Comms Chapter 2

Creativity

Uniqueness of human behavior in constructing individual realities.

Theory

A set of that explains a particular phenomenon.

Humanism

A system of thought that celebrates human nature and its potential.

Critical approach

An approach used not only to understand human behavior but ultimately to change society also.

Content analysis

Approach to understanding communication that focuses on specific aspects of the content of a text or group of texts.

Rhetoric

Communication that is used to influence the attitudes or behaviors of others; Persuasion.

Paradigm

Maintains a set of assumptions about knowledge, the nature of reality, and human nature.

Quantitative methods

Methods that convert data to numerical indicators, and then analyze these numbers using tactics to establish relationships among the concepts.

Ethnographic method

Relates to studies in which researchers actively engage with participants.

Social science approach

Seeks snapshots of certain communication phenomena and from them attempts to find universal laws that explain human communication.