There are three very different concerns of communication ethics: (1) applied speech ethics, (2) ethical rules or standards, and (3) metaethical issues. In the area of applied speech ethics, communications theorists attempt to determine whether a speech act is moral or immoral by focusing on the content and effects of specific speech acts. Specific…

The mass media provide a flood of information about people, ideas, and products. With all this input, the individual is often hard pressed to sort these images into a meaningful framework. This article synthesizes some of the concepts of Kenneth Boulding and Daniel Boorstin concerning the image and its effects on the structure of our lives and…

Defining communication fidelity as the communication of ideas by one person in a way that results in the construction of congruent ideas by the recipient of that communication, this paper describes a model of basic communication based on this construct that will provide specific information about communication problems. The paper also discusses…

Calls for a reordering of values in the study of human communication in human organizations. Offers a preliminary discourse on a primitive theory of human communication as distinguished from an eclectic theory of organizational communication. Differences between the two types of theoretical approaches are suggested. (JMF)

This interview with Paul Watzlawick covers both his theories of communication and questions concerning therapy, politics, and truth. (JMF)

Nonverbal displays of status are often employed in argumentative interactions for the purpose of securing an advantage over an opposing speaker. These displays can be conceptualized as "implicit ad hominem fallacies" because, like all ad hominem arguments, they shift the focus of attention away from the substantive issues in dispute to…

The communicative skills of listening and nondefensive negotiation for understanding rather than persuasive tactics for coercion are emphasized in this discussion as crucial in helping people deal with the tremendous amount of information received daily. The paper describes some conceptual interconnections between information, communication, and…

This paper views communication as the major human survival tool. Any approach which limits or hampers the innate metabolic human ability to adapt, in order to maximize the chances for survival through communication, is thus seen as dangerous. Instead, a methodology is suggested to develop a communication sub-culture, to facilitate individual…

Identifies four strategies used to communicate experiences that are beyond expression: silence, qualified expression, poetic expression, and antiexpression. Maintains that, although these strategies violate normal expectations of efficient message transactions, they occasionally succeed remarkably in communicating understanding and thus present a…

A study was conducted to examine core Japanese communication patterns, as viewed from insider and outsider perspectives. Using a semistructured interview method and a theme analysis method, four Japanese cultural communication themes were uncovered during the four month study: (1) communication style--concealment versus revelation, (2)…

Focuses on courtroom speech as it occurs when a lay person interacts with an attorney and proposes a framework that includes a (1) macrostructural description of direct and cross-examination sequences as contexts that condition the interaction, and (2) microanalytical model that accounts for the effectiveness of the question-and-answer examination…

The importance of human communication is the focus of this guide for improving language habits, which explores both various communication problems and techniques for handling them. Topics discussed are as follows: bad language habits; words as symbols which do not dictate the nature of things in the real world; inaccurate communication which…