Expectancy Violations Theory: A Personal Experience - Prof. Mark Orbe, Study notes of Theories of Communication

Download Expectancy Violations Theory: A Personal Experience - Prof. Mark Orbe and more Study notes Theories of Communication in PDF only on Docsity! TIP Report – Theory in Practice (Please put your name on the back of paper) Name of theory: EXPECTANCY VIOLATIONS THEORY Date theory was discussed in class: January 28TH 2011 Date of this report: January 30TH, 2011 Theoretical Overview (3-5 sentences) Expectancy Violations Theory of Judee Burgoon is an objective theory and is part of the social psychological tradition. The main idea of this theory is that individuals adapt and adjust their behaviors, especially when people communicate inappropriately. How do people use space, nonverbal, or words when they communicate and how it violates your expectations of that person? Our expectations come from societal expectations based on our past experiences. When violated, we have a sense of heightened arousal. Through EVT we learned that expectations are not what you desire, but what you predict/expect. Expectations are largely unconscious and are not the forefront of our mind. Violations can be positive or negative and can have some type of an award associated with it. Personal experience observed or encountered Society sets expectations everyday. It could be argued that expectations are more or less a tradition of some sort. Last year I had been dating this guy on and off, but mostly on. He had left for the army and we got into an argument about where I saw us in the future and I wasn’t able to answer that question to his satisfaction at that time so he called it off. We broke up. A month or so later we began talking again and even though he was so far away we were acting like we were in a long distance relationship with out the title. One week his communication had not been how it was in past weeks and I felt like something was up, but I thought it could have been because he was working long hours with little sleep so I didn’t question it too much. That weekend I had went camping with some people I worked with and when I came home I called him and told him all about my trip. I had also been feeling like I had really wanted to actually start something up again but never put my thoughts to words. Later that day after our phone conversation he texted me telling me that he was interested in this girl he had became friends with on base and he wanted to pursue it, but nothing had happened yet because she was going through a divorce. And so I was left heart broken in Michigan. Five months later he told a friend of mine that he was getting married and then she in turn told me. Three days later he decided to tell me over text messaging that those two were engaged and were to be married the following week. I was livid and told him exactly what I thought about it. Not because I still had feelings for him but because it was only five months ago that their relationship had started and that his girlfriend had just gotten a divorce. Applied technical concepts (Use terminology and concepts from the book and lecture.) When I heard that he had decided to get married from my friend I was angry instantaneously and not sure if it was really true or not (arousal). The reaction I had toward that type of news was because it had exceeded my expectations in a negatively way. If they had been dating for a year or more and I had heard the news about wedding bells I would have been more understanding and not so angry. Societal expectations have me to believe that you date someone a few years before you tie the knot. I perceived this violation as negative not only because I am his ex girlfriend but also because I think he is moving to fast in his relationship. Although this may finally help me move on completely and realize that he is happier with her than he was while in a long distance relationship (communicator reward valence).