comm3500 exam 1
One of the main differences between objective and interpretive scholars is that interpretive scholars believe they can discover the one reality that exists.
False
Scholars who call themselves "humanists" believe that theories need to be tested using empirical evidence.
False
Schwartz' theory of resonance is a good example of a metatheory.
False
Socio-psychological scholarship is chiefly concerned with the way things ought to be.
False
The authors warn that one danger of studying theory is that it can make life more confusing.
False
Theories about media and culture, organizational communication, and public rhetoric tend to be objective in orientation.
False
To avoid inadvertently copying the work of others, theorists should avoid reading what other people have written about the phenomena they're investigating
False
According to the textbook authors, what is the main problem with Bormann's description of theory as "an umbrella term for all careful, systematic, and self-conscious discussion and analysis of communication phenomena"?
It's too broad.
To explain the meaning of the Budweiser ad, Medhurst compares it to one person. Who is it?
Jesus.
Occam's razor is another name for __________?
Objective standard of relative simplicity
How many different definitions of "communication" have communication scholars developed?
Over one hundred
Words and other symbols are open to multiple interpretations, making them:
Polysemic
The twin objectives of scientific research are:
Predicts some future outcome and explains the reasons for that outcome.
According to Glenn Sparks' objective analysis of the Budweiser ad, what might we do to validate his explanation?
Test audience response against an ad without warm emotional memories.
A record of a message that can be analyzed by others is a(n):
Text
When we say communication is a process, we mean:
The flow of communication is always in flux.
Which of the following is most clearly an example of Schwartz' resonance principle in action?
When Tony watches a crime show, it stirs the fear he felt when he was the victim of a robbery last summer.
A determinist assumes that human behavior is caused by ____________ and _______________.
environment; heredity
The __________ states that researchers should grant others that occur in their construction the same autonomy they practice constructing them.
ethical imperative
Another term for "relative simplicity" is _____?
parsimony
Deetz says that every general communication theory has two priorities: effectiveness and ______________.
participation
Objective approaches attempt to find ___________ that explain human behavior in a variety of situations.
universal laws
One limitation of the "lens" metaphor is that it leaves little room for human free will.
False
Which of the following statements is not a standard for a good objective theory?
"A good theory creates a community of agreement."
Which of the following statements is not a standard for a good interpretive theory?
"A good theory has practical application." (focuses more on human nature than application)
If communication theory is like fashion design, then interpretive scholars are most likely to create:
A one-of-a-kind custom suit.
Which of the following is an interpretive theorist most likely to investigate?
A one-of-a-kind speech community with a specific language style.
When comparing objective and interpretive theories, the counterpart to the objective standard of simplicity is the interpretive standard of:
Aesthetic appeal.
Laura travels to a foreign country on study abroad for a semester. While there, she takes every opportunity to immerse herself in the local culture. She takes many notes on her observations about the country, and then turns her notes into a term paper. Laura's activity is most similar to:
An ethnography.
Why is theory building a "risky business"?
Because theory building moves beyond accepted wisdom.
If an interpretive theorist's article meets the standard of aesthetic appeal, what are you most likely to find in the article?
Artful metaphors.
Bill Rawlins interviewed two women about their friendship. Because he worked from within the phenomenological tradition, what did he do to verify the accuracy of his report of the interview?
Asked the women to read his report and provide feedback to him.
Griffin, Ledbetter, and Sparks suggest that communication students should grow to the point where they think about theory every time they communicate with someone.
False
In the self-referential imperative, Krippendorff encourages scholars to remove as much bias from research as they possibly can.
False
Interpretive scholars believe that texts can interpret themselves.
False
Archetypal myths:
Draw upon universal human experiences.
According to the textbook, for a message to be considered communication, it must:
Elicit a response
All of the following are names for humanistic scholars except:
Empiricists.
The chapter talks about how baseball great Stan Musial interacted with his African American teammates. His behavior was similar to that of a(n):
Ethnographer
Carlos brings his study participants to his lab. There, they watch one of three advertisements for soap. Carlos has carefully prepared the advertisements, manipulating the credibility of each ad across conditions. He then measures the extent to which the participant is interested in buying the soap. What kind of data collection is Carlos conducting?
Experiment
Why might an objective scholar choose to perform an experiment rather than administering a survey?
Experiments are better at demonstrating cause-effect relationships.
In the chapter, the authors propose a new tradition. What does Craig say they would have to do in order to define it fully?
Explain how it compares to every other tradition.
When comparing objective and interpretive theories, the counterpart to the interpretive standard of understanding of people is the objective standard of:
Explanation of the data.
A Taylor Swift song is not a text.
False
A sign is anything that can stand for something else.
False
All rhetorical critics do interpretive analysis, so all interpretive scholars are rhetoricians.
False
Communication scholars are waiting for a future bright theorist to nail down the definition of communication once and for all.
False
David Hume believed texts were worthless unless they furthered the cause of social justice.
False
Empiricists maintain that as long as a theory can accurately predict future behavior, knowing the reason why it did is relatively unimportant.
False
Objective and interpretive scholars almost always understand and value their colleagues' work.
False
Karl Popper believed that ________ was the defining feature of scientific theory.
Falsifiability
The requirement that a scientific theory must be stated in a way that it can be tested using empirical data is:
Falsifiability.
Which question best fits epistemology?
How do we know what we know, if we know it at all?
According to the textbook authors, the behavioral scientist usually describes human conduct as occurring because:
Humans react to forces that are often outside the individual's awareness.
Which of the following is most likely to bother a critical theorist?
Injustice
The objective and interpretive approaches to theory differ because:
Interpretive approaches assume that there is more than one reality in the world.
Griffin, Ledbetter, and Sparks compare the interpretive and objective approaches to two elements of the Myers-Briggs personality assessment. Which of the following correctly matches the theoretical tradition to the personality type?
Interpretive: Intuition; Objective: Sensing
Interpretive scholars differ from objective scholars in that they believe that truth
Is mainly subjective, meaning multiple meanings or truths are possible.
Objective scholars have studied communication apprehension. What weakness exists in this body of research?
It doesn't explain why some people become nervous and others don't.
Why is it important to understand the differences between interpretive and objective approaches?
It helps prevent the theories from blurring together in your mind.
When some scholars refer to communication as a "crossroads discipline," they mean:
It incorporates interests from fields such as psychology, sociology, and philosophy.
The textbook mentions three metaphors for communication theory. Two of them are the "lens" and the "net." What is the third metaphor?
Map
The textbook suggests that one limitation of the "lens" metaphor is that it:
May encourage us to abandon any search for truth.
Which of the following statements accurately describes how people create messages?
Much message creation is habitual in nature.
Deanna researches how the meaning of the word "freedom" has changed over time. With which tradition is Deanna probably most familiar?
Semiotic.
How many distinct traditions of communication theory did Craig originally identify?
Seven
Which of the following would most likely be said by a determinist?
She gave a good speech because she is genetically predisposed to be a good communicator.
A scientist seeks to gather information about the world chiefly through:
Sight, sound, taste, touch, and smell.
Scientific scholars assume that truth is:
Singular
Which of the following statements correctly identifies the relationship between the objective/interpretive approaches and the theories covered in the book?
Some areas of study in communication may have an objective or interpretive bias.
Craig added the pragmatist tradition. Which tradition did one of his students add?
Spiritual
Why might an objective scholar choose to administer a survey rather than performing an experiment?
Surveys often save time and cost less money
The rule of parsimony states that:
The simpler of two plausible explanations for an event should be accepted.
Using Popper's metaphor of the net, what does he mean when he talks about making the mesh of the net "finer and finer"?
The theorist continually tries to capture more and more of what humans think and say.
When we say a theorist's ideas (or hunches) are "informed," we mean:
The theorist is familiar with alternative explanations for the topic of interest.
How are theories like nets?
They enable us to 'catch' part of the world.
How are theories like maps?
They enable us to 'navigate' part of the social world.
How are theories like lenses?
They shape our perception by focusing our attention on some details while ignoring others.
According to Burgoon, a theory is basically an informed "hunch."
True
According to the textbook, communication is the relational process of creating and interpreting messages that elicit a response.
True
Interpretive scholars can build a community of agreement by having their work debated in the broad marketplace of ideas.
True
Many interpretive scholars believe truth is socially constructed through communication.
True
Messages are the core of communication study
True
Objective scholars don't want to confuse the way the world is with the way they think it ought to be.
True
One measure of a good interpretive theory is the extent to which it reforms society.
True
The aim of textual analysis is to describe and interpret the characteristics of a message.
True
The critical tradition is concerned with the way that language can be used to perpetuate power imbalances.
True
The cybernetic tradition is interested in communication networks.
True
According to Bateson, the two great contraries of the mind are rigor and _________
imagination
Critical scholars value research that seeks to ___________ people from __________________.
liberate; oppression
Communication is a ________ process because it takes place between two or more people.
relational
According to Celeste Condit, the communication process is more about ________________ than it is about ___________________.
relationships; content
The ____________________ tradition might analyze the way a politician uses metaphors to win support for his or her policy during a speech.
rhetorical
The __________ states that researchers should include themselves as a constituent of their own construction.
self-referential imperative
A systematic hunch:
specifies the relationship among the theorist's ideas.
Most scholars reserve the term theory for an integrated _______ of concepts.
system
Metatheory is theory about __________________.
theory
Objective scholars want theory to be a mirror that reflects reality.
true
Sometimes, people communicate in seemingly mindless ways.
true
The value question that separates interpretive and objective scholars is, "Does effectiveness or participation have higher priority?"
true
