COMM 1302 Ch. 2
Practical Theory Explanations
Tend to be premised on practical necessity, rules and actions that are goal-oriented and pragmatic
Communication theory:
can refer to a single theory, or the collective wisdom found in the entire body of theories related to communication
Philosophical assumptions address:
...questions of 1) Epistemology 2) Ontology 3) Axiology
Concepts
Building blocks of theories; are the terms/definitions we use in theories; tell what the theorist is looking at/what is considered important
Dimensions of a theory include:
1) Philosophical assumptions: basic beliefs 2) Concepts: building blocks 3) Explanations: dynamic connections 4) Principles: guidelines for action
4 concerns of ontology:
1) To what extent do humans make real choices 2) Whether human behavior is best understood by states or traits 3) Whether human experience is primarily individual or social 4) To what extent is communication contextual
5 Tenets of Practical Theory
1. Action is voluntary, 2. Knowledge is socially created, 3. Theories are historical and ever changing, 4. Theories affect reality they are covering, 5. Theories are never neutral
Practical Explanation
Actions are considered to be goal directed and designed to achieve a future state. (e.g., I needed to increase my GPA, so I studied hard.)
Practical Theory Ontology
Assumes individuals create meanings, have intentions, make choices, and behave differently in different situations because rules and goals change
Practical Theory Epistemology
Assumes people take active role in creating knowledge; tend to be subjective too
Traditional Science
Based on four processes of (1) developing questions, (2) forming hypotheses, (3) testing hypotheses, (4) formulating theory- hypothetico-deductive method; sometimes called "variable-analytic tradition"; hypotheses must be falsifiable, and manipulation must occur
Value-free scholarship
Based on the assumption that theories can be objective and void of the scholar's personal views
Determinists & Pragmatists
Determinists: think that behavior is caused by prior conditions (humans are reactive)--ex. In high school I had bad teachers, so I haven't done well in college. Pragmatists: think that humans are people who plan their behavior to meet future goals--ex. I wanted to get a good grade, so I studied really hard. Middle ground: Humans make choices within a range...some behaviors determined, some free will.
Causal Explanation
Events are connected where one variable is an outcome or result of the other. (e.g., my teachers in high school did not provide enough background, so I couldn't learn enough to pass the test.)
Practical Theory Principles
Guidelines for reflection and action; when a theory includes them, it is practical
Principles
Guidelines included in only a selected class of theories that enables one to interpret an event, make judgements about what is happening and decide how to act
Constructivism/Relativism
Holds that people create knowledge in order to function in the world (they ain't nothing until I calls them)
Heuristic Value
How useful a theory has been in generating research and ideas; one of several criteria that can be used to evaluate communication theories
Holism
Idea that we should view knowledge in its wholly form, not in parts; part of the 4th concern of epistemology
Nomothetic Explanations
In this, explanations are almost exclusively causal; casual explanations posit linear relationship b/w cause and effect; expressed by covering laws that enable researchers to make predictions
Social constructionism
Knowledge is product of group and cultural experiences
Appropriateness
May also be evaluated by how consistent its assumptions are with its methods and questions; one of several criteria that can be used to evaluate communication theories
Epistemology
Nature of knowledge; concerns include 1) what extent can knowledge be known before experience (a priori), 2) what extent is knowledge certain, 3) the process by which knowledge arises, 4) is knowledge best conceived in parts or wholes, and 5) to what extent is knowledge explicit
Axiology
Part of philosophical pertaining to values; concerns include 1) whether theory can be value free 2) to what extent practice of inquiry influences what is studied, and 3) whether theory should be designed to achieve change or simply generate knowledge; value/value-free scholarship polarize these issues
Ontology
Philosophical assumption concerned with nature of being, goes hand in hand with epistemology (has 4 main issues)
Practical Theory
Represents the opposite endpoint from nomothetic theory, designed not to seek universal laws but to capture and understand the rich differences among situations in which people operate
Empiricsm
States that knowledge arises in sense experience, literally "see" what is going on (I calls them as I sees them)
Value-conscious scholarship
Study in which researchers recognize the importance of values and are careful to acknowledge their views; direct those values in positive ways
Universalists/Rationalism
Suggests knowledge arises out of the sheer power of the human mind (I calls them as they is)
Nomothetic Epistemology
Tends to espouse empiricist and rationalist ideas, treating reality as distinct from the human investigator (or the world is waiting for scientist to find it), privileging objectivity and proffering precise operational definitions or operationism, which means all the variables are precisely defined and stated in ways that explain how to observe them
Explanations
The best theories go beyond taxonomies and include explanations; Describes patterns and regularities and provides accounts for how the variables/concepts relate to one another; two types include causal and practical
Openness
The degree to which a theory is tentative and open to dialogue with other approaches
Validity
The degree to which an observation measures what it is supposed to measure
Reliability
The degree to which the construct is measured accurately and consistently
Nomothetic Theory
The dominant approach in the experimental natural sciences that has made sizable inroads in the social sciences, seeks universal or general or covering laws.
Theoretical Scope
The generality or comprehensiveness of a theory; one of several criteria that can be used to evaluate communication theories
Parsimony
The logical simplicity of a theory
Nomothetic Concepts
The quantifiable detection of differences is evaluated here in terms of 1. validity, and 2. reliability
Nomothetic Ontology
Theories tend to assume that behavior is determined by and responsive to biology and the environment
Taxonomies
Theories that stop at the conceptual level and provide just a list of the categories without explaining how they relate
Analysts
Those who believe knowledge consists of understanding how parts operate separately
Practical Theory Axiology
Value-conscious theories are included within this overarching theory's take on axiology
Nomothetic Axiology
Value-free; science is above value issues here
Theory:
an abstraction, focuses on certain things while ignoring others; no single theory is perfect, and no theory reveals "whole truth"; just one way to view it; all of them are constructions created by people (do not capture reality/nature like a mirror, but act as lens to view it)---Use theory because of it's usefulness, not truthfulness