Midterm Flashcards
Symbolic Interactionism Theory
The ongoing use of language and gestures in anticipation of how the other will react; a conversation
Symbolic Interactionism creator
George Herbert Mead (Herbert Blume coined the term)
Rational Dialectics Theory
Explains how people contrast meaning through communication.
Rational Dialectics creator
Leslie A. Baxter and Barbara M. Montgomery
Cognitive Dissonance Theory
The distressing mental state caused by inconsistency between a person’s beliefs or a belief and an action.
Cognitive Dissonance creator
Leon Festinger
Selective Exposure Theory
The tendency people have to avoid information that would create cognitive dissonance because it is incompatible with their current beliefs.
Post Decision Dissonance
Strong doubts experienced after making a close call that is difficult to reverse.
Minimal Justification Theory
A claim that the best way to simulate an attitude change in others is to offer just enough incentive to elicit counterattitudinal behavior.
Rational Theory
A framework that emphasizes logical reasoning and rational choice in decision making.
Expectancy Violations Theory
Decisions can be influenced by conversational distance; we all have expectations for communicating with others.
Expectancy Violations creator
Judee Burgoon
Personal Space
The invisible, variable volume of space surrounding an individual that defines that individual’s preferred distance from others.
Proxemics
The study of people’s use of space as a special elaboration of culture.
Expectancy
What people predict will happen, rather than what they desire.
Context
Begins with cultural norms.
Violation Valence
The perceived positive or negative value assigned to a breach of expectations of who the violator is.
Communicator Reward Valence
The sum of positive and negative attributes brought to the encounter plus the potential to reward or punish in the future.
Narrative Paradigm Theory
Proposes that humans are storytellers and that communication is based on story telling.
Symbolic Convergence Theory
Explains how shared ideas and fantasies create croup cohesion.
Symbolic Convergence creator
Ernest Bormann
Narrative Paradigm creator
Walter Fisher
Critical Theory of Communication
How communication operates in the age of information, digital media, and social media.
Critical Theory of Communication
Stanley Deetz
Communication Accommodation Theory
Explains how people adjust their communication styles to fit in with others.
Communication Accommodation Theory creator
Howard Giles
Muted Group Theory
Identifies how dominant groups silence the voices of subordinate groups.
Muted group theory creator
Edwin and Shirley Ardener
Media Ecology Theory
The study of how media, technology, and communication impact human culture and society.
Media Ecology theory creator
Marshall McLuhan
Cultivation Theory
A sociological theory that studies how media consumption, particularly TV, affects how people perceive the world.
Cultivation theory creator
George Gerbner
Context collapse theory
Describes how people, information, and norms from difference context blend together.
Context Collapse theory creator
Danah Boyd
Expectancy Violations Theory
Explains how people respond to unexpected social norm violations.
Expectancy Violations Theory creator
Judee K. Burgoon
