human communication

qualitative research

method of gathering NON-numerical data to understand peoples experience and motivations

quantitative research

the process of collecting and analyzing numerical dataanal

critical research

analyzing the role of power dynamics, social biases, and historical context to established norms and promote more equitable understanding

ethnography

research method that involves observing and interacting with people in their natural environment to understand their culture and social behaviors

intrapersonal communication

the exchange of information, feelings, and meaning between people

public speaking

the act of speaking to a group of people, or audience, to convey information or ideas

perception

the process of selecting, organizing, and interpreting information from our senses

cognitive schemata

mental frameworks that help people organize and interpret information

prototypes

communication tools to explain, gain feedback, negotiate, or persuade

personal constructs

mental frameworks individuals develop to interpret and understand the world around them

stereotypes

oversimplified ideas about how people think, behave, or communicate based on characteristics like gender, ethnicity, or occupation

scripts

sequences of actions or behaviors that helps guide social interactions

attributions

the process of assigning a cause or reason to someones behaviors or actions

self-serving bias

the tendency to attribute our success to internal, personal factors AND out failures to external, situational factors

regulative rules

rules of action used to determine how to respond or behave

constitutive rules

rules of meaning used by communicators to interpret or understand an event or message

symbols

serve two distinct social-cognitive functions : communication and representation

arbitrary

the relationship between a word or symbol and it’s meaning isn’t inherently connected, but rather assigned by social convention

ambiguous

a message or statement that can be interpreted in multiple ways, leaving room for uncertainty or confusion about the intended meaning due to unclear wording or lack of context

abstract

allows us to convey important human ideas like scientific and social concepts

punctuation

use of symbols like commas, periods, question marks, etc

indexing

the process where individuals use specific cues or signals to identify and interpret the meaning of another persons’s message

haptics

the act of communicating through touch, using physical contact to convey emotions, intentions, and social cues without speaking

proxemics

the study of how humans communicate in different spaces

chronemics

how people use and perceive time in social interactions (pacing of conversations)

paralanguage

the non-verbal aspects of speech, like tone of voice, pitch, volume, and pace that accompany spoken words and add meaning to a message

kinesics

the interpretation of body language : facial expressions and gestures

artifacts

physical objects or items that people use or display to convey meaning beyond their practical function