COMM 1014 EXAM2

Cognition

processes of the mind through which people come to: know, perceive, understand

Perception

the process by which an organism assimilates, or makes sense out of, and uses sensory data

Selective Attention

choosing to "attend" to things based upon their value to you (e.g. "window shopping")

Selective Perception

applying our own interpretations (i.e. based on nurture, not nature)

Selective Memory

remembering what is helpful, forgetting what is hurtful

Role of attitudes, beliefs, and values in humans' internal desires for consistency

selectivity supports an internal desire for consistency

Cognitive Dissonance

we want to be consistent in words, deeds and thoughts; inconsistency creates discomfort, called "dissonance"; resulting discomfort causes us to adjust or change attitudes, beliefs, and subsequent behavior

What are symbols?

words

Four (4) important ideas about "The Centrality of the Symbol"

1. We are born into a society and culture that has a pre-existing set of linguistic rules

2. This pre-existing set of rules for language suggests that our lives are fundamentally social

3. Language can NEVER be wholly private, even in intrapersonal communication

4. Thought comes from linguistic rules

What does the speech act theory argue is a false dichotomy?

talking vs. doing

What does the speech act theory examine and why?

it studies how speech is essentially performative, that is, although words are often assumed in everyday life to be separate from actions, speech act theorists assume the opposite - that by saying words, we are really performing certain actions, such as vowing, promising, or nominating

Examples of things we do with words (speaking)

reveal our thinking, assert our views, invite others to "see" from our perspective, commit ourselves to something symbolized by the words we choose to speak

What do semioticists study and why?

they study signs and the way signs are arranged into codes, this helps people understand daily lives

What is a signifier?

what conveys the meaning (speech/nonverbal)

What is the signified?

the meaning conveyed

Social and cultural influences of how "signs" come to be understood

they become understood through society in ways they would not be predicted by form alone

What do Inner Speech Theorists examine and why?

external speech patterns and internal thought patterns

What does mentation mean?

internalized speech with yourself

How and why do inner speech theorists argue that humans move from interaction to mentation, and then mentation back to interaction?

kids tend to talk as they do things, but as they get older, they internalize the speech, adults are quiet in libraries because they were told to do so as kids

Three things inner speech is said to allow us to do

1. Gives us ability to engage in higher mental processes

2. De-centering ("how would you feel if someone did that to you?")

3. Critical thinking and problem solving skills, leading a more complex life

What does interiority mean?

inner speech gives us the ability to engage in "higher mental processes"

What does de-centering mean?

placing ourselves outside of our own immediate experience

Symbolic Interactionism -- Mind

the ability to use symbols that have common social meanings and that are developed through interaction with others

Symbolic Interactionism -- Self

the ability to reflect on ourselves from the perspective of others

Symbolic Interactionism -- Society

the web of social networks that human beings are

The "Looking-Glass Self"

we consider ourselves as others see us, imagining how we look to another person

Three (3) principles of the "Looking-Glass Self"

1. We imagine how we appear to others

2. We imagine their judgment of our appearance

3. Our "imagingings" result in hurt or pride

The "generalized other"

others are objects of our messages - we are the objects of other's messages

Two things the "self" is NOT

inwardly set, socially given

Self-fulfilling prophecy

tendency for our expectations to evoke responses that confirm what we originally anticipated

The "responsive I"

self that is created by the way we respond to others

Interpersonal relationships

the ability of two or more persons to jointly create and maintain a mutually satisfying relationship by constructing appropriate and effective messages

Four elements of the textbook's definition of "interpersonal relationships"

1. Include 2 or more people

2. Involve people who are interdependent

3. Individuals who use consistent patterns of interactions

4. Have interacted for some time

Complementary relationships

each person supplies something the other person lacks

Symmetrical relationships

participants mirror each other or are highly similar

Self-disclosure

making intentional revelations about yourself that others would be unlikely to know that generally constitute private, sensitive, or confidential information

Stages of interpersonal relationships

relational development, relational maintenance, relational deterioration

Relational development

initial stage in a relationship that moves a couple from meeting to mating

Relational maintenance

stage in a relationship after a couple has bonded and in which they engage in the process of keeping the relationship together

Relational deterioration

stage in which the prior bond disintegrates

Compliance-gaining

attempts made by a source of messages to influence a target to perform a desired behavior that the target would not otherwise perform

Compliance-resisting

the refusal of targets to influence messages to comply with requests

Bargaining

process in which two or more parties attempt to reach an agreement on what each should give and receive in a transaction between the two

The social exchange theory says we seek to maximize _____ and minimize ______.

rewards, costs

Communication profit

"am I getting enough out of the relationship given what i'm putting in to the relationship?"

Three basic interpersonal needs are?

inclusion, control, affection

Inclusion

the need to be recognized as human participants in interactions, recognized as a partner in the relationship

Control

the need to make a difference, some sort of control in the relationship

Affection

the need to feel a sense of interpersonal warmth or of being likable or lovable

Impression management

how people accomplish interpersonal goals by making strategic choices about presenting themselves, dramatizing themselves in social situations; we try to control others' impressions of us

Face

our public self-image

Face work

verbal/non-verbal ways we act to maintain our presenting image; attempt to manage one's appearance and style in face-to-face encounters

Expressions given & expressions given off

expressions given are verbal, expressions given off are nonverbal; sometimes the desired message is not received in the right way

Fundamental assumption about what humans try to increase and why?

we seek to increase our ability to make predictions about each other in order to make sense of our communication experience

Proactive processes

attempts to reduce uncertainty prior to a communicative episode; seek information about others to reduce uncertainty

Retroactive processes

attempts to apply sense-making tools to events

that have already occurred

What people experience in initial interpersonal settings and why

people experience uncertainty in interpersonal settings; no prior information = inability to predict, explain

What psychological "state" does uncertainty create?

an aversive state

Two primary goals people have when meeting strangers

reduce uncertainty (breaking the ice), increase predictability

Passive strategy

impression formation by observing the person's interaction with others

Active strategy

impression formation by asking a third party about a person

Interactive strategy

impression formation through face-to-face interaction with the person

Extractive strategy

impression formation by searching the internet for info about the person

Entry phase

when you first meet someone, your initial reaction

Personal phase

disclosing personal information to that person; make a decision about how much info to share with someone

Exit phase

occurs quickly, whether you want to continue conversation or not

What is the primary means of reducing uncertainty?

interpersonal communication

What happens to the quantity and nature of information people exchange over time?

it changes (e.g. give phone number, hang out, etc.)