Human Communication - Houston Community College

Theories of Interpersonal Communication and Relationships Attraction Relationship rules Social penetration Social exchange and equity Copyright 2011, 2008, 2005 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Attraction We are attracted to others based on Physical attractiveness and

personality Similarity Proximity Reinforcement Copyright 2011, 2008, 2005 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Relationship Rules Friendship rules Romantic rules Family rules Workplace rules Copyright 2011, 2008, 2005 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Social Penetration Social penetration

theory explains Why relationships develop and what happens when they do Breadth Depth Depenetration Copyright 2011, 2008, 2005 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Social Exchange and Equity Social exchange theory You develop relationships that will enable you to maximize your profits Based on economic model of profits and losses

Profits = Rewards Costs Copyright 2011, 2008, 2005 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Culture, Technology, Work, and Relationships Culture and Gender Consider whether relationships are voluntary or chosen by families Effects how relationships end and the difficulties that you go through during dissolution Determines how much people disclose about themselves Copyright 2011, 2008, 2005 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Culture, Technology, Work, and Relationships cont Technology

We lose many relationship nonverbal cues through technology Establishing online relationships can be safe (avoid physical violence and sexuallytransmitted diseases) Your inner qualities are revealed first Copyright 2011, 2008, 2005 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Culture, Technology, Work, and Relationships cont Workplace Romances Advantages Interest in the same field Similar training and ambitions

Greater work satisfaction Disadvantages Discomfort to other workers Problems for management Stress if relationship ends Copyright 2011, 2008, 2005 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Families as Communication Systems

Family members are interdependent A family is more than the sum of its parts Families have systems within the larger system Family systems are affected by their environment Interplay, Eleventh Edition, Adler/Rosenfeld/Proctor Copyright 2010 by Oxford University Press, Inc.

Roles Role are based on kinship. Kinship role is culturallybased Functional roles: who doe what within the family Social roles: harmonizer, problem solver, tension reliever, etc. Role expectations are

conveyed through communication Interplay, Eleventh Edition, Adler/Rosenfeld/Proctor Copyright 2010 by Oxford University Press, Inc. Family Narratives Narratives Reaffirm familys identity by reinforcing shared

goals Teach moral values Stress family concerns Reflect how members feel about each other Reflect how to operate in the world Dysfunctional families can be united by a shared narrative. Interplay, Eleventh Edition, Adler/Rosenfeld/Proctor Copyright 2010 by Oxford University Press, Inc. Models for Other Relationships Experiences in our family of origin share the way we

communicate throughout life. Research: Levels of hostility and positive engagement at 14 linked with same 17 years later Culturally-based North America: Emotional support and loyalty comes from a limited number

of people; children more selfreliant Mexico, Latin America, Africa, Asia Support and loyalty extend beyond immediate family. Interplay, Eleventh Edition, Adler/Rosenfeld/Proctor Copyright 2010 by Oxford University Press, Inc. Communication Rules Families have many rules governing communication among members and with outsiders.

Who may speak or to whom How one speaks Topic of conversation Maintaining opennesscloseness dialect difficult in stepfamilies Interplay, Eleventh Edition, Adler/Rosenfeld/Proctor Copyright 2010 by Oxford University Press, Inc.