Ackman, SPCM 101; Chapter Outline and Quiz Review

CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION TO HUMAN COMMUNICATION
CHAPTER OUTLINE

I. The Importance of Studying Human Communication

A. How is human communication different from other studies of human behavior?
1. It focuses exclusively on the exchange of messages to create meaning.
2. It has a long history.
a. Classical era in Western civilization: Socrates, Plato and Aristotle.
b. Even earlier: 3200 2800 BCE Precepts of Kagemni and Old Testament.

B. What can studying human communication offer us?
1. Although we can all communicate, good communication isnt always easy, and it isnt always common
sense.
2. Good communication helps us to develop satisfying relationships and terminate dissatisfying ones.
3. Through communication, we define and redefine relationships.
4. Communication helps to establish how others perceive us, and how we perceive ourselves.
5. Poor communication can negatively transform lives, while good communication can positively
transform lives.
6. Studying communication can also lead to a new career path.

II. What Is Human Communication?

A. Human communication is a process in which people generate meaning through the exchange of verbal and
nonverbal messages.
1. Communication occurs in numerous contexts and through numerous channels.
2. In communication we exchange messages, usually utilizing verbal or nonverbal symbols to convey our
meaning.
a. Verbal symbols are words or phrases, while nonverbal symbols are gestures, facial expressions,
vocal tone, etc.
b. Symbols are arbitrary; they have no inherent meaning and must be negotiated and agreed on by
communicators.
c. Signs may also be used to exchange messages; these are not arbitrary, but have an implicit
referent. Two important types are iconic signs and indexical signs.

B. The goal of communication is to create meaning.
1. Each message carries two types of meaning:
a. Content meaning includes denotative and connotative significance.
b. Relationship meaning describes who parties are to one another.

C. Human communication includes six basic components:
1. Setting refers to the location and environment of the communication.
2. Participants are the people engaged in communication.
a. Participants vary in number, similarity, and relationship to one another.
3. Message creation involves converting ideas into messages (encoding) and deriving meaning from
messages (decoding).
4. Channels are the means by which messages are transmitted.
a. Channels may be radio, e-mail, face-to-face, etc.
5. Noise is any stimulus that interferes with the quality of a message.
6. Feedback refers to verbal or nonverbal response to a message.



Ackman, SPCM 101; Chapter Outline and Quiz Review

D. Human communication has been modeled in three main ways.
1. The earliest models of communication were linear models.
a. Linear models were based on a sender encoding a message and then sending it to a receiver for
decoding.
b. Linear models stressed the importance of message clarity.
c. Linear models were based on Shannon and Weavers explanations of how information was
transmitted through telephone cables or radio waves.
2. Interactive models acknowledge a more dynamic communication process.
a. In these models, communicators are both senders and receivers.
b. In the interactive models of communication, feedback plays an important role in the
communication process.
c. Interactive models presume that each communicator brings certain experiences and
assumptions (fields of experience) to a communication encounter.
3. Transactional models state that communicators are working together to generate meaning, which
presumes three things:
a. When communicating, each person is both a sender and a receiver at the same time; feedback is
always present.
b. Most communication interactions are not discrete encounters, but are part of an ongoing stream
of interactions over time.
c. Communication shapes how people see themselves, and how they are seen by other people.

E. The model of human communication in society developed in this book is an extension of the transactional
model.
1. One element emphasized in this model is the tension between individual differences that we bring to
communication and a societys tolerance for variation.
a. Some individual characteristics are more highly valued by a society than others, and are more
likely to be exhibited in communication.
b. Communication often serves to maintain these hierarchies of value.
2. Communication is embedded in culture (learned patterns that a group of people share).
a. When people identify as a member of a culture, this identity becomes one of their individual
characteristics.
b. As cultural groups people belong to change, so does their sense of identity.
c. Cultural beliefs shape our perceptions and behaviors in communication.
d. Individual cultural backgrounds of participants, as well as the cultural setting of the interaction,
affect communication.
3. Each communication event occurs in a specific social context.
a. Elements of this context include location, number of people present, channel of
communication, etc.
4. The tensions between individual forces, societal forces, cultures, and contexts shape communication
and meaning.
5. The definition of communication in this text is: a transactional process in which people generate
meaning through the exchange of verbal and nonverbal messages in specific contexts, influenced by
individual and societal forces and embedded in culture.

III. A Communication Ethic

A. Even though there are examples in any society of unethical communication, individuals
should still be held responsible for the messages they create.

B. Standards of right or wrong for communicated messages tend to focus on three factors:
1. Most people expect truthful communication from others; the more valued the relationship, the greater
the damage from deceptive communication.
a. Due to the impactful nature of communication, untruthful messages have direct consequences
on others.

Ackman, SPCM 101; Chapter Outline and Quiz Review




2. Consideration of whether it is appropriate to withhold information (for legitimate privacy reasons) or
more appropriate to disclose information (due to anothers need to know in order to make an informed
decision) is another ethical factor in communication.
3. Finally, communicators must consider the benefit or harm their messages carry, which is often difficult
to discern.

C. Everyone must develop their personal communication ethics, which may be based on a number of elements.
1. Standards of ethics exist on a continuum from absolute (one standard of rules for every interaction) to
relative (rules dependent upon each situation).
2. Standards should be developed in regard to the language used to refer to others.
a. Referring to others in derogatory terms or with labels based on stereotypes can disregard their
humanity and individuality.
3. Consideration should be given to the role of receiver, encompassing how to respond to the messages
of others.
a. Qualities such as mindfulness, reasoned skepticism, and healthy feedback influence the
communication process.
b. Sometimes the autonomy of the receiver is limited by power inequities, and ethical responses
do not seem feasible.
4. Authentic communication is open and free from manipulation; inauthentic communication is exhibited
in the following three behaviors:
a. Although it is normal for some topics to be private or taboo, topic avoidance is unethical when
a majority group silences certain topics or opinions to maintain their own power.
b. Meaning denial is an unethical form of behavior when a meaning is present in an interaction,
but is denied in order to manipulate the situation.
c. Disqualification prohibits the speech of others due to their positions or identities.

D. In practice, it may be difficult to interpret ethical choices in complicated situations.
1. Establishing a personal ethical stance on communication gives individuals a starting point for making
choices in difficult situations.

Quiz One Review Prompts:
Understand the definition of human communication. Describe the uniqueness of
this communicative process.
Elements of the communication process
Six basic components of human communication
o What is noise?
Communication Models
Syllabus hints:
o Technological requirements
o Assignment expectations
o The number of weeks in this course
o How to best communicate with Nicole Ackman, your Instructor