Chapter 1 Communication: Essential Human Behavior 13Communicating Competently
Communicating is inherently complex because
people and situations vary. For example, in the
classic film Walk the Line, singer-songwriter
Johnny Cash is thoroughly at ease in front of an
audience but falls apart when communicating at
home. Cash’s relationship with his wife, Vivian,
seems marked by a lack of understanding, dis-
honesty, and an inability to connect on a personal
level. The Academy Award–winning film reveals
that Johnny Cash has a set of useful and unique
talents but that he must adapt them to suit the
needs of different people and situations. He does
this in his second, successful marriage to June
Carter Cash.
In studying communication, our goal is to become competent commu-
nicators. We do not mean merely adequate or “good enough.” Indeed, com-
munication scholars use the term competent communication to describe
communication that is effective and appropriate for a given situation, in which
the communicators evaluate and reassess their own communication process
(Wiemann & Backlund, 1980). We examine each of these aspects of competent
communication in the following sections.
Competent Communication Is Process-Oriented
An old sports adage says, “It’s not whether you win or lose; it’s how you play
the game.” This means that the process (how you play) is more important than
the outcome (who wins and who loses). In communication, an outcome has
to do with the product of an interchange. In a negotiation, for example, the
outcome may be that you get a good deal on a product or get a contract signed.
Competent communication is also concerned with process—the means by
which participants arrived at an outcome. Although outcomes obviously still
play a role in a process analysis, what is said and how it is said
have great significance.
When it comes to process, communicators who strive
to create mutually satisfying outcomes are the most compe-
tent (Wiemann, 1977). A study of fathers and daughters,
for example, found that the most satisfactory relationships
involved a matching of needs and a balancing of control
(Punyanunt-Carter, 2005). Asif, for example, hoped his
daughter Laila would attend his alma mater. In the summer
before Laila’s senior year of high school, the two visited the
university as well as several others. They worked together
on her college applications and debated the merits of each
school. Both Asif and Laila describe their relationship as
satisfying and note that the process of searching for the right
ALTHOUGH JOHNNY
CASH (played by Joaquin
Phoenix in the film Walk the
Line) had a great connection
and rapport with his fans, his
first marriage was far less
successful. © 20th Century Fox
Film Corp/Courtesy Everett Collection.
All rights reserved.IN OCTOBER 2013,
protesters called for effec-
tive communication when
Congress failed to negotiate
an agreement about the 2014
fiscal budget, shutting down
the American government for
over two weeks. © Jay Mallin/
ZUMA Press/Corbis