The World of Words

Question 1

arbitrary

Answer 1

meaning that words are not intrinsically connected to what
they represent

Question 2

symbols

Answer 2

, which are arbitrary, ambiguous, abstract representations of
other phenomena. For instance, your name is a symbol that represents you.

Question 3

ambiguous

Answer 3

what they mean isn’t clear-cut. The term affordable clothes means different things to people who earn the minimum wage and to
people who are affluent.

Question 4

abstract

Answer 4

which means that they are not concrete or tangible.

Question 5

Communication rules

Answer 5

are shared
understandings of what communication means and what
kinds of communication are appropriate in particular situations.

Question 6

Regulative rules

Answer 6

specify when, where, and with
whom to talk about certain things. For instance, some families have a rule that people cannot argue at the dinner table

Question 7

Constitutive rules

Answer 7

specify how to interpret and perform different kinds of communication. We learn what counts as respect (listening, eye contact), friendliness
(smiles or smiley emoticons in online communication), affection (kisses, hugs), and
professionalism (punctuality, assertive communication)

Question 8

Totalizing

Answer 8

occurs when we respond to a person as
if one label (one we have chosen or accepted from others) totally represents who
he or she is

Question 9

, punctuation

Answer 9

defines beginnings and endings
of interaction episodes (Watzlawick, Beavin, & Jackson, 1967). To
punctuate communication, we define when interaction begins and who
starts it.

Question 10

Loaded language

Answer 10

refers to words that strongly
slant perceptions and thus meanings.

Question 11

hate speech

Answer 11

which is language that radically dehumanizes members of particular groups

Question 12

speech community

Answer 12

exists when people share norms about
how to use talk and what purposes it serves (

Question 13

You language

Answer 13

you language projects it onto another person

Question 14

I language

Answer 14

To take responsibility for your own feelings,
rely on I language rather than you language. I language owns thoughts and feelings and does not blame them on others

Question 15

static evaluation

Answer 15

is an assessment that suggests that something is unchanging or
fixed. These are particularly troublesome when applied to people: “Ann is selfish,”
“Don is irresponsible,” “Bob is generous,” “Vy is dependent.

Question 16

indexing

Answer 16

is a technique developed by early communication scholars to remind
us that our evaluations apply only to specific times and circumstances (Korzybski,
1958). To index, we would say “AnnJune 6, 2001 acted selfishly,” “Don on the task committee
was irresponsible,” “Bob in college was generous,” and “Vy in high school was dependent on
others for self-esteem