States that 118 individuals reported the rituals they exercised to dissolve relationships or cope with relationship disengagement. Finds that self-enhancement rituals were performed most often during and after various relationship disengagements, and both "leavers" and "lefts" turned to their network to cope with dissolved…

This paper contains an examination of equity theory, which is based on the assumption that when a state of equity exists in an exchange situation, there is a perceived balance between the effort and reward ratios of the individuals involved in the exchange. The paper offers a rationale for examining equity theory in a communication context,…

Reveals differences across age groups in communication patterns in speaking of the loss of significant others--openness of talking about loss, stress ratings of loss, and how communication was used to cope with loss. Discusses findings in terms of self-engagement, family relations, and self-disclosure. (NKA)

Self-disclosure may be viewed through the framework of the role-taking processes by which we come to know ourselves and to be known to others. Because individuals ground utterances contextually, in anticipation of another's responses and according to the prescriptions of the situation itself, self-disclosure is more likely to be flexibly scripted…

Research has documented two behavior patterns known as Type A and Type B. Type A behavior is characterized by competitive striving, a sense of urgency, and hostility, while Type B behavior is less aggressive and more relaxed. It has been theorized that individuals exhibiting Type A behavior have a strong need to maintain control over their…

Identifies individuals' patterns of change in behavioral approach for a single conflict along three orthogonal dimensions: attention to own-view, attention to other-view, and relational disruptiveness. Identifies general patterns of changes in individuals' conflict behaviors. (SR)

Assessed coworkers' perceptions of public school superintendents' behavior related to social style (assertiveness, responsiveness, versatility) and interpersonal communication competence (empathy, social anxiety, listening, self-disclosure, flexibility). Found that superintendents with highly responsive styles were perceived as more competent than…

Three studies investigated the purposes of teasing and the reaction to it. The first study asked 26 college students to describe one instance when they were teased and one when they teased someone else. In addition, they were asked to explain why the teasing had occurred and why they categorized it as teasing. The second study, involving 24…

Indicates that (1) males with low interpersonal orientation (IO) were least vocally active and expressive and least consistent in their speech performances, and (2) high IO males and low IO females tended to demonstrate greater speech convergence than either low IO males or high IO females. (JD)

Suggests an important modification to H. A. Simon's original Model of Interaction in social groups to (1) explain the emergence and organizational structure of communication, friendship, and activity patterns and (2) trace their effect on human sentiment. Indicates that the more frequently people interact with one another, the stronger their…

This study examined the context within which subjects (students) selected one of the following failure management strategies: silence, concession, excuse, justification, and refusal. Contextual variables included: relationship with the reproacher, the students' communicative goal orientation, moral severity of the failure, character of the…

Uses genre and genre repertoire to investigate a community's structuring of communicative practices. Examines communications exchanged by a group of distributed knowledge workers in a multiyear, interorganizational project conducted primarily through electronic mail. Results reveal rich, varied communications shaped in response to community norms,…

Results indicate that individuals with relatively less developed (less differentiated) interpersonal construct systems can be expected to exhibit greater consistency between their attitudes about a person and their behavioral intentions toward that person than those with more developed interpersonal construct systems. (PD)

Compares story receipt and story sequencing variables of males and females in dyadic conversations. Significant differences exist in the amount of time spent as story recipients and with regard to two story sequencing devices--embedded repeat and marked repeat. No differences are noted in the number of sequential stories told. (JMF)

Explores variations in social interaction tactics as a function of incompatible goals of social actors, specifically, evading the information-seeking attempts of others. Finds evasiveness plans were realized in several different behavioral variations at the tactical level; however, certain tactical dimensions discriminated among evasiveness goals…