generate meanings in a mediated system, between a source and a large number of unseen receivers— always has some transmission system (mediator) between the sender and the receiver. When you watch your favorite TV show, the signals are going from a broadcast studio to a satellite or cable system and then from that system to your
TV set: The mediator is the channel, the method of distribution. This type of communication is called “mass” because the message goes to newspaper and magazine readers, TV viewers, and radio listeners. Mass communication is often taught in a college’s or university’s department of mass communication, radio and television, or journalism.

Computer-Mediated Communication
Computer-mediated communication (CMC) includes human communication and information shared through communication networks. CMC requires digital literacy, which is the ability to find, evaluate, and use information that is available via computer. The e-mail messages, discussion group threads, newsgroup notes, instant messages, and web page constructions serve as the message while humans continue to serve as the source or receiver of those messages.
How is CMC unique as a communication context? Messages can be sent and received asynchronously (at different times). People can prestructure messages to which they give a great deal of thought, or they can quickly dash off a message with no thought at all. CMC occurs over a single channel although people have cleverly added emoticons (which we will define and discuss in chapter 4) to lend another dimension to CMC. CMC may allow equality among people as demographic features and social status are removed. But CMC can also encourage racism, sexism, and other bias by the nature of the messages that are created and provided to literally millions of people.
The various communication contexts can be determined by several factors: the number of people involved, the level of formality or intimacy, the opportunities for feedback, the need for restructuring messages, and the degree of stability of the roles of speaker and listener. Table 1.1 compares the contexts on the basis of these factors. LISTENER

AND

ROLES OF
SPEAKER

OF THE

DEGREE OF
STABILITY

MESSAGES

TURING

NEED FOR
PRESTRUC-

FEEDBACK

Highly unstable; the individual as both speaker and listener

Unstable; speaker and listener alternate

Some

A great deal of feedback

Complete feedback NITIES FOR

OPPORTU-

INTIMACY

None

Generally intimate; interview is formal Most intimate

DEGREE OF
FoRMALITY

OR

2

DYADIC
COMMUNICATION

1

INTRAPERSONAL
COMMUNICATION

Unstable; speakers and listeners alternate

Some

Less than in intrapersonal communication but more than in public communication Intimate or formal Usually 3 to 10; maybe more

SMALL-GROUP
COMMUNICATION

INTERPERSONAL
COMMUNICATION

DIFFERENCES AMONG COMMUNICATION CONTEXTS

NUMBER
OF PEOPLE

CONTEXTS

TABLE 1.1

Highly stable; one speaker with many listeners A great deal

Less than in small-group communication but more than in mass communication Generally formal Usually more than 10

PUBLIC
COMMUNICATION

Highly stable; on-air speakers, invisible listeners

Almost totally scripted Usually none

Generally formal Usually thousands MASS
COMMUNICATION

Unstable to highly stable

None to totally scripted None to a great deal

Intimate or formal 2 to billions

COMPUTER-MEDIATED
COMMUNICATION

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Communication Myths, Metaphors, and Misunderstandings metaphors A means to understanding and experiencing one thing in terms of another.

Throughout this text we challenge you to think about common communication myths, metaphors, and misunderstandings in various contexts including interpersonal relationships, workplace interactions, the delivery of health care, and even the learning that takes place in classrooms. At the most basic level, Lakoff and
Johnson (1980) describe metaphors as a means to understanding and experiencing one thing in terms of another. Communication scholars argue that our way of knowing about the world, based on language and nonverbal communication, is largely metaphorical. We talk, think, and act in ways that structure our worldview in metaphorical ways. Metaphors can take on mythic, larger-than-life qualities and can lead to misunderstandings.
For example, Americans tend to approach “arguments as war” (Tannen, 1998).
This metaphor is evident in such statements as “she attacked and shot down all of my arguments,” “your claims are indefensible,” and “to win this argument, we must act strategically.” As a consequence, we usually experience an argument as something that we can win or lose. With the selection of a new metaphor, we could view and experience arguments in different ways. Take a moment to reflect about how the metaphor of “argument as dance” changes the way you think about arguments, participants, the process of arguing, and potential outcomes. Participants could be viewed as actors engaged in balanced, harmonious, and aesthetically pleasing performances rather than as warriors engaged in a battle. There are times when it is necessary and right to fight and defend yourself or your country. However, when all, or even most, arguments are approached from a warlike mentality, we limit our creativity and imagination for solving problems.
We encourage you to think deeply about how cultural values are reflected in common communication myths and metaphors of everyday life, and how misunderstandings can result. Today, more than ever, you will interact with people from other cultures. Intercultural communication may be viewed as the exchange of information between individuals who are unalike culturally; it will be covered in detail in chapter 7. And throughout the book we integrate examples of intercultural communication. As we present the various myths, metaphors, and misunderstandings, you will continue to see the importance of intercultural communication. You will also understand that human communication is complex, captivating, and consequential.

What Are the Goals of Communication Study?

communication competence The ability to effectively exchange meaning through a common system of symbols, signs, or behavior.

You learned the importance of studying communication at the beginning of this chapter. You will derive many benefits: You can improve the way you see yourself and the ways others see you; you can increase what you know about human relationships; you can learn important life skills; you can better exercise your constitutionally guaranteed freedom of speech; and you can increase your chances of succeeding professionally. How will you achieve these outcomes? To the extent that you become a more effective and ethical communicator, you will enhance the likelihood of these positive results.

Effective Communication
Effective communication is also known as communication competence.
Communication competence is defined simply as the ability to effectively exchange

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meaning through a common system of symbols, signs, or behavior. As you will learn in this book, communication competence is not necessarily easy to achieve. Communication competence can be difficult because your goals and others’ goals may be discrepant. Similarly, you and those with whom you communicate may have a different understanding of your relationship. Cultural differences may cause you to view the world and other people differently. Indeed, different perspectives about communication may themselves create problems in your interactions with others. As you read this text, you will learn about the multiple variables involved in communication, and you will become more competent in your communication.
You need to recognize now that while communication competence is the goal, the complexity of communication should encourage you to be a student of communication over your lifetime. In this course you will begin to learn the terminology and the multiple variables comprised in communication. Although you will not emerge from the course as totally effective, you should see significant changes in your communication abilities. The professional public speaker or comedian, the glib
TV reporter, and the highly satisfied spouse in a long-term marriage make communication look easy. However, as you will learn, their skills are complex and interwoven with multiple layers of understanding.

Ethical Communication: The NCA Credo
A second goal in studying communication lies in its ethical dimension. Ethics may be defined as a set of moral principles or values. Ethical standards may vary from one discipline to another just as they differ from one culture to another. Within the communication discipline, a set of ethics has been adopted. In 1999 the National
Communication Association created the following set of ethics:
Questions of right and wrong arise whenever people communicate. Ethical communication is fundamental to responsible thinking, decision making, and the development of relationships and communities within and across contexts, cultures, channels, and media. Moreover, ethical communication enhances human worth and dignity by fostering truthfulness, fairness, responsibility, personal integrity, and respect for self and others. We believe that unethical communication threatens the quality of all communication and consequently the well-being of individuals and the society in which we live.
Therefore we, the members of the National Communication Association, endorse and are committed to practicing the following principles of ethical communication:
We advocate truthfulness, accuracy, honesty, and reason as essential to the integrity of communication.
We endorse freedom of expression, diversity of perspective, and tolerance of dissent to achieve the informed and responsible decision making fundamental to a civil society. We strive to understand and respect other communicators before evaluating and responding to their messages.
We promote access to communication resources and opportunities as necessary to fulfill human potential and contribute to the well-being of families, communities, and society.
We promote communication climates of caring and mutual understanding that respect the unique needs and characteristics of individual communicators.
We condemn communication that degrades individuals and humanity through distortion, intimidation, coercion, and violence, and through the expression of intolerance and hatred.

ethics
A set of moral principles or values. To analyze and discuss applications of the NCA
Credo on Communication Ethics, view the
“You Look Great” and
“Pulling Your Own
Weight” video clips on the Online Learning
Center.

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Part One Fundamentals of Communication Studies
We are committed to the courageous expression of personal convictions in pursuit of fairness and justice.
We advocate sharing information, opinions, and feelings when facing significant choices while also respecting privacy and confidentiality.
We accept responsibility for the short- and long-term consequences of our own communication and expect the same of others.

These “Nine Commandments” are actually quite straightforward. They suggest that we should be open, honest, and reasonable. They affirm our belief in the First
Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America. They affirm that respect for other people and their messages is essential. They acknowledge the need for access to information and to people. Finally, they identify responsibility for our behavior as important.
These ideals are derived from Western conceptions of communication and a belief in democratic decision making. They also reflect ideologies of people within the communication discipline. We acknowledge that these standards might not be consistent with other cultures, belief systems, religions, or even academic disciplines.
Murray (2000), for example, would suggest that we more properly should derive ethical standards in dialogue with others, combining our own perspective with others’ ethical standards.
While we hold the NCA Credo as the best set of ethical conventions guiding communication, we recognize that others might not view these ideals as appropriate for all of us or appropriate at all times. In any case, throughout this text, we will consider the importance of ethics and will make reference to this credo.

TRY

᭣᭤

THIS

Our communication, and that of others, is not always effective or ethical. Identify an experience in which communication between you and another person was not effective.
Identify another experience in which it was not ethical.

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SUMMARY

Chapter Review & Study Guide

In this chapter you learned the following:
᭤ Communication is essential because:

• Understanding communication can improve the way people view themselves and the way others view them.
• People learn more about human relationships as they study communication and learn important life skills.
• Studying communication can help people exercise their constitutionally guaranteed freedom of speech. • An understanding of communication can help people succeed professionally.
᭤ The components of communication are people, messages, channels, feedback, codes, encoding and decoding, and noise.
᭤ Communication is the process of using messages to exchange meaning.

• Communication begins with the self and involves others.
• Communication has both a content and relational dimension.
• Communication is complicated.
• Increased quantity of communication does not necessarily increase the quality of communication.
• Communication is inevitable, irreversible, and unrepeatable. ᭤ Communication occurs in intrapersonal, interpersonal, public, mass, and computer-mediated contexts. The number of people involved, the degree of formality or intimacy, the opportunities for feedback, the need for prestructuring messages, and the degree of stability of the roles of speaker and listener all vary with the communication context.
᭤ Communication behavior should be effective and ethical.

KEY TERMS
Go to the Online Learning Center at of the following terminology.

www.mhhe.com/pearson3

Channel
Code
Communication
Communication competence
Context
Decoding
Dialogue
Dyadic communication
Encoding

to further your understanding

Ethics
Feedback
Interpersonal communication
Intrapersonal communication
Mass communication
Meaning
Message
Metaphors
Noise

Nonverbal codes
Process
Public communication
Receiver
Small-group communication
Source
Verbal codes

STUDY QUESTIONS
1. Communication is considered a process of using messages to generate meaning because it is
a. an activity or exchange instead of an unchanging product
b. a tangible object
c. something with a beginning, middle, and end
d. static

2. Understanding another person’s messages does not occur unless
a. the speaker uses nonverbal messages
b. common meanings for words, phrases, and nonverbal codes are elicited
c. the listener asks questions
d. both parties use verbal and nonverbal symbols

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Part One Fundamentals of Communication Studies

3. People, messages, codes, channels, feedback, encoding, decoding, and noise are components of
a. audience
b. meaning
c. communication
d. context
4. Which communication principle considers variables such as verbal, nonverbal, and behavioral aspects, channel used, and audience characteristics?
a. Communication has a content and relational dimension. b. Communication begins with the self.
c. Communication involves others.
d. Communication is complicated.
5. Intrapersonal communication is communication
, and interpersonal communication is communication
.
a. between two or more people; within the self
b. between two or more people; with a large number of people
c. within the self; between two or more people
d. within the self; within a small group of people
6. A main difference between public communication and mass communication is that
a. mass communication is unstable
b. public communication is mediated by television
c. public communication allows for feedback from the listeners
d. mass communication is generally informal and public communication is formal

7. Which of the following terms is defined as the ability to effectively exchange meaning through a common system of symbols, signs, or behavior?
a. dyadic communication
b. communication competence
c. message
d. feedback
8. Ethical standards within the communication discipline have been created by the
a. National Communication Association
b. American Communication Association
c. Communication Administration
d. Public Speaking Administration
9. According to the text, studying communication is essential because it can
a. improve the way you see yourself and the way others see you
b. teach you important life skills
c. help you succeed professionally
d. all of the above
10. When you respond to a speaker with a verbal or nonverbal cue, you are
a. giving feedback
b. not communicating
c. an example of noise
d. using a metaphor

Answers:
1. (a); 2. (b); 3. (c); 4. (d); 5. (c); 6. (c); 7. (b); 8. (a); 9. (d); 10. (a)

CRITICAL THINKING
1. In the beginning of the chapter, six advantages to studying communication are discussed. Explain how these benefits apply to you in your chosen area of study.

2. Think of your own computer use. How do you use computer-mediated communication (CMC) in your daily life (that is, for school, personal use, or work)?
Do you use one kind of CMC more than the other?

SELF-QUIZ
For further review, try the chapter self-quiz on the Online Learning Center at www.mhhe.com/pearson3.

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REFERENCES
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Bates, J. (2004, December 15). Unaccustomed as I am . . .
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Part One Fundamentals of Communication Studies

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