Symbols, Signs, and Theories in Communication

Symbols and signs:  Kenneth Burke o Humans are symbol using animals o Symbol makers and symbol misusers  Symbols organize out experiences in the world  Symbol use is strategic Signs- the base of all meaning  Indexical signs o Association o Causal relation  Iconic Signs o Visual similarity o Clear connection  Symbolic signs o Arbitrary connection o Based on convention Theories are maps  Theories are maps- tools for understanding and looking at something  But a map is never complete o A map is not that which it purports to explain- it is a reduction o Other people might create maps that look different o Theories, are not facts. They have limitations  Only by developing and testing hypotheses and weighing lines of argument advanced by different theories can the secrets of the human communication be unlocked  You have developed a variety of “everyday theories” of communication. Maps for how to approach, engage, and understand social situations and tasks  Theories serve three purposes: to explain, predict, control  Provide orderly, rather whimsical, explanations of events, interactions and processes Communication SMCRE Model  Sender—Message—Channel—Receiver—Effects Building theory  Ontology o Deals with the nature of being (what is real? What exists? What might exist?) o What constitutes reality and how can we understand existence?  Positivism (quantitative): objectivist & realist ontological positions  Interpretivism (qualitative): subjectivist & interpretivist ontological positions o Epistemology  Deals with the nature of knowledge and knowingstipulates the standards by which justifies belief is separated from opinion  What constitutes valid knowledge and how can we obtain it? o Axiology  The role of values/ the researcher in the research process  Step 1: inquiry begins with a sense of curiosity  Step 2: inquiry requires accurate and insightful observation  Step 3: inquiry must have system  Step 4: Inquiry required imagination  Step 5: Inquiry requires that key variable be systematically isolated and their interaction be understood and explained  Social Learning Theory: children learn social behavior such as aggression through the process of observation learning- through watching the behavior of another person Hypothesis vs. Theory  Hypothesis: “work horses” of inquiry  Single, testable statements  Supported results derived from testing several hypotheses— theory  A theory is a systematic and plausible set of generalizations that explain some observable phenomena Good theory? (six criteria)  It must explain some observable phenomenon, practice or process  It predicts sequences of actions, events and outcomes  It allows people to understand and predict processes so they can better control what occurs in communication  Its parsimonious  It is internally consistent  It is capable of being falsified Building blocks of theory  Concept (construct) o Unique categories of recognizable, distinguishable phenomena o Not directly observable o Communication apprehension: deciding a level of fear or anxiety associated with either real or anticipated communication with another person or persons  Taxonomies: the most primitive models o Lists of key concepts relevant to some phenomenon  Trust, satisfaction, commitment, exchange relationship, communal relationship  Confounding variable: Variable that interferes with the routine or ordinary relationship between the independent and the dependent variable. Early perspectives on media and society  20th century “the first age of mass media”  new forms of technology alter the human experience o uptick in newspaper publishing and dissemination of news o new technologies “shrink space” o allows for new forms of connectivity o mass media decoupled communication and travel  the overarching questions: o the question of power of the new means of communication o the question of social integration o the question of enlightenment  The media problem as scapegoat o Moral panics o Media to blame for society ills?  Culture: high vs. popular o High culture  Elitist perceptions of culture  The best of the best (or so we are led to believe) o Popular culture  Grassroots culture  Mass appeal  Characteristics of culture o Cultures are highly complex and overlapping o Cultures entail consciousness, or ideologies o Cultures are experienced through texts  The mass concept o The term mass originally carried negative associations  Uneducated, ignorant, and potentially irrational, unruly, and even violent o The concept of mass:  Composed of a large aggregate of people  Undifferentiated composition  Mainly negative perception  Lacking internal order or structure  Reflective of a wider mass society  Mass communication process o The term “mass communication” came into use in the 1930’s     o The most obvious feature of the mass media is that they are designed to reach the many o Audiences are viewed as large aggregates of more of less anonymous consumers, and the relationship between sender and receiver is affected accordingly  Sender: organization or professional communicator (journalist, presenter, producer, entertainer)  Sender: spokespeople, advertisers, politicians, preachers, advocates o The symbolic content or message of mass communication is typically “manufactures” in standardized ways Early definition of mass communication o “mass communication comprises the institutions and techniques by which specialized groups employ technical devices (press, radio films) to disseminate symbolic content to large, heterogeneous and widely dispersed audience” The mass media process o Large scale distribution and reception of content o One-directional flow o Asymmetrical relation between sender and receiver o Calculative or market relationship with audience o Standardization and commodification of content The mass audience: group, crowd, public, mass o Large numbers of readers, viewers o Widely dispersed o Non-interactive and anonymous relation to each other o Heterogeneous composition o Not organized or self-acting o An object of management or manipulation by the media The mass media institution o The core activity is the production and distribution of information and culture o Media acquire functions and responsibilities in the ‘public sphere’ that are overseen by the institutions o Control is mainly by self-regulation, with limits set by society o Boundaries of membership are uncertain o Media are free and in principle independent of political and economic power  Mass culture o Non-traditional form and content o Intended for mass consumption o Mass produced and formulaic o Pejorative image o Commercial o Homogenized  Traditional/Dominant paradigm o A liberal-pluralist ideal of society o The media have certain functions in society o Media effects on audiences are direct and linear o Group relations and individual differences modify effects of media o Quantitative research and variable analysis o Media viewed as potential social problem or as a means of persuasion o Behaviorist and quantitative methods have primacy  The alternative/critical paradigm o Critical view of society and rejection of value neutrality o Rejection of the transmission model of communication o Non-deterministic view of media technology and messages o Adoption of an interpretive and constructionist perspective o Qualitative methodology o Preference for cultural or political-economic theories o Wide concern with inequality and sources of opposition in society  Four models of communication o Transmission model o Ritual/expressive model o Publicity model o Encoding/decoding model Media Effects History  First phase: powerful effects  Media credited with an almost limitless omnipotence o Thought to mold thoughts, opinions, beliefs, atÝtudes, and ultimately behaviors and life habits o Powerful persuaders could enforce their wills through mass mediated communication  Media fired “magic bullets” of information and/or injected audiences with “hypodermic needles” o Researchers used medical terminology inspired by medical science o Audiences were believed to be defenseless against the stimuli of the media. Passive view of audiences o Stimulus-response theories Second Phase: Limited Effects (late 1930s through 1960s) •Paul F. Lazarsfeld deconstructed the magic bullet theory through use of empirical data. •Focus shifted from “what does media do to people?” to “what do people do with media?” – People are part of groups where media messages are scrutinized, thereby limiting the effects of mediated messages. – Lazarsfeld’s 3 key concepts: 1. Selective Exposure & Selective Perception – people select and interpret messages in ways that correspond with their previously established atÝtudes 2. Opinions Leadership – media messages are transformed and re-communicated 3. Social Group Formation – peer/group logics prevents radical opinions changes Third phase: Strong effects (end of 1960s through end of 1970s)  Return of the concept of powerful mass media  Studies showed that it was possible to overcome some selectivity process in a television saturated environment  Three distinct features during this phase: o More sophisticated methods of research and analysis o More specific hypotheses o More highly differentiated theoretical approaches  Long term studies illustrated change over time  Less focused on crude changes in atÝtudes and behavior than on subtle changes in our perception of the world Fourth phase: negotiated/ transactional effects (late 1970s until today)  Central premise: media exert their greatest influence when they become involved in the process of constructing sense and meaning  Media ‘construct’ social formations and even history itself by framing images of reality in predictable and patterned ways  Audiences construct for themselves their own view of social reality and their place in it, in interaction with the symbolic constructions offered by the media Four media effects models 1) Direct Effects – Involuntary reactions to certain features of media content – Not to be confused with hypodermic needle theory – Focus on content that impacts audience’s perceptions and feelings 2) Conditional Effects – Places emphasis on audience as location of understanding media effects – Focuses on audience selectivity (exposure, attention, perception, and recall) – Media effects are common but conditional on aspects of the audience (different people affected differently) 3) Cumulative Effects – Focuses on consonance of some themes, images, and frames across media content (television overrides the issue of audience selectivity) – Effects emerge over time after exposure to consistent messages across channels and media – Cognitive effects: Cumulative exposure leads people to develop beliefs based on the content they consume. These beliefs mirror media content. 4) Cognitive Automatic Effects – Relies on the notion of priming —that is, the activation of mental concepts as a result of exposure to media content. – Media use grows out of desires for relaxation and entertainment, suggesting a less mentally active audience. – Less active audiences engage in more automatic and effortless information processing Information flow models and opinion leadership Two-Step Flow – What is the central proposition supporting this theoretical model? – What relationships between media contents and media effects are hypothesized? •Multi-Step Flow – What does the multi-step flow model add to the equation that is left out by the two-step flow model? •Opinion Leaders = Influentials – Opinion leaders influence “followers” – Opinion leaders can be found in every social category and do not differ much in their characteristics from other people – Opinion leaders are more often exposed to mass media and more often try to convince others of their political ideas. – Opinion leadership usually confined to specific issues. – Organizations are usually interested in locating and targeting opinion leaders. Who are opinion leaders? 1. Found at every social level and most likely to influence peers (same social level) 2. Found in both sexes, all professions, all social classes, and all age groups 3. Tend to be more involved than non-leaders in social activities and in the community (high social standing) 4. Are considered experts in their field (informal recognition by friends, family, colleagues, etc.) 5. Are more exposed to mass media than non- opinion-leaders 6. Are more interested, involved, and up-to-date in the field in which they are influential than non-leaders 7. Tend to be monomorphous—that is, usually expert on one area but rarely in multiple areas. 8. Manifest specific communication behaviors — for example, more involved in informal personal communication than non-leaders 9. Are usually quite aware of their status as sources of information and influence for others Furnishing the edifice Ethical Dilemma: • Involves moral struggles and reflection in an effort to do the right thing. Public Relations: boundary spanning role? Ethical Dilemmas are everywhere: • Illegal downloading • Reporting crimes • Physician-assisted suicide / The death penalty • Hidden cameras • Sex & violence on TV The study of ethics: • Learning to publicly justify our ethical choices based upon sound ethical precepts. Ethical communication  Moral agent (make moral judgements)  Motive (do ends justify the means?)  Act (behavioral component-what was done?)  Context (political, social, and cultural climate)  Individual/ audience (those directly affected by the act)  Consequence (for the agent as well as the audience, perhaps even an innocent third party) Ethics: personal and professional value systems and standards that underlie decisions and behavior Morals: more personal in orientation. Can be understood as the principles on which ones judgement of right and wrong rests Ethics in short, “reflects a society’s notions about the rightness or wrongness of an act and the distinction between virtue and vice Ethics, therefore, involves the evaluation and application of those moral values that a society has accepted as its norms Ethical theories  Deontological theories o Based on duty  Teleological theories o Based on consequence  Virtue theories o Based on character Three branches of ethics  Meta ethics o Examines the characteristics or nature of ethics o Also examines the meaning of such abstract terms such as good, right, justice, fairness o Seeks to distinguish between ethical values and matters of taste or atÝtude  Normative ethics o Seeks to develop general theories, rules, and principles of moral conduct o Designed to bring moral order out of chaos and function as the foundation for ethical decision making in the real world  Applied ethics o The problem-solving branch of moral philosophy o The task becomes one of the using the insights derived from meta ethics and the general principles and rules of normative ethics in addressing specific ethical issues and concrete cases Four levels of ethics  Societal level  Professional level  Organizational level  Personal level The first principles of moral virtue  Credibility (ethos) o A fragile commodity that serves as the cornerstone for the below virtues  Phronesis- practical skill and wisdom  Arête- virtue and goodness  Eunoia- goodwill and concern towards the audience  Integrity & accepting responsibility o This virtue also encompasses three parts  Discerning what is right from what is wrong  Acting on what you have discerned, even at personal cost  Saying openly that you are acting on your understanding of right from wrong  Civility o Manners matter o Civility encompasses an atÝtude of self-sacrifice and respect for others o Civility, in no small way, is what enables us to live together as a society Sources of values and atÝtudes Four influential sources:  The family  Peer groups  Role models  Societal institutions Legality does NOT equal ethicality SAD: A model of moral reasoning  Situation o Description of facts o Identification of principles and values o Statement of ethical issues or question  Analysis o Weighting of competing principles and values o Consideration of external factors o Examination of duties to various parties o Discussion of applicable ethical theories  Decision o Rendering of moral agent’s decision o Defense of that decision based upon moral theory Fake news, how can you tell whats real? Confirmation Bias: The tendency to interpret new evidence as confirmation of one's existing beliefs or theories. Issues management: coombs 4&5  Public policy effects of public relations  Specifically intended to address public policy issues  Chase-Jones Model o 1) issue identification  detecting issues relevant to the organization through environmental scanning o 2) issue analysis  predict possible impact issue might have on organization using appropriate research methods  using impact assessment, a list of the most pressing issues can be assembled o 3) issue change strategy option  selecting the most feasible and practical strategy for responding o 4) issue action program  involves communicating with multiple stakeholders about the issue  messages tailored to individuals needs and deployed through appropriate communication channels o 5) evaluation  determining the effects of the issues management effort  success is measured by how closely the actual outcome matches the intended outcome Catalytic Model of Issues Management Extension of Chase-Jones model (which does not take into account the role of communication in influencing/managing the policy making process) – Communication is employed to create arousal – Model seeks to increase the number of people who are aware of an issue, accept the issue as a valid public concern (grant it legitimacy), and support the preferred policy option for resolving the issue. – Focuses on the status or importance an issue has for stakeholders, including policy makers. 5 status levels reflecting the life cycle of an issue 1. Potential status • Stakeholders show some interest in issue 2. Imminent status • More people show interest (builds legitimacy) 3. Current status • Issue is reported on in the news, discussed online 4. Critical status • Persuasion used to gain support for preferred side • Pressure for decision and then decision 5. Dormant status • Issue can slip into dormancy at any time, so communication is crucial throughout the process Social marketing: Examines how public information campaigns shape society by altering behaviors. The goal is to move people from awareness to action 1. Presentation (target exposed to message) 2. Attention (target pays attention to message) 3. Comprehension (target understands the message) 4. Yielding (target accepts the message/atÝtude change) 5. Retention (target remembers the message) 6. Action (target acts upon the message/engages in desired behavior  Unlike IM there usually are no “sides” in social marketing. People do not oppose most efforts designed to improve society. Finds problems, tries to correct them.  Commonly uses fear appeals Agenda setÝng and agenda building  Agenda building: the process by which news organizations and journalists feature, emphasize, and or select certain events, issues or sources to cover over others o News coverage is not a reflection of reality, but rather a manufactured product  Factors influencing news production o Ideological factors: the role of the medias performance as a democratic institution  For reasons of competition, news organizations tend to focus on stories that are carried by other news networks/outlets o Organizational and professional factors: interactions between journalists and their sources  News is co-production  News is treated as a product and journalists must package complex events in short segments that appeal to their intended news consumers  The focus on narrative devices and story  In order to promote continuity and predictability, journalists tend to rely heavily on routine channel sources and information subsidies  Majority of news are source generated  Very few stories are the result of enterprising journalists uncovering some hidden truth  Authority bias: unauthoritative sources are forced to piggyback on other sources or to cultivate personal relationships with journalists o Social composition and individual-level factors  The selection and angling of stories have roots in journalist’s personal worldviews and political predilections  This is true even when journalists themselves claim to prefer neutrality in reporting  Some of this is a result of the previous factors, however, more so than individual journalists wanting to flaunt their political allegiances  News agenda: the list of events of issues that are portrayed in coverage at one point in time or across time  Agenda setÝng theory o Need for orientation (NFO)  The psychology of each individual’s encounter with the media  Relevance & uncertainty  4 categories (low, medium passive, medium active, high) o Objects and attributes o First-level, second-level, and third-level  First level: deal with objects (what something is)  The press “may not be successful much of the time in telling people what to think, but it is stunningly successful in telling its readers what to think about”  – In theory, a value-free representation of something that exists out there in the world  Second level: deals with attributes (how an object should be seen)  Similar to framing (which we will discuss next time) in quite a few ways – News media is favoring certain aspects of a story object and does suggest “what readers should think” or how they should “evaluate a particular object)  Third level  The transfer of both objects and attributes in a networked news environment – Sets of relationships among elements of the media and public agendas are the third level of agenda setÝng o Vertical media & horizontal media o Salience o Media agenda, public agenda, policy agenda o Agendamelding: the choose your own adventure of agenda setÝng