Communication Defined• The process

whereby humans collectively create and regulate social reality

• A transactional process by which people create meaning through symbols

COMMUNICATION-AS-ACTION

communicator audience

Situation

Situation

“MY BARN”

COMMUNICATION-AS-INTERACTION

message

message

sender receiver

COMMUNICATION-AS-TRANSACTION

• "EVERY TIME PERSONS COMMUNICATE, THEY ARE CONTINUALLY OFFERING DEFINITIONS OF THEMSELVES AND RESPONDING TO DEFINITIONS OF THE OTHER(S) WHICH THEY

PERCEIVE" John Stewart

CONVERSATIONAL META-PERSPECTIVES

10 INDIVIDUALS IN ANY CONVERSATION

I. HOW I SEE ME

• "I'm the type of person who can

roll with the punches"

A B

II. HOW I SEE YOU

" My impression is that you are generally the

'satisfied’ type"

A B

III. HOW I THINK YOU

SEE ME

" It's my guess that you think I 'm self-

confident"

A B

IV. HOW I THINK YOU

SEE YOURSELF

"I think you see yourself in control"

A B

V. HOW I THINK YOU THINK I SEE

YOU

"I feel that you don't believe that I see you in a positive way."

AB

Three Levels of Three Levels of CommunicationCommunication

Martin Buber

• I-ItI-It– Treat others impersonally, almost like objects– clerical staff, servers in restaurant, student in class

• I-YouI-You– Treat others as more than objects, but not as unique– Interaction guided by our roles as peers, students, relatives

• I-ThouI-Thou– Affirms the other as unique, meet others in their wholeness, individuality– Rather than “seeming” interact as “being” (how we really are and feel)

Check out: http://courses.washington.edu/spcmu/buber

/

What does it mean tocommunicate interpersonally

• Unique (vs. generic)

• Unmeasurable (vs. Quantifiable)

• Reflective (vs. Unquestioning)

• Responsive (vs. Reactive)

• Addressable (vs. Talked to/at)