Purposive Communication: Models, Ethics, Culture, Language Registers, and Multimodal Evaluation

Understanding Communication: Nature, Disciplines, and Models

  • Learning Outcomes:

    • Describe the nature, elements, and functions of verbal and non-verbal communication in various and multicultural contexts.

    • Evaluate a piece of communication according to processes and functions.

  • Definition and Nature of Communication:

    • Communication involves an individual or more individuals engaged in a verbal and/or non-verbal exchange.

    • Meaning is created through the use of a common system of symbols.

    • I.A. Richards' Perspective: Communication is the interaction of individuals. Each individual possesses a mind with faculties of perceiving, remembering, considering, evaluating, and deciding. Individuals draw their experiences from their environment, circumstances, objects, or surrounding conditions. When two or more people communicate, they bring these elements together to influence each other in full or in part, producing a shared experience.

    • Marshall McLuhan's Perspective: A Canadian communications theorist and educator who elucidated the influence of contemporary psychological and sociological phenomena on communication. McLuhan underscored that in mass media, "the medium is the message," meaning television, computers, and other electronic information sources actively shape styles of thinking and thought across all aspects (Gordon, 2025).

  • Disciplines Viewing Communication:

    • Sociological Aspect: Examines individuals, culture, and other constituent elements that form society.

    • Psychological Aspect: Revolves around individual thoughts, behavior, and the overall psyche.

    • Traditional View: Involves a direct exchange of ideas, thoughts, and feelings between two or more people (e.g., Person A and Person B).

    • Prejudiced Communication: Psychological studies demonstrate that communication can express processes detrimental to harmonious relationships. Prejudiced communication occurs when stereotyping brings explicit or implicit stereotypic beliefs, prejudiced attitudes, or discriminatory intentions to light—frequently expressed through hate speech, discriminatory policies, and extreme symbolism (Ruscher, 2001).

  • Models of Communication:

    • Communication is complex and can be understood through three primary models: linear, interactive, and transactional (West et al., 2018).

    • Linear Model (Claude Shannon & Warren Weaver, 1999 / West, 2018):

    • Formulated by considering radio and telephone technology.

    • Core elements include the Source, Message, Channel, and Receiver.

    • The source sends a message through a channel to a recipient who decodes its meaning.

    • The process is subject to four distinct types of noise:

      • Semantic Noise: Differences or complexities in language usage, including slang, jargon, or specialized vocabulary.

      • Physical / External Noise: Troublesome environmental sounds originating outside the receiver.

      • Psychological Noise: Prejudices, biases, and internal predispositions held toward the communicator or message.

      • Physiological Noise: Biological or bodily influences that interfere with communication.

    • Interactive Model (Wilbur Schramm):

    • Emphasizes the relationship between sender and receiver as a continuous, circular, two-way process.

    • Senders and receivers alternate roles dynamically.

    • Key elements include:

      • Feedback: The verbal or non-verbal response returned by the receiver.

      • Field of Experience: The sum of a person's culture, personal experiences, and heredity that influences communication capacity.

    • Meaning is realized through reciprocal feedback between participants.

    • Transactional Model (Adapted from Barnlund / West et al., 2018 / Mortensen, 2017):

    • Messages are sent and received simultaneously, making communication cooperative.

    • Both sender and receiver share mutual responsibility for communication effectiveness.

    • Shared meaning is achieved through the overlap of Person A's and Person B's fields of experience.

    • High communicative competence does not guarantee success; building authentic connections is necessary for effective transaction.

Transactional Model of Communication

  • Historical and Technological Evolution of Communication:

    • Mass Communication Networks: Flourished from the mid-20th century to the early 21st century through centralized, organizationally one-directional networks (print press, radio, traditional television).

    • Mass Self-Communication (Castells, 2013):

    • The Digital Age shifted mass communication to mass self-communication via the internet and mobile networks.

    • Characterized as self-generated in production, self-directed in retrieval, and self-selected in reception and remixing.

    • Driven by social networking platforms (Facebook, TikTok, YouTube), forming the structural foundation of modern society.

    • Frank Dance's Helical Model (West, 2018):

    • Views communication as a continuous, evolving helix process rather than a static loop.

    • Combines past and present experiences to shape an individual's communicative future.

Frank Dance's Helical Model of Communication

Contexts and Ethics of Communication

  • Seven Types of Communication Contexts:

    1. Intrapersonal: Communication occurring within one's self (internal dialogue). Bolsters self-esteem and challenges individuals to confront internal fears and anxieties.

    2. Interpersonal: Direct, face-to-face communication between two individuals.

    3. Small Group: Communication occurring within a small gathering of people.

    4. Organizational: Communication within and across extended environments, reflecting hierarchy, power structures, culture, and organizational operations.

    5. Public or Rhetoric: Delivery of messages to a large group of listeners or an audience.

    6. Mass Communication: Dissemination of messages to expansive public audiences via broadcast media.

    7. Intercultural: Exchanges occurring between members of different cultural backgrounds.

  • Digital Media and Ethical Challenges in the 21st Century:

    • Decentralized media landscapes (blogs, social media) empower universal participation in public forums.

    • Primary Challenge: Proliferation of misinformation and "fake news," jeopardizing public health, causing financial harm, and spreading extreme ideologies.

    • Required Response: Escalating media literacy and formal education to identify verified, credible information (Volle, 2025).

  • Suggested Ethical Strategies for Individual Communication:

    • Ethics represents perceived rightness or wrongness of behavior, guided by moral decision-making, laws, and societal rules.

    • Recommended individual guidelines:

    1. Listen with an open mind to ideas opposing personal views.

    2. Acknowledge that multiple valid perspectives on reality exist across different individuals.

    3. Be willing to question tentatively accepted knowledge.

    4. Evaluate claims of knowledge against actual personal experience.

    5. Seek explanations to understand underlying situations and intentions clearly.

    6. Maintain respectfulness across all interactions.

  • Multicultural Comparative Ethics (Christians et al., 1997):

    1. Universal Truth: Truth serves as the fundamental norm and highest value across cultures.

    2. Human Dignity: Universal respect for personal dignity across all cultures.

    3. Non-maleficence and Care: Refraining from harming the innocent and exercising care for the vulnerable applies universally across all life contexts.

    4. Media Integrity: Mass media professionals must possess a moral conscience rooted in justice, reciprocity, and human dignity.

    5. Cultural Practice: Communicative practices must remain multicultural and intercultural.

Communication, Culture, and Globalization

  • Interconnectedness of Language, Culture, and Communication:

    • Language: Serves as a verbal or non-verbal instrument of communication for exchanging concepts or mental impressions from source to receiver, prompting people to action (Maslog, 2015; Baran, 2015; Hall, 2022).

    • Culture: Learned behavior, acquired traditions, and lifestyles of a social group, encompassing thinking, feeling, and acting (Harris in Baran, 2015).

    • Attributes of Culture: Rites of initiation, common history, shared traditions, values, purpose, symbols, status indicators, rituals, and language (Lindner, 2013).

    • Cultural Exposition: Symbolic process in which reality is generated, maintained, repaired, and transformed (Harris in Baran, 2015).

    • Media as a "Mobility Multiplier": Mass media accelerates shared meaning and empathetic responsiveness, moving populations to unprecedented action (Lerner in Maslog, 2014). Media literacy—the capacity to access, use, create, reflect, and analyze media content—is essential.

  • Societal Impact of Media Communication (Maslog, 2014):

    • Increases public awareness of political activities and facilitates civic response via public opinion.

    • Disseminates info regarding new resources and economic opportunities driving national growth.

    • Aids in preserving traditional artifacts and practices while promoting new societal projects.

  • Role of Communication in Globalization:

    • Information technology integrates telecommunications, computing, and the internet, establishing a "global village" where geographic and political boundaries no longer restrict information flow (Martell, 2017).

    • Primary Vectors of Cultural Globalization:

    • Overseas Foreign Workers (OFWs) connecting instantaneously with families using calls and video chats.

    • Global cinema and subscription streaming services purveying entertainment, news, and sports.

    • Smartphones and social media providing platforms for peer testimony, civic dissent, and public interaction (Baran, 2015; Martell, 2017; Pulido, 2018).

    • Global Identity: Exposure to global imaginings fosters global identities alongside traditional national identities (Martell, 2017).

Multiculturalism, Cross-Culturalism, and Intercultural Dynamics

  • Global Migration Trends:

    • The United Nations (2020) recorded approximately 272 million international migrants in 2019, with two-thirds (≈181.33 million\approx 181.33\text{ million}) categorized as labor migrants.

  • Comparative Cultural Paradigms (Schriefer, 2016; Sinden, 2021):

    • Multiculturalism: Coexistence of multiple distinct cultural groups in one community. Groups conduct business and live as neighbors while maintaining distinct traditions. Requires mutual tolerance to prevent potential discord.

    • Cross-Culturalism: Juxtaposition of different cultures requiring diplomatic interaction. May yield personal transformation for exposed individuals without transforming the broader community. Carries risks of ethnocentricity and stereotyping.

    • Interculturalism: Deep, mutual respect and understanding across cultures without requiring individuals to abandon identity. Everyone learns, grows, and transforms together.

  • Geert Hofstede's Six Cultural Dimensions (2005):

    1. Power Distance: High power distance emphasizes status hierarchy; low power distance stresses equal treatment.

    2. Individualism: High individualism prioritizes personal needs over group needs; collectivism prioritizes the group.

    3. Uncertainty Avoidance: High uncertainty avoidance seeks strict rules to forecast and control outcomes; low uncertainty avoidance accepts ambiguity.

    4. Masculinity: High masculinity values competition, achievement, and assertiveness; low masculinity (femininity) values cooperation, caring, and quality of life.

    5. Long-Term Orientation: High long-term orientation carefully weighs future implications; low orientation focuses on immediate results.

    6. Indulgence: High indulgence permits free gratification of human desires; low indulgence (restraint) regulates impulses via strict social norms.

  • Methods for Developing Intercultural Communication (John Sinden, 2021):

    • Remove cultural barriers by expanding cultural awareness and self-awareness.

    • Refine negotiation skills to enhance individual competitiveness in global workforces.

  • Milton J. Bennett's Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity (1986; Lutz, 2017):

    • Ethnocentric Stages (Analyzing the world exclusively through one's own cultural lens):

    1. Denial: Acknowledges superficial differences (food, dress) but refuses to accept fundamental cultural variations.

    2. Defense: Evaluates other cultures critically, leading to negative stereotypes, bias, and prejudice.

    3. Minimization: Applies sweeping generalizations, assuming one's own cultural values are universal truths.

    • Ethnorelative Stages (Recognizing behavior and values as culturally contextualized):

    1. Acceptance: Acknowledges and respects cultural differences in peer interactions.

    2. Adaptation: Modifies outlook and communication behaviors to fit varying cultural contexts.

    3. Integration: Successfully integrates diverse cultural perspectives into a flexible personal identity.

Language Registers

  • Definition and Concept:

    • Language register (linguistic or speech register) refers to variations in word choice, tone of voice, and body language based on social situation, audience relationship, and purpose.

    • Specifies the level of formality and dictates appropriate linguistic adjustments across spoken and written domains.

  • General Categories of Registers:

    • Formal Registers: Characterized by polished speech, complex syntax, and precise vocabulary (e.g., academic essays, ceremonial wedding vows).

    • Informal Registers: Used among familiar acquaintances, incorporating casual delivery or slang (e.g., asking "Can I get a little more coffee here?" versus "Could you bring us more coffee, please?").

  • Five Language Register Styles (Montano-Harmon, 2014):

    • Determined by Audience (Who), Topic (What), Purpose (Why), and Location (Where):

    1. Static Register (Frozen):

    • Content remains fixed over time and rarely changes.

    • Examples: The Pledge of Allegiance, The Lord's Prayer, Preamble to the US Constitution, Alma Mater anthems, bibliographic citations, legal statutes.

    1. Formal Register (One-Way):

    • Standardized, impersonal structure used in formal settings.

    • Examples: Sermons, formal speeches, judicial pronouncements, official announcements.

    1. Consultative Register (Professional):

    • Standard professional interaction between participants in expert-client roles.

    • Examples: Doctor-patient, lawyer-client, teacher-student, counselor-client, superior-subordinate.

    1. Casual Register (Group):

    • Informal speech among peers and friends permitting slang, colloquialisms, and vulgarities.

    • Examples: Group chats, personal emails, blogs, informal letters.

    1. Intimate Register (Private):

    • Reserved for close, private relationships.

    • Examples: Spouses, romantic partners, siblings, parent-child conversations.

British and American English Variations

  • Historical Periods of Development in Colonial America (Kovecses, 2000):

    • Colonial Period (1607–17th Century): Initiated by the 1607 Jamestown settlement. Interaction among English settlers, Native Americans, and Spaniards established early trade lexicon.

    • National Period (18th–19th Century): Formally established American English, heavily influenced by Noah Webster. Expanded as 10,000 settlers moved beyond the Mississippi River alongside German and Italian immigration.

    • International Period (Post-Civil War 1860 / Spanish-American War 1868 to 1898): Foreign policy changes drew diverse immigrant groups (Northern, Southern, Eastern Europeans, Austro-Hungarians, Puerto Ricans, Mexicans, Cubans), giving rise to American English and Hispanic English varieties.

  • Sociolinguistic Stereotypes & Lexical Differences:

    • Stereotype: Americans often perceive British English as formal/proper, while British speakers view American English as informal/relaxed (Biber, 1987).

    • Euphemisms: Americans use bathroom as a polite term for toilet; British speakers use sitting room where Americans use living room (Scotto di Carlo, 2013).

  • Pronunciation Differences:

    • Vowel Variations (Xolmatova, 2024):

    • Endings (-oor, -ore, -our):

      • DOOR: BrE /dɔ:/ vs. AmE /dɔr/

      • FLOOR: BrE /flɔ:/ vs. AmE /flɔr/

      • SORE: BrE /sɔ:/ vs. AmE /sɔr/

      • FORE: BrE /fɔ:/ vs. AmE /fɔr/

      • COLOR: BrE /'kʌlə/ vs. AmE /'kʌlər/

    • Trap-Bath Split (/ɑ:/ vs. /æ/):

      • BATH: BrE /bɑ:θ/ vs. AmE /bæθ/

      • DANCE: BrE /bɑ:ns/ vs. AmE /bæns/

      • LAUGH: BrE /lɑ:f/ vs. AmE /læf/

      • GRASS: BrE /ɡrɑ:s/ vs. AmE /ɡræs/

      • PATH: BrE /pɑ:θ/ vs. AmE /pæθ/

    • The Schwa Sound (Fleming, 2009):

    • Weak or reduced vowel quality.

    • banana: BrE /bə'nɑ:.nə/ vs. AmE /bə'næn.ə/

    • chocolate: BrE /'tʃɒk.lət/ vs. AmE /'tʃɒk.lɪt/

    • family: BrE /'fæm.ɪ.li/ vs. AmE /'fæm.ə.li/

    • vegetable: BrE /'vedʒ.tə.bəl/ vs. AmE /'vɛdʒ.ɪ.tə.bəl/

    • comfortable: BrE /'kʌm.fə.tə.bəl/ vs. AmE /'kʌm.fər.tə.bəl/

    • Diphthongs (Hosseinzadeh, 2015):

    • Consecutive vowel glides categorized as rising/falling or opening/closing.

    • go: BrE /ɡəʊ/ vs. AmE /ɡoʊ/

    • my: BrE /maɪ/ vs. AmE /maɪ/

    • air: BrE /eə/ vs. AmE /ɛr/

    • boy: BrE /bɔɪ/ vs. AmE /bɔɪ/

    • how: BrE /haʊ/ vs. AmE /haʊ/

    • Consonant Sounds (24 in BrE vs. 25 in AmE - Hosseinzadeh, 2015; Xolmatova, 2024):

    • Rhoticity: BrE is non-rhotic (omits /r/ unless preceding a vowel); AmE is rhotic (car: BrE /kɑ:/ vs. AmE /kɑr/).

    • T-Flapping vs. Glottal Stop: AmE flaps /t/ to /d/ between vowels (butter: /'bʌdər/), while BrE uses clear /t/ (/'bʌtə/) or a glottal stop /ʔ/ (bottle: /'bɒʔəl/).

    • Specific Consonant Distinctions:

      • herb: BrE /hɜ:b/ vs. AmE /ɜrb/ (/h/ dropped in AmE)

      • version: BrE /'vɜ:.ʃən/ vs. AmE /'vɜr.ʒən/ (/ʃ/ vs. /ʒ/)

      • Asia: BrE /'eɪ.ʃə/ vs. AmE /'eɪ.ʒə/

      • blouse: BrE /blaʊz/ vs. AmE /blaʊs/ (/z/ vs. /s/)

      • erase: BrE /ɪ'reɪz/ vs. AmE /ɪ'reɪs/ (/z/ vs. /s/)

      • Cassius: BrE /'kæs.ɪ.əs/ vs. AmE /'kæʃ.i.əs/ (/s/ vs. /ʃ/)

      • booth: BrE /bu:ð/ vs. AmE /bu:θ/ (/ð/ vs. /θ/)

    • Stress and Intonation (Shu & Liu, 2019):

    • Stress Shift Examples:

      • ADDRESS: BrE ad-DRESS (both noun/verb) vs. AmE AD-dress (noun) / ad-DRESS (verb)

      • CAFE: BrE ka-FEI vs. AmE KA-fei

      • CHAUFFEUR: BrE CHAUF-feur vs. AmE chauf-FEUR

      • CLICHE: BrE CLI-ché vs. AmE cli-CHÉ

      • DEBUT: BrE DE-but vs. AmE de-BUT

      • GOURMET: BrE GOUR-may vs. AmE gour-MAY

      • MOUSTACHE: BrE MOUST-ache vs. AmE mus-TASH

      • PAJAMAS: BrE PA-ja-mas vs. AmE pa-JA-mas

      • VACCINE: BrE VAK-seen vs. AmE vak-SEEN

      • ADVERTISEMENT: AmE stresses 3rd syllable (/æd.vɜ:'taɪz.mənt/).

      • CONTROVERSY: BrE stresses 1st syllable (/'kɒn.trə.vɜ:.si/); AmE stresses 2nd (/kən'trɑ:.vɜ:.si/).

    • Intonation: AmE utilizes wide pitch variations and upspeak (rising intonation at statement ends); BrE uses stable pitch with falling intonation.

  • Vocabulary Distinctions (Scotto di Carlo, 2013):

    • Everyday Lexicon:

    • Transportation: Lorry (BrE) / Truck (AmE); Boot (BrE) / Trunk (AmE); Roundabout (BrE) / Traffic Circle (AmE).

    • Housing/Furniture: Flat (BrE) / Apartment (AmE); Garden (BrE) / Yard (AmE); Sofa (BrE) / Couch (AmE).

    • Food/Drink: Crisps (BrE) / Chips (AmE); Chips (BrE) / Fries (AmE); Biscuits (BrE) / Cookies (AmE); Pudding (BrE) / Dessert (AmE).

    • Clothing: Jumper (BrE) / Sweater (AmE); Trousers (BrE) / Pants (AmE); Trainers (BrE) / Sneakers (AmE).

    • Leisure: Holiday (BrE) / Vacation (AmE); Film (BrE) / Movie (AmE); Football (BrE) / Soccer (AmE).

    • Formal and Technical Lexicon:

    • Academia: University (BrE) / College (AmE); Lecturer (BrE) / Professor (AmE).

    • Legal: Solicitor/Barrister (BrE) / Lawyer/Attorney (AmE).

    • Business/Medical: Chemist (BrE) / Pharmacy (AmE); Surgery (BrE) / Office or Clinic (AmE); Mobile phone (BrE) / Cell phone (AmE); Curriculum Vitae (BrE) / Resume (AmE); Holiday pay (BrE) / Vacation pay (AmE).

  • Grammar & Usage Differences:

    • Auxiliary Verbs: BrE uses shall ("I shall attend"); AmE favors will ("I will attend").

    • Collective Nouns: BrE treats as plural ("The team are winning"); AmE treats as singular ("The team is winning").

    • Phrasal Expressions: BrE uses "I needn't go"; AmE uses "I don't need to go".

    • Verb Tenses: BrE employs Present Perfect for current relevance ("I have eaten lunch"); AmE defaults to Simple Past ("I ate lunch"). Past participle of get is got in BrE, gotten in AmE.

    • Prepositions & Articles:

    • Weekend: BrE "at the weekend" vs. AmE "on the weekend".

    • Street names: BrE "in 17th Street" vs. AmE "on 17th Street".

    • Time: BrE "at Christmas" vs. AmE "on Christmas".

    • Institutions: BrE omits article for general references ("He is in hospital"); AmE includes article ("He is in the hospital").

  • Spelling Variations:

    • -our vs. -or: colour/color, flavour/flavor, honour/honor, labour/labor, neighbour/neighbor.

    • -ise vs. -ize: organise/organize, realise/realize.

    • -yse vs. -yze: analyse/analyze, paralyse/paralyze.

    • Double Consonants: BrE doubles final l before suffixes (travelled, cancelling); AmE retains single l (traveled, canceling).

    • -ogue vs. -og: catalogue/catalog, dialogue/dialog.

    • -re vs. -er: centre/center, metre/meter, fibre/fiber.

    • -ence vs. -ense: defence/defense, licence/license.

    • Miscellaneous: leukaemia/leukemia, manoeuvre/maneuver.

  • Idioms, Humor, and Sarcasm:

    • Idioms:

    • BrE: "Bob's your uncle" (simple task completed); "Throw a spanner in the works" (disrupt a plan).

    • AmE: "Piece of cake" (easy task); "Bite the bullet" (face difficulty with courage).

    • Humor & Sarcasm:

    • BrE: Understated, dry wit, deadpan irony ("Oh, fantastic!" during failure; "It's all gone pear-shaped").

    • AmE: Direct, exaggerated ("Great job!" delivered sarcastically; "That's just peachy!").

Chapter 2: Evaluation of Messages, Texts, and Images

  • Learning Outcomes:

    • Critically evaluate multimodal texts.

    • Convey ideas effectively through oral, audio-visual, and/or web-based presentations.

  • Concept and Functions of Evaluation (Hunston et al., 2000):

    • Evaluation represents a speaker's or writer's stance, viewpoint, or attitude regarding certainty, obligation, or desirability.

    • Three Primary Functions:

    1. Expressing Opinion & Ideology: Reflects personal and communal value systems embedded within societal ideology.

    2. Constructing Relationships: Governed by manipulation (persuade readers to accept stance), hedging, and politeness (marking knowledge claims in research).

    3. Organizing Discourse: Aligns shared attitudes and establishes discourse boundaries.

  • Cultural Context Case Studies:

    • Case Study 1 (Wedding Attire): A Singaporean groom and Filipina bride requested formal black attire. Filipino guests reacted with horror (black signifies mourning/death in the Philippines, white signifies weddings). Singaporean guests raised no objection (black signifies formal galas/weddings in Singapore, white signifies mourning).

    • Case Study 2 (SMS Misspellings): Students submitted academic essays containing heavy misspellings driven by mobile phone text messaging (SMS) habits.

Examples of Message, Text, and Creation of Adam Image

  • Defining Messages, Texts, and Images:

    • Message: Verbal, written, or recorded communication left for a recipient, representing an underlying theme. Modern definition (McLuhan, 2012; Federman, 2004): "The Medium is the Message." Encompasses Multimedia Message Service (MMS), SMS, and Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC) (Thurlow et al., 2013).

    • Text: An utterance fixed by writing (Ricoeur, 1991), electronic document / ordered hierarchy of content object (OHCO) (DeRose et al., 1997), or fabric of words imposing a stable meaning (Barthes, 1981).

    • Text Complexity Factors (Shanahan et al., 2016): Vocabulary, sentence structure, coherence, organization, narrative style, background knowledge, and cognitive development.

    • Audiovisual Texts (Zabalbeascoa, 2008): Multimodal texts categorized into 4 forms:

    1. Audio-verbal: Uttered words.

    2. Audio-nonverbal: Non-speech sounds.

    3. Visual-verbal: Written text on screen/page.

    4. Visual-nonverbal: Visual signs, imagery, and gestures (e.g., MTV, news, cartoons).

  • Four Types of Texts:

    1. Instructive Text: Directs performance of an action. Employs direct imperative verbs at sentence starts (e.g., "Place away from children's reach"), modal verbs (must, must not), diagrams, and bullet points.

    2. Descriptive Text: Creates visual imagery via adjectives, adverbs, comparisons, and five-sense sensory appeals (visual, auditory, olfactory, tactile, gustatory).

    3. Informative Text: Explains completed or upcoming actions. Avoids repetition, provides precise details (date, time, location), and presents objective facts.

    4. Persuasive Text: Prompts action using repetition, ALL CAPS, exclamation marks, rhetorical questions, emotional arguments, and humor.

  • Four Types of Messages:

    1. Symbols: Figures, illustrations, or codes containing shared community meaning.

    2. Signs: Words, symbols, gestures, or punctuation providing commands, directions, or warnings.

Fight Against Cancer Sign and Symbols

  1. Authentic Texts: Real-world spoken or written texts (packaging, voting ballots, road signs, phone calls, commentaries) representative of authentic contexts (Biel, 2011).

  2. Written Texts: Transcribed messages found in print media (books, encyclopedias, dictionaries, e-readers).

  • Subjective Factors in Text Message Evaluation:

    • Culture: Kim & Markus (1999) demonstrated American magazine ads focus on uniqueness ("Individualize"), while Korean ads focus on conformity ("Seven out of 10 people use this product").

    • Age: Vocabulary and comprehension broaden over lifespan development.

    • Gender: Influenced by gender identities, expressions, dressing styles, and hairstyles.

    • Experience: Empirical awareness of internal and external life events.

    • Religion: Shared spiritual beliefs and symbolic practices.

  • Comprehensive Framework for Image Evaluation:

    • Illustrated by Metro Manila traffic violation patterns (Salazar, 2018) and signage analysis ("NO STOPPING ANYTIME").

    • Evaluation Dimensions:

    • Content Analysis: Depicted subjects, actions, visual presentation, visual effectiveness.

    • Visual Analysis: Foreground/background composition, primary visual elements, color usage, design choices.

    • Contextual Information: Accompanying text, factual vs. persuasive intent, context of creation (Where, How, Why, For Whom).

    • Image Source: Origin, database context, source trustworthiness.

    • Technical Quality: Image resolution, light/color balance, absence of pixelation/distortion, file format, copyright restrictions.