http://communication.wadsworth.

com/
http://www.infotrac-college.com
 Communication Theories are
Supported by Research
• Notice how Julia Wood cites her sources
throughout Communication in our Lives.
• She uses the APA, American
Psychological Association’s method of
citation as most communication scholars
doing social scientific research in the field
do.
 Understanding Citations
• “Mead (1934)” refers to a work by
Mead written in 1934.
• “(Mead, 1934, p. 10) refers to citing
page 10 of Mead’s 1934 work.
• Full bibliographic citations for all
works are found at the end of the text.
• Use these models as you begin your
research into communication.
 Personal Values of
Communication
• How we see ourselves reflects the
views of us that others communicate.
• Communication affects our identity
and our physical well-being.
• Healthy interaction with others is
important to our physical and mental
health.
Communication is a Foundation
of Relationships
• We build connections with others by:
 Revealing our private identities
 Listening to learn about others
 Working out problems
 Remembering shared history
 Planning a future
• Communication creates relationships
that last.
 What Employers are Looking for
in College Graduates:
1. Oral
6. Computer
Communication
7. Proficiency in Field
2. Interpersonal 8. Written
3. Analytical Communication
4. Teamwork 9. Leadership
5. Flexibility 10. Work Experience

Source: Job Outlook 97, a survey conducted by the National

Association of Colleges and Employers, 1996.
 Breadth of Communication
• Intrapersonal • Media and
 Self-Talk New Technologies
• Interpersonal
• Organizational
• Group
• Intercultural
• Public
• Ethics
 Communication Skills Affect
Professional Success
• 79% of NYC executives ranked the
ability to express ideas well verbally as
the most important qualification in hiring
and promoting employees.
• Health care professionals need
communication skills.
• Technical jobs need communication skills
to explain technical ideas.
 Cultural Values
• Citizens in a democracy must be able to
express ideas and evaluate others’ ideas.
• Friends need to listen sensitively, express
empathy and provide support.
• Neighbors need social skills to interact
pleasantly.
• Civic and social life depend on listening
to a range of perspectives.
Communication Defined

Communication is a systemic
process in which people interact
with and through symbols to
create and interpret meanings.
Features of Communication

• Communication is a process - it is on
going and changing continuously.
• We communicate through symbols.
 Anything that abstractly signifies
something else can be a symbol.
 All language, nonverbal behaviors, art,
and music are symbols.
 Meanings

• The content level • The relationship

of meaning is the level of meaning
literal message. expresses the
relationship
between
communicators.

In communication symbols are used to

create meanings.
 Linear Model of Communication

Information Message Transmitter Signal Received Receiver Message Destination

Source Signal

Noise
Source

Sender Message Receiver

 Interactive Model
of Communication
Message

Encoder
Source
Decoder Decoder
Receiver
Encoder

Feedback Field
of
Experience
 Transactional Model
Social
Systems Communicator A’s
Field of Experience
Time1

Shared Symbolic
Time2 Field of Interactions Noise
Experience Over Time

Time3
Communicator B’s
Field of Experience
The Communication Continuum

Impersonal
Impersonal Interpersonal
Interpersonal

It You Thou
 Careers in Communication
• Research

• Education

• Training and Consulting

• Human Relations and Management

Experiencing Communication
in our Lives . . .

View the following speech and then

answer the questions that follow
based on material presented in
Chapter 1. A manuscript of the
speech can be found in your text
at the end of Chapter 1.
Wadsworth Thomson: Wood Scenarios
1. Does Mona’s speech give you a sense of
who she is?
2. Did Mona’s introduction catch your
attention and give you a road map of what
she would cover in her speech?
3. How did Mona create identification
between herself and listeners?
4. How did examples add to the speech?
5. How was the quotation from Sasha
effective?
6. Did Mona’s conclusion create closure by
returning to the theme of her introduction?