COMM 305 EXAM 1 QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
What is Communication? - Answer -Relational process of creating and interpreting
messages that elicit a response
Every message has two levels, they are... - Answer -1. Content Level
2. Relationship Level
Content Level - Answer -The level of communication that addresses the topic of
conversation
Relationship Level - Answer -The level of communication that addresses how people
think and feel about each other
Text - Answer -Any message that can be studied, regardless of the medium
Messages do ________ interpret themselves. - Answer -NOT
- They are open to multiple interpretations
What is Theory? - Answer -A set of systematic, informed hunches about the way things
work
- lays out multiple ideas and specifies the relationships among them
Theories as Nets - Answer -- "Catching the world" can be construes as calling for
numerous special theories
- Different kinds of small nets to capture distinct types of communications in local
situations
Theories as Lenses - Answer -Theories shape our perception by focusing attention on
some features of communication
- Theories ignore other features or at least push them into the background
Theories as Maps - Answer -Communication theory is a kind of map designed to help
us navigate some part of the topography of human relationships
Extension of Theory - Answer -Mistaking map/theory as reality
- further learning is halted by absolutism
Faults of Viability - Answer -All reality should be paid attention to, and ideas should
change if they do not match reality
Socio-Psychological Tradition - Answer -- Communication as Interaction and Influence
- Communication truths that can be discovered by careful, systematic observation
- Causal relationships thru surveys or controlled experiments
, Cybernetic Tradition - Answer -- Communication as a System of Information
Processing
- Seek to answer questions such as, "How does the system work?" and "How can we
get the bugs out of this system?"
- Systems theory is closely related: everything is connected
Cybernetics Definition (Cybernetic Tradition) - Answer -The study of information
processing, feedback, and control in communication systems
Rhetorical Tradition - Answer -- Communication as an Artful Public Address
- How to best present a case
- Often text-based approach
- Can be used to explore speeches to be used as data
Six Features that Characterize the Rhetorical Tradition - Answer -1. Speech
distinguishes humans from other animals
2. Public address is much more effective in solving political problems than decrees or
force
3. A single speaker attempts to influence an audience (one way comm) thru persuasive
discourse
4. Oratorical training is the cornerstone of a leader's education
5. Rhetoric is more art than science
6. Oral public persuasion/speaking was the province of males (until the late 1800s)
Rhetoric Definition (Rhetorical Tradition) - Answer -Art of using all available means of
persuasion, focusing on lines of argument, organization of ideas, language use, and
delivery in public speaking
Semiotic Tradition - Answer -- Communication as a Process of Sharing Meaning
Through Signs
- Meaning does not reside in words, meaning resides in people
- Theorists in this tradition are trying to explain and reduce misunderstanding created by
the use of ambiguous symbols
Semiotics Definition (Semiotic Tradition) - Answer -The study of verbal and nonverbal
signs that can stand for something else & how their interpretation impacts society
Symbols Definition (Semiotic Tradition) - Answer -Arbitrary words and nonverbal signs
that bear no natural connection with the things they describe
Socio-Cultural Tradition - Answer -- Communication as the Creation and Enactment of
Social Reality
- Based on the premise that as people talk, they produce and reproduce culture
- Connections we form symbolically
- Communities and the individuals that make them up are heavily intertwined
- Everyone plays a role in the culture that surrounds them, whether they realize it or not
What is Communication? - Answer -Relational process of creating and interpreting
messages that elicit a response
Every message has two levels, they are... - Answer -1. Content Level
2. Relationship Level
Content Level - Answer -The level of communication that addresses the topic of
conversation
Relationship Level - Answer -The level of communication that addresses how people
think and feel about each other
Text - Answer -Any message that can be studied, regardless of the medium
Messages do ________ interpret themselves. - Answer -NOT
- They are open to multiple interpretations
What is Theory? - Answer -A set of systematic, informed hunches about the way things
work
- lays out multiple ideas and specifies the relationships among them
Theories as Nets - Answer -- "Catching the world" can be construes as calling for
numerous special theories
- Different kinds of small nets to capture distinct types of communications in local
situations
Theories as Lenses - Answer -Theories shape our perception by focusing attention on
some features of communication
- Theories ignore other features or at least push them into the background
Theories as Maps - Answer -Communication theory is a kind of map designed to help
us navigate some part of the topography of human relationships
Extension of Theory - Answer -Mistaking map/theory as reality
- further learning is halted by absolutism
Faults of Viability - Answer -All reality should be paid attention to, and ideas should
change if they do not match reality
Socio-Psychological Tradition - Answer -- Communication as Interaction and Influence
- Communication truths that can be discovered by careful, systematic observation
- Causal relationships thru surveys or controlled experiments
, Cybernetic Tradition - Answer -- Communication as a System of Information
Processing
- Seek to answer questions such as, "How does the system work?" and "How can we
get the bugs out of this system?"
- Systems theory is closely related: everything is connected
Cybernetics Definition (Cybernetic Tradition) - Answer -The study of information
processing, feedback, and control in communication systems
Rhetorical Tradition - Answer -- Communication as an Artful Public Address
- How to best present a case
- Often text-based approach
- Can be used to explore speeches to be used as data
Six Features that Characterize the Rhetorical Tradition - Answer -1. Speech
distinguishes humans from other animals
2. Public address is much more effective in solving political problems than decrees or
force
3. A single speaker attempts to influence an audience (one way comm) thru persuasive
discourse
4. Oratorical training is the cornerstone of a leader's education
5. Rhetoric is more art than science
6. Oral public persuasion/speaking was the province of males (until the late 1800s)
Rhetoric Definition (Rhetorical Tradition) - Answer -Art of using all available means of
persuasion, focusing on lines of argument, organization of ideas, language use, and
delivery in public speaking
Semiotic Tradition - Answer -- Communication as a Process of Sharing Meaning
Through Signs
- Meaning does not reside in words, meaning resides in people
- Theorists in this tradition are trying to explain and reduce misunderstanding created by
the use of ambiguous symbols
Semiotics Definition (Semiotic Tradition) - Answer -The study of verbal and nonverbal
signs that can stand for something else & how their interpretation impacts society
Symbols Definition (Semiotic Tradition) - Answer -Arbitrary words and nonverbal signs
that bear no natural connection with the things they describe
Socio-Cultural Tradition - Answer -- Communication as the Creation and Enactment of
Social Reality
- Based on the premise that as people talk, they produce and reproduce culture
- Connections we form symbolically
- Communities and the individuals that make them up are heavily intertwined
- Everyone plays a role in the culture that surrounds them, whether they realize it or not
