Communication

Question 1

What is a broad definition of communication?

Answer 1

The transfer of meaningful information from person to person

Question 2

Why is communication social? (3)

Answer 2

• it builds relationships
• shared understanding of meaning
• fundamental for cooperation

Question 3

How do you define language?

Answer 3

A system of sounds and writing that convey meaning

Question 4

What happens if you do not know the system of language?

Answer 4

You cannot communicate

Question 5

What are 3 reasons for the nature argument of language development?

Answer 5

Language is built into the brain because:

• preferences at birth
• developmental regularity across cultures
• generality of language

Question 6

What are 3 things which suggest that language is learned through nurture?

Answer 6

Human interaction shapes language because:

• rate of development depends on input
• variation across cultures
• word meaning is dependent on social context

Question 7

What is Chomsky’s (1957) Language acquisition device?

Answer 7

Humans are born with innate capacity for language. This is then shaped and activated by social interaction.

Question 8

What are the 5 functions of language? (Types of speech)

Answer 8

Assertives
 Directives
 Expressives
 Commissives
 Declarations

Question 9

How does language constrain thought? (2 ways)

Answer 9

• if there is not simple word for a concept, it is hard to think about
• phrasing can influence thought processes (eg. Loft us & Palmer)

Question 10

Can culture affect language? What are 2 ways this happens?

Answer 10

Yes. Cultural differences in thought create different usages of language.
If something is more important the cultural language helps communication about it.

Question 11

What is a speech style?

Answer 11

An accent or language

Question 12

Can speech styles change?

Answer 12

Yes, influenced by speaker and context of communication.

Question 13

What does a speech style convey?

Answer 13

Perceptions of intellect, status, power .. based on evaluations of groups associated with those speech styles.

Question 14

How do you measure attitudes towards different speech styles.

Answer 14

Matched-guise technique.

Question 15

What is speech accomodation theory?

Answer 15

Speech styles are modified depending on the context of an interaction.

Question 16

What are the two types of speech accommodation?

Answer 16

Speech convergence and speech divergence

Question 17

What is speech divergence?

Answer 17

When the speech style shifts away from the listener/group.

Question 18

What does speech divergence do? (2)

Answer 18

Increases psycholinguistic distinctiveness and increases separation between listener & speaker.

Question 19

What is speech convergence?

Answer 19

Speech style shifts towards the interaction partner, becoming similar to them

Question 20

What does speech convergence achieve?

Answer 20

More synchrony, unity, and similarity which causes liking and approval

Question 21

What are the functions of non-verbals? (7)

Answer 21

• replace verbals when superior (eg emotions)
• secret communication (wink, nudge)
• convey feeling or intent (like/dislike)
• regulate interactions (eg turntaking)
• express intimacy (touching, eye-contact)
• establish dominance/control (threats)
• goal attainment (eg pointing)

Question 22

What is paralanguage and what does it do?

Answer 22

Paralanguage is the non-linguistic accompaniments of speech, such as volume, stress, pitch, speed, tone, voice, pauses, throat clearing, grunts, sighs.
It can change the meaning of verbals.

Question 23

What is better at communicating emotions, verbals or facial expressions?

Answer 23

Facial expressions, can even replace spoken words.

Question 24

What are display rules?

Answer 24

Cultural and situational rules about the appropriate expression of emotion.

Question 25

How do display rules differ in Ekman’s 1973 study of American and Japanese students?

Answer 25

In public, Japanese masked their negative emotional expressions. No differences in private.

Question 26

What did Kraut and Johnston (1979) find about the emotional communication people bowling?

Answer 26

People only smiled when they were facing others (able to communicate). Poor performance decreased social smiling, but did not matter when they were facing away.

Question 27

What does eye contact/gaze communicate?

Answer 27

Gaze can communicate status and exerciser control. More gaze when trying to be persuasive or ingratiate. Stern gaze can express disapproval.

Question 28

What is visual dominance behaviour?

Answer 28

A tendency for high status people to gaze fixedly at lower status people even when speaking. Whereas, we usually gaze more when listening than speaking (75 vs41%).
This can lead to cross-cultural misunderstands (rudeness).

Question 29

What are four types of non-verbal gestures? And what are their functions?

Answer 29

Emblems: replace language, culture specific
Illustrators: complement speech, aid fluency
Regulators: help coordinate conversations
Self-adaptors: manage emotions (eg fidgeting)

Question 30

What factors can affect interpersonal distance? (2)

Answer 30

Liking: reduce distance

Status: increase distance

Question 31

What does interpersonal distance help regulate?

Answer 31

Privacy vs intimacy

Desired closeness usually matches the level of social closeness with a person.

Question 32

How do we know that violating personal space can cause anxiety?

Answer 32

Men take longer to urinate and finish faster (Middlemist et al. 1976)

Question 33

What are the four zones of interpersonal distance? (Description and distance)

Answer 33

Intimate:

Question 34

What are the functions of touch? (7)

Answer 34

Positive affect: appreciation, sexual interest, reassurance, etc
Playful: humour
Control: draw attention/compliance
Ritualistic: greetings
Task-related: eg take pulse
Negative affect: communicate dislike/discomfort
Aggressive: inflict damage

Question 35

What are three gender differences regard physical touch and preferences?

Answer 35

Men touch women > women touch men
More likely to touch opposite sex
Women gain greater pleasure, depending on circumstance

Question 36

What were the findings of Heslin’s 1978 ‘squeeze and pat’ study?

Answer 36

People prefer opposite sex to same sex strangers’ touches. Men more than women. Also, the same is true for close friends. Women like being touched everywhere by an opposite sex close friend.

Men = gender predicts touch response 
Women = social closeness predicts touch response

Question 37

What are two things that non-verbal mimicry achieve? And what might this suggest about the function of mimicry?

Answer 37

It facilitates smoothness of interactions. It increases liking between interaction partners.
It may be a crude mechanism for promoting acceptance and belonging.

Question 38

Findings of The Chameleon Effect (Chartrand & Bargh, 1999) study on foot tapping and face rubbing?

Answer 38

People copied more of the behaviour which was done by the confederate.

Question 39

What are the differences between verbal and non-verbal communication? (4)

Answer 39

• quicker, more automatic
• less conscious control
• more powerful for emotions & attitude expression
• but, more ambiguous

Question 40

What is under better control when lying, verbals or non-verbals?

Answer 40

Verbals are well controlled. But non-verbals not well concealed:

• more self-adaptors
• slightly raised vocal pitch
• but facial expression are more controlled when lying

Question 41

Are people good at detecting lies?

Answer 41

On average, receivers are slightly better than those concealing lies. But in general people are poor at detecting.