VIEWS: 8 PAGES: 11 POSTED ON: 10/12/2011
Communication Theory • How do therapists know how to help People? • How do teachers know how to teach? • How do coaches know how to win? • How do we know how to communicate most effectively? Are Theories Difficult? • An invitation to the life of the mind • Learning to love knowledge for its own sake • Invitation to an ongoing conversation i.e. Kenneth Burke’s Parlor • Communication Theory is an idea game Suggestions • Stay Positive • Maintain a Perspective--Big Picture • Find Good Resources • Don’t Procrastinate Some Perspectives • Fort Peck--Order or Chaos • The Elephant and the Blind Researchers • What is your perspective? • How do you perceive communication? More on Perspectives • Communication Theories describe and/or explain. Do they predict? • Eastern vs. Western perspectives-- Wholeness and unity vs. analytical reductionism; spirituality vs. individual purpose; non-speech vs. speech/language • Study of Communication is diverse, eclectic, and multidisciplinary today. Three Types of Scholarship • Science--objectivity • Humanities--subjectivity • Social Science--blends the two Three Approaches to Knowledge • Knowing by discovery--search for objectivity • Knowing by interpreting--construction of meaning • Knowing by criticism--application of values and judgements to what is observed or experienced Five Genres of Communication Theories • Structural/Functional--assumes that reality is ordered • Cognitive/Behavioral--mechanisms of the mind • Interactional/Conventional--social life • Interpretative--meaning and language • Critical Theories--domination/oppression Four Levels or Contexts of Inquiry • Interpersonal • Group • Organizational • Mass Ten General Theories • We will look at ten general theories that may apply to all the categories • They are core theories and apply to any context So, Welcome to the Adventure of the Mind called Theory • The Farmer and the “object in the field” • Which explanations do you most often turn to?
Pages to are hidden for
"Communication Theory"Please download to view full document