Communication is both a very old field and a very contemporary one. In many ancient cultures -- Greek, Roman, Indian, Chinese, for example -- scholars wrote out strategies for effective communication. Some of these ancient scholars included Aristotle (Greek), Cicero and Quintilian (Roman); all were interested in understanding how a person (a male) could make his way through the world using language in the most influential, graceful, and authoritative ways possible. Much of what was considered "education" of the young in ancient Rome was teaching about communicating effectively, a tradition that faded in time. Today, few of us have the tools in our communications tool bag for understanding what makes effective messages and how people can be persuaded or dissuaded from certain beliefs or actions. The earlier communication scholars organized different kinds of strategies for persuading people in different situations. If we read Aristotle's Rhetoric, we see a comprehensive book on human psychology -- how people can be moved, persuaded, reasoned with. Cicero's work, such as On the Orator, covered how to be persuasive in ancient Rome's courts of law. Quintillian tried to instruct young people on how to think by following certain forms of writing and by observing the world in his twelve books, called "The Institutio Oratoria." The study of "rhetoric" changed in the next two thousand years, especially in Europe, but almost nearly faded from the educational system by the early 20th century when it was seen as old-fashioned or unimportant. However, modern rhetorical scholars have revived many of its principles and are trying to include them in academia and public schools.
At the end of the 19th century, sociologists also began to look more closely at the way social groups operate. Anthropologists, a few decades later, began to examine the influence of culture upon communication. Political scientists and social scientists of the 1930s wondered at the power of radio and movies to send out propaganda messages to control entire nations. In turn, economists, psychologists, philosophers, and educational experts of all stripes have looked to the role of "communication" within their fields.
Communication as a separate field of study is relatively new, propelled in part by the advancement of electronic means of communicating as the twentieth century proceeded through the film, radio, television, satellite, cable, and digital ages. Even so, the "fields" of communication are vast and varied, and have come to be divided into seven traditions that you can learn about in this presentation.
These fields of study address the various ways humans communicate with each other across time, space, and contexts. The study of these contexts might be best understood as focusing on specific communication processes and effects. The seven contexts of communication study examine particular combinations of people in specific communication situations. The Encyclopedia of Communication Theory tells us these can be sorted into theories of:
- intrapersonal communication, which address our understanding and use of symbols;
- interpersonal communication, which address the communication between dyads (two people);
- group communication, which deal with small groups;
- organizational communication, which address communication in organizations;
- public/rhetorical communication, which examine f2f communication to a large group of listeners;
- mass/media communication, which encompass messages produced for mass audiences; and
- intercultural communication, which look at communication among people of different cultures.
Contemporary researchers also study gender, which focuses on communication issues of women and between the sexes, health, and computer-mediated communication contexts.
Communication context boundaries are fluid. We can find interpersonal and group communication in organizations. Gender communication occurs whenever people of different sexes communicate. And we can have mass communications to individuals, group, and organizations. As a result, their are many communication theories of which these are the major ones.
Activity:
Before you tackle this exercise, please make sure you have read the materials at all of the links in this discussion question.
Consider the role communication plays in your personal and professional lives. Which of the traditions, which also are known as the rhetorical, semiotic, phenomenistic, cybernetic, sociopsychological or sociocultural, and critical traditions-- intrigues you the most?
Consider, too, the contexts of communication study -- which would you like to know more about? How do you plan to use your greater understanding of communication in the future? What is most "useful" to you as a person, employee, parent, spouse, team-mate, citizen, etc.?
Please respond with a cogent, coherent reply and support your comments with documented research. Don't forget to comment on your classmates' posts!
To further understand the seven traditions of communication research, you may want to review pages 132-149 in this classic 1999 article by Robert Craig, "Communication Theory as a Field."