Communication Theory Study Guide for Exam 1 - Prof. Jodi Hallsten, Study notes of Communication

Download Communication Theory Study Guide for Exam 1 - Prof. Jodi Hallsten and more Study notes Communication in PDF only on Docsity! Com 111 Exam 1 Study Guide (updated for Fall 2009) Why are theories useful? How are they used? -Theories are concepts-single idea in a theory ex: dos and donts how to get fro date 1 to date 2. -Theories include description of a social event and explain the relationship among event. -Theories help: Explain Predict Organize Solve practical problems. What is a temporal relationship? Certain concepts precede other concepts in time *time associated ideas* Ex: warm weather precedes baseball games Ex: cloudy, dark, then rain What is a correlational association? 2 concepts change together in similar ways (it’s kind of temporal, but not always) Ex: The sales of ice cream go up and so does the rate of rape Ex: increase exercise…decrease weight They don’t always have to be related and not always causal in relation, but they can be. What is a cause/effect, or if/then (causal) relationship? One concept causes the other to be affected (necessarily temporal) Ex: As I took my vitamins my nails and hair grow *whenever you have a causal YOU MUST HAVE a temporal! If you’re causal you’re everything else* What is the inductive approach to theory building? Moving from the general to the specific. Ex: Chris would ask Aniyah to record many conversations and Chris would have to hypothesize or guess what Aniyah is trying to specify. What is the deductive approach to theory building? Moving from specific to general. Ex: Aniyah has to gather specific instances in hopes of being able to generalize. What are the major areas of the communication field?  Intrapersonal Comm- self talk && self esteem ( we kind of talk to ourselves) ex: daydreaming, self-judgment, self-esteem.  Interpersonal Comm- face to face ex: teacher and students  Intercultural Comm- communication b/w cultures and co-cultures  Small Groups- focus on processes of large vs. small groups. Individuals come together in for a common purpose. Must have at least 3 ppl. Too many= cliques/ no wrk done  Organizational – communication in organizations ( how employers treat employee) Employee of the month  Mass Comm- print&& broadcast Journalism, visual::cmc::  Public Speaking- rhetoric, comm. Apprehension, public speaking  Public Relations- comm. b/w publics && share a relationship w/ public How can I know if a theory is good? What are the criteria by which I evaluate theories? Parsimony: simplicity theory fairly simple Utility: practical value-useful theories Scope: size of the theory. How much info does it cover? Heurism: new thinking the “oooh factor” you want to know more Falsibility: must be able to prove a theory false because if something is true all the time then it is a fact law The contexts of communication (don’t memorize them – just be familiar w/them) The definition of communication as it is stated in the book Social process in which individuals employ symbols to establish and interpret meaning in their environment. What influences the communication environment? Situations or context in which communication occurs ex: time, place, historical period Medicated messages: e-mail, internet, I.M Downfall: unable to listen to vocal characteristics or watch body language Why it is important to understand communication theory (generally speaking) Allow us to explain how and why events occur. What is communication apprehension? Fear of speaking before and audience What is CMC? Computer Mediated Communication Ex: internet, web conferencing, facebook, twitter, blog What does metatheory mean? Theories about theories What is ontology? What are the ontological assumptions of each type of researcher? Study of reality (being) Scientific/objective: reality exist no questions asked Humanistic/subjective: reality exist inside of us differently no real world exist. Just names and ideas “we” create.