Intro to Communications Exam 1

channel

The medium through which a message passes from sender to receiver

cognitive complexity

The ability to understand issues from a variety of perspectives

communication

The process of creating meaning through symbolic interaction

communication competence

The ability to achieve one’s goals through communication and, ideally, maintain healthy relationships

decode

To attach meaning to a message

dyadic communication

Two-person communication

encode

To put thoughts into symbols, most commonly words

environment

Both the physical setting in which communication occurs and the personal perspectives of the parties involved

feedback

A receiver’s response to a sender’s message

linear communication model

A characterization of communication as a one-way event in which a message flows from sender to receiver

message

A sender’s planned and unplanned words and nonverbal behaviors.

noise

External, physiological, and psychological distractions that interfere with the accurate transmission and reception of a message

receiver

One who notices and attends to a message

self-monitoring

the process of paying close attention to one’s own behavior and using these observations to make effective choices

sender

The originator of a message

symbol

An arbitrary sign used to represent a thing, person, idea, or event in ways that make communication possible

transactional communication model

A characterization of communication as the simultaneous sending and receiving of messages in an ongoing process that involves feedback and includes unintentional (often ambiguous) messages

interpersonal communication

Communication that occurs within a single person

organizational communication

Interaction among members of a relatively large, permanent structure (such as a nonprofit agency or business) in order to pursue shared goals.

public communication

occurs when a group is too large for everyone to contribute. It is characterized by an unequal amount of speaking and by limited verbal feedback.

small-group communication

Communication within a group of a size such that every member can participate actively with the other members

mass communication

The transmission of messages to large, usually widespread audiences via TV, Internet, movies, magazines, and other forms of mass media

asynchronous communication

occurs when there’s a lag between the creation and reception of a message

disinhibition

The tendency to transmit messages without considering their consequences.

gatekeeper

In mass media, professionals who control the content of public messages

hyperpersonal communication

The phenomenon in which digital interaction creates deeper relationships than arise through face-to-face communication

leanness

The lack of nonverbal cues to clarify a message

masspersonal communication

the overlap between personal and public communication (in regard to social media)

polymediation

The range of communication channel options available to communicators.

richness

The degree to which nonverbal cues can clarify a verbal message

synchronous communication

Communication that occurs in real time

attribution

The process of attaching meaning

emotional intelligence (EI)

The ability to understand and manage one’s own emotions and to deal effectively with the emotions of others

empathy

The ability to imagine another person’s point of view

face

The socially approved identity that a communicator tries to present

facework

Verbal and nonverbal behavior designed to create and maintain a communicator’s face and the face of others

frame switching

Adopting the perspectives of different cultures

gender

Socially constructed roles, behaviors, activities, and attributes that a society considers appropriate

gender matrix

A construct that recognizes gender as a multidimensional

halo/horns effect

A form of bias that overgeneralizes positive or negative traits

high self-monitors

People who pay close attention to their own behavior and to others’ reactions, adjusting their communication to create the desired impression

identity management

Strategies used by communicators to influence the way others view them

implicit bias

Unconsciously held associations about a social group

interpretation

The perceptual process of attaching meaning to stimuli that have previously been selected and organized

low self-monitors

People who express what they are thinking and feeling without much attention to the impression their behavior create

narratives

The stories people create and use to make sense of their personal worlds

negativity bias

The perceptual tendency to focus more on negative indicators than on positive ones

organization

The perceptual process of organizing stimuli into patterns

perceived self

The person we believe ourselves to be in moments of candor. It may be identical to or different from the presenting and ideal selves

perception

A process in which people use sensory data to reach conclusions about others and the world around them

perception checking

A three-part method for verifying the accuracy of interpretations, including an objective description of the behavior, two possible interpretations, and a request for more information

personality

The set of enduring characteristics that define a person’s temperament, thought processes, and social behavior

presenting self

The image a person presents to others. It may be identical to or different from the perceived and ideal selves

reflected appraisal

The influence of others on one’s self-concept

script

Habitual, reflexive way of behaving

selection

the perceptual act of attending to some stimuli in the environment and ignoring others

self-concept

A set of largely stable perceptions about oneself

self-esteem

The part of the self-concept that involves evaluations of self-worth

self-fulfilling prophecy

A prediction or expectation of an event that makes the outcome more likely to occur than would otherwise have been the case

self-monitoring

awareness of one’s own identity management behavior

self-serving bias

The tendency to judge others harshly but to cast oneself in a favorable light

sex

A biological category such as male, female, or intersex

social comparison

Evaluating oneself in comparison to others

stereotype

A widely held but oversimplified or inaccurate idea tied to social categorization

sympathy

Compassion for another’s situation

coculture

A group that is part of an encompassing culture

collectivist culture

A culture in which members focus more on the welfare of the group as a whole than on individual identity

individualistic culture

A culture in which members focus on the value and welfare of individual members more than on the group as a whole

culture

The language, values, beliefs, traditions, and customs people share and learn

ethnicity

A social construct that refers to the degree to which a person identifies with a particular group, usually on the basis of nationality, culture, religion, or some other unifying perspective

ethnocentrism

The attitude that one’s own culture is superior to other cultures

hegemony

The dominance of one culture over another

high-context culture

A culture that relies heavily on subtle, often nonverbal cues to maintain social harmony

low-context culture

A culture that uses language primarily to express thoughts, feelings, and ideas as directly as possible

in-groups

Groups with which one identifies

out-groups

Groups one views as different from oneself

intergroup communication

Interaction between members of different cultures or cocultures

intersectionality theory

The idea that people are influenced in unique ways by the complex overlap and interactions of multiple identities and social factors

organizational culture

A relatively stable, shared set of rules about how to behave and a set of values about what is important

power distance

The degree to which members of a group are willing to accept a difference in power and status

prejudice

An unfairly biased and intolerant attitude toward others who belong to an out-group

race

A social construct to describe a group of people who share physical and cultural traits and potentially a common ancestry

salience

How much weight people attach to a particular phenomenon or characteristic

uncertainty avoidance

The cultural tendency to seek stability and to honor tradition instead of welcoming risk, uncertainty, and change

abstraction ladder

A range of more to less abstract terms describing a person, object, or event

abstract language

Language that lacks specificity or does not refer to observable behavior or other sensory data

accent

Pronunciation perceived as different from the locally accepted speech style

ad hominem fallacy

A problematic strategy of attacking a person’s character rather than debating the issues at hand

behavioral description

An account that refers only to observable phenomena

connotative meanings

Informal, implied interpretations for words and phrases that reflect the people, culture, emotions, and situations involved

coordinated management of meaning (CMM)

The notion that people co-create meaning in the process of communicating with one another

convergence

Accommodating one’s speaking style to another person, usually a person who is desirable or has higher status

denotative meanings

Formally recognized definitions for words, as in those found in a dictionary

dialect

A version of the same language that includes substantially different words and meanings

divergence

A linguistic strategy in which speakers emphasize differences between their communicative style and that of others to create distance

emotive language

Language that conveys an attitude rather than simply offering an objective description

equivocal words

Words that have more than one dictionary definition

equivocation

A deliberately vague statement that can be interpreted in more than one way

euphemism

A mild or indirect term or expression used in place of a more direct but less pleasant one

factual statement

A statement that can be verified as being true or false