Ques²on 181 / 1 pointA good friend just bought a new dress for an upcoming wedding. As she models it for you, you've decidedto equivocate in your response. Which of the following statements would cons²tute equivoca²on?
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Ques²on 191 / 1 pointOne study found that ______________ of sexually ac²ve college students had "acted decep²vely" aboutdisclosing their sexual history, even though most said they knew be±er.
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Ques²on 201 / 1 point_____________ are more direct than equivoca²ng and seek the desired response from a person.
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Ques²on 211 / 1 pointWhen Brian asks Benjamin if he wouldn't mind taking his shi³ on Saturday, Benjamin, who had alreadymade plans for the weekend, lies and says, "Sure, No problem." What is Benjamin's most likely reason forthis "misdemeanor lie?"Avoid conflict
Ch. 2 Notes
*Who you are (and how you define yourself) reflects and affects your communication with
others*
Self-Concept – who you think you are; the relatively stable set of perceptions you hold
of yourself
oIs subjective
oResists change – we have a tendency to cling to an existing self-concept, even
when evidence shows that it is obsolete
oCognitive Conservatism – tendency to seek/attend to information that conforms
to an existing self-concept
This tendency leads us to seek out people who support our self-concept
(people with high self-esteem seek partners who view them favorably and
people with low self-esteem seek out people who view them unfavorably);
we are less concerned with learning the “truth” about ourselves than with
reinforcing a familiar self-concept
Self-Esteem – evaluations of self-worth
oIf a communicator’s self-concept included being quiet, argumentative, or self-
controlled, their self-esteem would be determined by how they felt about those
qualities
oPeople with high self-esteem tend to think well of others and expect to be
accepted by them; those who dislike themselves are likely to believe that others
won’t like them either
Personality – characteristic ways that you think and behave across a variety of situations;
your personality traits tend to be stable throughout your life and it often grows
pronounced over time
Reflected Appraisal – fact that each of us develops a self-concept that reflects the way
we believe others see us
Significant Others – (sociologist definition) people whose opinions we especially value
Ego ‘Boosters’ vs. Ego ‘Busters’
Social Comparison – evaluating ourselves in terms of how we compare with others
- Communication affects self-concept, which is the relatively stable set of perceptions you hold for yourself, while self-esteem is the part of the self-concept that involves evaluations of self-worth.
- The self-concept develops as a rudimentary sense of self emerges at age six or seven months in humans and evolves through social interaction.
- Reflected appraisal is the process of mirroring the judgments of surrounding people, while the term significant other is used to describe a person whose evaluations are especially influential.
- Social comparison describes the way we evaluate ourselves in terms of how we compare with others and by comparing ourselves to reference groups or people we use to evaluate our own characteristics.
- There are multiple characteristics of the self-concept.
- The self-concept is subjective, so that the way we view ourselves may not be the same way others view us.
- A healthy self-concept is flexible; it changes as needed to remain realistic.
- The self-concept resists change, that is, the tendency to resist revision of our self-concept is strong, and we seek out information that conforms to an existing self-concept, which is called cognitive conservatism.
- The self-fulfilling prophecy occurs when a person's expectation of an event affects his or her behavior and therefore makes the predicted outcome more likely to occur than would have otherwise been true; the belief about the outcome affects communication.
- There are two types of self-fulfilling prophecies.
- Self-imposed prophecies occur when your own expectations influence your behavior.
- Other-imposed prophecies occur when one person's expectations govern another's actions, as demonstrated in the classic study, "Pygmalion in the Classroom."
- Changing your self-concept is possible, and there are several methods for doing so.
- First, have realistic expectations, because some dissatisfaction may come from expecting too much from yourself.
- Second, have a realistic perception of yourself; one source of low self-esteem is inaccurate self-perception.
- Third, have the will to change by doing the necessary work.
- Fourth, have the skill to change because trying often is not enough.
- The self-concept develops as a rudimentary sense of self emerges at age six or seven months in humans and evolves through social interaction.
- Identity management refers to the communication strategies people use to present the self and to influence how others view them.
- Each of us possesses several selves.
- The perceived self is the person each of us believes we are when we examine ourselves.
- The presenting self is the public image we present, which is normally a socially approved image.
- Face is the name given to the socially approved identity we present, and facework describes the verbal and nonverbal ways we act to maintain our face and the faces of others.
- There are multiple characteristics of identity management.
- We strive to construct multiple identities. Most people play a variety of roles in different areas of their lives, and being able to construct multiple identities is one element of competent communication.
- Identity management is collaborative; we perform like actors to an audience through improvisation.
- Identity management can be deliberate or unconscious; at times we are aware of managing impressions and at other times we unconsciously act in ways that make an impression on others.
- People differ in degrees of identity management and range from extremely low self-monitoring to extremely high self-monitoring, but the ideal lies in flexibility.
- We manage impressions to follow social rules, accomplish personal goals, and achieve relational goals.
- How we manage impressions is a question whose answer depends on the channel we choose.
- Face-to-face identity management occurs by manner, appearance, and setting.
- Identity management in mediated communication, as well as computer-mediated communication, offers an advantage to communicators who want to manage the impressions they make.
- Identity management and honesty involves deciding which face to reveal depending upon the situation.
- Each of us possesses several selves.
- Several factors distinguish self-disclosure from other types of communication, including honesty, depth, availability of information, and context of sharing. Furthermore, self-disclosure has the self as subject, is intentional, is directed at another person, is honest, is revealing, contains information generally unavailable from other sources, and gains much of its intimate nature from the context in which it
is expressed.
- There are two models of self-disclosure.
- The social penetration model involves the breadth and depth of information involved.
- The Johari Window is divided into information that one knows about oneself (known), things one doesn't know (unknown), things people know about one (blind), and things people don't know about one (hidden).
- There are benefits and risks of self-disclosure; neither
complete privacy nor complete disclosure is desirable.
- Benefits of self-disclosure include catharsis, self-clarification, self-validation, reciprocity, impression formation, relationship maintenance and enhancement, moral obligation, social influence, and self-defense.
- Risks of self-disclosure include rejection, negative impression, decrease in relational satisfaction, loss of influence, loss of control, and hurt to the other person.
- There are some
guidelines for self-disclosure.
- Is the other person important to you? Disclosure may help develop a more personal relationship with someone.
- Is the risk of disclosing reasonable? An analysis to determine if the benefits outweigh the risks may be helpful.
- Is the self-disclosure appropriate? Not all disclosure is appropriate at all times.
- Is the disclosure relevant to the situation at hand? Disclosure that is appropriate in highly personal relationships is not appropriate in less personal settings.
- Is the disclosure reciprocated? Unequal disclosure creates an unequal relationship.
- Will the effect be constructive? Self-disclosure must be used carefully, and the effect of the disclosure should be considered.
- There are alternatives to self-disclosure.
- Silence is keeping information to yourself and may be the best for you and the other person.
- A lie is a deliberate attempt to hide or misrepresent the truth and is a sign of relational distress; however, a benevolent lie is not seen as malicious by the person who tells it, and the communicator thinks she or he is being helpful.
- Equivocal language has two or more equally plausible meanings and is helpful in saving face in difficult situations.
- Hinting is more direct than equivocal language.
- There are ethics of evasion, as there are instances when hints, benevolent lies, and equivocations are ethical alternatives to self-disclosure.
- There are two models of self-disclosure.