Final Post #3

A concept that I feel needs further discussion would be the different types of perspectives there are. The book states that a perspective is, “a coherent set of assumptions about the way a process operates” (25). There are three models to look at. The first model is psychological perspective which is an idea that focuses on “what is going on in the head” when we communicate. The second model is the social constructionist perspective, which is a “process whereby people, using tools provided by their culture, create collective representations of reality” (25). This emphasizes the relationship between communication and culture. Finally the last model is the pragmatic perspective, which shows that “communication consists of a system of interlocking, interdependent moves, which become patterned over time” (25). These three models are all very important to understand when it comes to communicating with others.

The most interesting of those three models is the pragmatic perspective. The reason is because, as the text states, “this perspective focuses on the games people play when they communicate” (25). I believe that we all play games with one another. The reason is because we are all trying to learn how different people communicate. We change our style of communication with certain people because we begin to understand how they like to interact with you. You being to understand how someone reacts to certain ways of communicating, making it easier for you to avoid it in the future.

I think it would be interesting to do an assignment on these models to see which way people like to communicate more.

Final Post #2

“Whenever curiosity about human behavior motivates us to observe others, we are engaging in our own private version of ethnography” (379). I found ethnography most interesting because all human beings are curious of other people’s lives. “Watching people and trying to figure out the rules that guide their actions are basic mechanisms for survival, without them, we wouldn’t be able to fit into our own culture” (379). When I read this sentence, I became interested in reading more about this topic.

Because we learn mostly from observations, ethnographers dive into other cultures and observe certain areas by becoming one of them. They let go of all of their personal beliefs and values and interact with these people undercover. Ethnographers feel that this is the best way to observe. I found this so interesting because it seems like a fun, but crazy thing to do. When you secretly become apart of something and nobody knows whom you truly are, then you would be able to get the best information and observations.

It is almost like going to a brand new school for a week and pretending you are something you are really not. When you pretend to be something else, then you learn from others a whole different way of living. Isn’t that a cool concept?

Final Post #1

Ethnography seemed most interesting to me because it is a concept that I have never thought of as a popular research method. It would be very interesting to go undercover and research something or someone in its natural environment. At the same time, you have to give up all of your “own values and assumptions on the data” (374), making this an even harder way to research. Like the text says, instead of a hypothesis you would see the answer emerge just from watching with your own eyes.

I believe studying deception using this method would not work very well, so I would probably chose survey research to find out more on deception. According to the dictionary, deception is the act of deceiving someone. It would be key to give the participants questionnaires on different ways someone might deceive another person and see how they would answer. I think that face-to-face interviews would be difficult, but then you might also be able to read the persons facial expressions to see if they are lying when answering the questions.

Deception is such a hard topic to research because it involves lying, so I’m not sure that even survey research would be the best way to research this. What do you think?

Chapter 11 Post #3

I do believe that Marshall’s idea is true. The reason I believe this is because the channel that the messages are received is very important. Receivers chose how they want to receive these messages, so that means that they will chose what they like the best whether it be TV, Internet or news print. How these messages are being said is what is going to keep the same audience coming back. Certain people hear information in different ways making is better for them to stick with one type of medium more than the other.

For me personally, I still love to read the newspaper daily. I also love to get my news on the Internet too. Both of these mediums are better for my style of learning. I know that other people like to watch TV when getting their news updates.

Marshall says that TV is a cool medium because “it demands that viewers fill in detail” (307). The television allows viewers to actually see what they are watching which helps them to make their own ideas and opinions. Viewers begin to feel like they can relate to the person on TV personally. Like our text says, viewers thought that John F. Kennedy was cool because viewers fell in love with his suave manner and his beautiful looks. Having him on TV helped views to see a side of him that they would have missed out on if they were reading about him in newspapers or listening to him speak on the radio.

Chapter 11 Post #2

Something that I found interesting in this chapter is the idea of interactivity (p323). Interactivity, according to our text, “occurs when receivers have the opportunity to engage with senders” (323). This is happening now more than ever before. We use many different electonic things to communicate with senders like email, text, chats and even online polls. This is so important because it is a fast answer and it is easy too. We are able to provide feedback so quick that the sender is able to fix the problems or make whatever it is even better. This idea is also important because it allows the audience to be even more involved than ever. Shows like Dancing With the Stars and American Idol allow the audience to feel as though they are apart of something really exciting and special making shows like these a big hit.

Our text also explains the idea of a “wiki” which allows Internet users to access information, update it, correct it or even add more info to it. This also makes another type of audience involved. The biggest example of this is “Wikipedia”. I love these type of websites because it allows you to get information fast and easy, however you never really know if information is true and correct, which could get you into trouble.

Chapter 11 Post #1

Have you made friendships that exist exclusively in cyberspace? If so, how are they different from f2f relationships? If you have not formed cyber relationships, why not?

I have never formed a friendship exclusively through cyberspace. Meaning, I have never met anyone online and have become friends with them. This has never interested me mainly because I have always been skeptical of the idea that this person is really who he or she is saying they are. I do not have the type of personality to do that. This idea makes me think of websites like match.com where you try and meet other singles online and begin relationships. I know that this is very popular and it sometimes is pretty successful, however it can also be a very scary thing as well. When it comes to the Internet you never know who is on the other end.

Face to face relationships are much different to Internet relationships because you are comforted with the fact that you know who you are talking to. This face-to-face relationship is much more intimate and real unlike Internet relationships which are almost imaginary. I am not saying that Internet relationships are wrong or that you should never try one, I am just saying that they are not for me!

I will say that I have deepened many relationships because of the bond that we share online either through video chat or instant messaging. It is better than talking on the phone sometimes or even better than talking in person. Over the Internet conversations can be more candid and fun, which is sometimes important to relationships.

Chapter 8 Post #3

Pick one concept from the assigned reading that you found useful or interesting and discuss it.

I was interested in reading about the different types of rites there are. First off, a rite is, according to our text, “a publicly performed relative elaborate, dramatic, planned set of activities that consolidate various forms of cultural expressions into one event”. I never knew that there were so many rites in our society.

Some include rites of passage, rites of degradation, rites of enhancement, rites of renewal, rites of conflict reduction and rites of integration. I have participated in rites of passage when I was a freshman attending college and when I was learning my role as a basketball coach for young children. I have also participated in rites of integration many times in areas like Mardi Gras, work functions and other holidays.

It is very important to use these different types of rites because it acknowledges important people and events and it also reminds you of your accomplishments and achievements. It also strengthens cultures and communities because everybody gets together and celebrates while also remembering the important parts of their culture or community. These rites can also bring out the reasons why people are still participating in these events, which will help the communities and cultures to decide what is important to them and what is not.

Chapter 8 Post #2

Review the etiquette rules suggested in the text. Respond to each one. Have you ever been bothered by cell phone, answering machines, or beepers? What do you feel about call waiting? Is it rude to put people on hold to take another call?

Cellular Phones- I also believe that people should not be bothered by the noise of someone talking on a cell phone. This is especially true in areas where someone is trying to relax and have some quiet time.
Answering Machines-I believe that answering machines are only for short and concise messages. I think that you if you really need to tell someone something very important, you can leave them a message, but don’t make it a habit. I think that you should just use answering machines to tell someone to please call you back and leave a short reason why.
Conference Calls- Conference calls are very important for companies to use and they are always very useful when talking to people all over the world. When you are participating in a conference call, introduce yourself each time you speak and just stick to what is being talked about. Avoid going off on things that are not relevant because you are wasting a lot of people’s time.
Faxes- I also believe that there are times when you should call the person you are trying to fax first, especially if the fax is very long. However, if you fax things very frequently then there is no need to waste your time and call ahead of time. You should also never put anything personal on a fax because many people do look at faxes.
Timing Communications- It is always nice to put other people first before you start to bombard them with many different types of communication.
Screen Names and Ring Tones- Make sure that you chose an appropriate screen name that could be used for professional use. Also be aware that many people hear your ring tone on your cell phone, so chose one that wont scare someone or annoy them.

I have been bothered by people talking really loud on their cell phones in a store or restaurant. I feel that these are two places where people are trying to concentrate or relax and you should not be loud and obnoxiously talking on a cell phone. I also believe that it is rude to put people on hold unless it is an emergency or you tell them ahead of time that you might need to click over because you are expecting a call. I feel that people want your undivided attention and deserve it as well because you are also taking up their time while on the phone.

Chapter 8 Post #1

How are organizations tied to the environment? What is the relationship between the school you attend and the city or town in which it is situated? What, if any, ethical obligations does an organization like a college or university have to the local community?

Organizations are linked to environments because organizations depend on their surroundings and energy, according to our text. Therefore these organizations have to be careful of their effect, making sure that they do not destroy or seriously damage the community around them. The relationship between the school I attend and the city it is situated in is the fact that the school depends on the city around it. The school depends on the city for money and safety among many other things. The city has a huge effect on the survival of my school because many of its decisions and laws will either hurt or profit my school. I do not believe that my college has any obligation to the community surrounding it besides keeping the students under control and the physical premises of the school orderly. Other than that, I believe that the city has an obligation to keep my school up and running. My school depends on the city for money and leadership. The school looks at the city for guidance when things on campus are not how they should be like violence and safety for example.

Chapter 6 Post

*Which pattern (rigid complementarity, competitive symmetry, or submissive symmetry) do you think would be the most difficult to change? Why? Which would be the most damaging to a relationship? Which would be the most potentially damaging to the self-esteem of the individuals involved?

I think that rigid complementarity would be the most difficult to change because it is a pattern where one person has to step up and do something different than they would normally do. This person begins to feel resentment towards the other person because he or she is frustrated with either always giving in or having to be in charge. Either way, this person is going to have to change a part or his or her personality, which is always hard. I think that this would be hard on a relationship because you would rather want to be the one who doesn’t have to change. In a relationship with a friend or significant other, you always want the other person to change and not yourself. This would become hard because it might cause a fight and it would definitely take a lot of time to actually accomplish.

I also think that rigid complementarity would be the most damaging to the self-esteem of the individuals involved because it would initially point out a negative area of his or her personality. This would affect them greatly because ultimately, they are going to have to change a part of their personality in order to continue to have a relationship with this person.

I have noticed this problem before with one of my best friends. I always had to be the one to make the important decisions that would directly affect both us. Either it ended up in a positive way or a negative but either way, it affected us and I was tired of being the one responsible. Overall, I eventually told my friend about the problem this was causing in our relationship, which began to cause some arguments. I didn’t necessarily want her to change her personality completely, I just wanted her to recognize that a relationship is a two way street and both of us had to the dirty work some of the time. In the end, it turned out to help that I said something, however I have noticed every once in a while that my friend gets frustrated still when it comes to decision making.

Intercultural Communication Post

These 3 different premises were very interesting to me. I feel that each one holds true to some very different institutions. I believe in the perfectability premises because I think that we are all born in sin and are capable of becoming better human beings. If we try each day to strong and use control, we can make the right choices. I believe that the church follows this premise because the church believes that we can work each and everyday to become better human beings. I think that the rationality premise is a very straightforward premise, in that it is used and followed everyday by each of us, including our government. It is very true that we are capable of discovering truth through logical analysis, as the book states. An example of this would be our system of laws and how we use trials to find out what is the truth. The mutability premise is something that I do not totally understand. The book says that human behavior is shaped by environmental factors. Is this basically saying that humans are affected by the society and the environment around them? If this is what the mutability factor means, then yes I believe in this as well.

Discussion 1

The first situation that comes to mind where I interpreted someone’s nonverbal message the wrong way was a work a few months back. I work at a small office in Saratoga that has about 10 employees. Fortunately, we all like each other very much, except for every now and then when we hire someone that just does not fit into our “family”. One lady that works there is in her 40s with a husband and two children. She is an amazing women who works hard at work and even harder at home. Often times she comes into work very tired. Although she is tired, she almost always tries to put on a happy face. Our office is always busy with clients coming in and out, so I am not always aware of what type of mood she might be in that day. One day, I walked past her office and saw her with her head down working on a file. I really did not think anything of it, only that she was busy. After an hour or so past, I realized that I had not seen her all day. When I went into her office to see how she was doing, she was on the phone. I stood there for about 2 seconds before I turned around and started to leave. As I was turning around, she looked at me and put her hand up in the air and gave me, what I thought was an annoyed look. I figure she was in a bad mood that day and decided not to bother her anymore. Well as the morning passed she finally came into my office to ask if I wanted to get some lunch. I kind of looked at her with a puzzled face and said, “Is everything ok today?.” Unfortunately, I might have said it in a not so nice manner. She looked at me and said “Yeah. Why?” also in a not so nice manner. I assumed by her reaction to me when I walked in her office that she was in a bad mood and did not want to be bothered. Well it turned out that she was in a great mood and that the client she was speaking to could not hear her very well on the other end of the phone and she did not want me to make any noise on our end.

I think that people can increase the accuracy with which they interpret nonverbal messages by being patient, understanding, and not jumping to any conclusions. You can do this by fully evaluating the situation and then after some time has past, you can verbally discuss how you are feeling about the situation with out jumping to conclusions.

Question 2

Gender and language is such an interesting topic. I do believe that men and women use language differently. I can picture my girl friends and boy friends all having a great time at a party. As I look around the room I see how boys and girls are interacting and speaking to each other. I look at the girls and they are standing tall, using hand gestures and most of the time, complete sentences. I look over at the boys and they are looking in all directions, hands in their pockets and speaking quickly and incompletely. Men and women are on two different planets when it comes to communication. I love how the book describes different talk like, “trouble talk”, “rapport talk” and “report talk”. I can see each of these examples in my everyday life. I do believe that men like to talk to get right to the problem or subject of the matter and then its over. Women like to listen and figure out why and how we are going to fix it.

Conversations between two girls and two guys are obviously very different, but it is amazing to be in an important conversation with a guy and see how he reacts. You can automatically tell how a guy is feeling just by his first sentence. Guys do not notice this about women that quickly unless they start to cry right away. Men do not listen as well as women do, if at all. They would rather avoid a conversation at all costs. I’m generalizing here- I don’t believe all men are like this!

Table 4.5 in the book breaks down gender and communication very well. One that shot out at me was that men initiate the topic of a conversation more than a woman. We all know that is true! I was very interesting to read about the differences in gender communication.

Question 1

I do not believe that it is possible to perceive others without in some way judging them because that is human nature. I believe that in the first few minutes or even seconds of meeting someone, you are taking in how they look, how they talk, hand gestures, and so on. Therefore, you automatically come up with an idea in your head about whom this person is. I feel that the more that you talk to the person and spend time with her or she, your perception can and it is almost likely to change. I do not think that it is a bad thing that we automatically assume something about someone. I feel this way because I always give that person time to show themselves to me. I feel that people who stick to their first impressions and never change it are ignorant and stubborn. Those are the people who do not ever have or keep true friends.

We can make judgments more fair by being more open minded and giving people more time to be themselves around you. When I first meet somebody, depending on my surroundings, I am not truly myself. I hope that these new people that I meet would give me time to come out of my shell and open up because that is what I like to do for others. Like the textbook says, “We can listen much faster than we can speak. This means that as we listen, we have plenty of time to think” (55). This sums up first impressions perfectly. When you are listening to someone new, you need to use that time to keep an open mind. Not everyone you meet are going to be just like you and want to do the same things you do. This is something that you have to keep in your mind. You are not going to be friends with every new person you meet, so it is okay that you might not click with them. It doesn’t mean that you should change your perception about them.

Week 3 Post #2

This view states that communication is the key to holding our world together. It also states that through this communication, “social groups create collective ideas of themselves, of one another, and of the world they inhabit”(29). This view seems to be the most difficult to completely understand only because I am sure what it means by “building worlds”. What this perspective means to me is that through our own cultures language, beliefs, attitudes, values and guidelines, our world is shaped differently than what another person see through their culture. It seems to me that this view states that societies views are what shape us. I do believe that our way of thinking in society today is shaped by everything around us from TV to magazines. We do begin to think the way everybody else is thinking. I understand that this becomes a problem when we are faced with someone from another culture. Our thinking is completely different, sometimes causing serious problems. Some things that we might talk about in our society could be entertainment and celebrities. Other cultures do not rely on what celebrities think or say because they do not value entertainment like we do. These concepts directly contribute to our happiness because we do rely so much on what society thinks and what other people think. We all try so hard to be like what we see in TV when it is just not realistically possible or even right. People’s confidence and wellbeing could be seriously affected by this way of thinking.

Week 3 Post #1

According to our text, under the pragmatic perspective “communication consists of a system of interlocking, interdependent ‘moves’, which become patterned over time” (25). Basically, this perspective focuses on the games we play as human beings. Games meaning when two people begin to have a conversation with one another and eventually interact with one another over time. I think that it definitely makes sense to think of communication as patterned interaction. Mostly because I believe that after knowing somebody for a length of time, you begin to understand how he or she likes to communicate and therefore, know what the right and wrong moves are. People’s personality change constantly and are different from person to person. It is important to know how to talk to one person versus how to talk with another. For example, when having a conversation with my best friend, I know that I can be more free and easy going whereas when having a conversation with my mother, sometimes I have to know the right things to say in order to not push her buttons. You also begin to understand each person’s facial expression and other actions. This makes it easier to know what types of conversations you can have with certain people. I also believe that this view is played out a lot in loving relationships like a boyfriend and girlfriend or husband and wife. You need to know how to play the game in order to keep a steady relationship.

Discussion #2

A speaker that I have always admired is my high school principal, Mary Miller. The first time I had ever heard her speak was a my older sister's graduation. I was young then, but remember listening to her and thinking how much presence she had in that gym. Many years later I got accepted to Presentation High School and was lucky enough to still have her as my principal. 

I think that Ms. Miller uses pathos in her speeches. She puts so much emotion into each and every speech that she does. She makes sure that with each speech that she does, she relates to each and every student the best that she can. Ms. Miller would tell us stories which would enable us to make a connection to her on a level further than just being our principal.  She was always so passionate about what she was speaking about, which would always touch our hearts. 

It was hard for me to come up with some qualities that I have that make me persuasive. I think that I also try to relate to whomever I am speaking with. I also try to be very knowledgeable about what I am speak about. I think that these qualities are just like my principal's qualities which both fall under Aristotle's classification schemes. 

Week 2 Discussion #1

Question: The Greeks believed that to be an orator, an individual had to be morally good. Comment on whether you agree or disagree. What, if any, is the connection between goodness, truth and public communication?

I do not agree with the statement above. Yes, it is a plus to listen to a speaker whom you know is morally good, however not many people out there are morally good. In order to succeed in our society today, you almost have to do whatever it takes to be on top. These people will lie if they have to. When I think of an orator, I think of some of the most amazing speakers we have had in our society over the past 100 years. People like John F. Kennedy Jr. and Martin Luther King Jr. You believed what these people said because you knew that they were good people. Sometimes you can listen to someone like Hitler and get brainwashed into believing what he is saying is right. He was not a morally good person but he knew how to persuade a crowd.

When it comes to a connection between goodness, truth and public communication, it definitely depends on who is speaking and what the topic is that he or she is speaking about. Again, you can really only find truth and goodness in a speaker when you are passionate and knowledgeable about what this speaker is talking about. 

At this moment during the election we are listening to the speeches in the Republican National Convention. It is amazing to hear these people speak about what they believe in and what they believe is best for our country. You have to decide on your own what is the truth.

Introduction!

Hello Everyone! My name is Lee and I am a senior at SJSU! I cant wait to graduate and get out into the real world! My major is Public Relations and I really do love it! I am also really looking forward to completing this Comm class.

Communication is such a vital part in our society and it will be interesting to learn how the lack of communication between cultures causes stereotypes & inequality in our world.

Talk with you all soon!