28 Part 1 Basic Communication Processes
Today, communication continues to be a dynamic and multifaceted dis-
cipline focused on improving interactions and relationships, including those
between two individuals, between individuals of different cultures, between
speakers or media producers and audiences, within small groups, in large
organizations, and among nations and international organizations. (Table 1.2
illustrates some of the major areas of specialization and the focus of each.) The
research in our field draws clear connections between these assorted types of
relationships (Berger, Roloff, & Roskos-Ewoldsen, 2010). Furthermore, the
principles of communication laid out in this chapter can be successfully applied
to many different communication situations and contexts. For example, as tech-
nology advances, communication becomes more complicated, expansive, and
sometimes unclear. For most of human existence, an interpersonal relationship
was limited to face-to-face interactions, later enhanced by mediated communi-
cation via the written word and the telephone. But today, individuals strike up
personal and business relationships through e-mail, social networking groups,
and phone contact across the globe, often without ever facing each other in
person.
Throughout this book, we explore how communication skills, concepts, and
theories apply to various communication situations and offer scholarship from
five distinct areas of the discipline:c Basic Communication Processes. All communication involves the basic proc-
esses of perception, verbal communication, nonverbal communication,
intercultural communication, and listening. Skills that we develop in these
areas inform the way we handle communication in a variety of contexts,
from talking with friends to making presentations in front of a class or a
large public audience. In the remainder of Part 1 of the book, you will learn
how these basic processes affect every communication situation.
c Interpersonal Communication. As social animals, we human beings can-
not avoid forming interpersonal relationships and interacting with other
individuals. Interpersonal communication is the study of communication
between dyads, or pairs of individuals. Most students find this study par-
ticularly relevant to their lives as they negotiate their friendships, romantic
relationships, and family relationships. We investigate the exciting, nerve-
racking, fun, confusing, tumultuous, and rewarding world of relationships
and conflict in Part 2 of this book. An in-depth analysis of interviewing—
one of the most daunting and important types of interpersonal communica-
tion—is offered in Appendix A at the back of the book.
c Group and Organizational Communication. If you’ve ever tried to run a
professional meeting, manage a class or work group, or plan a day trip for
a bunch of friends, you know that as the number of people involved in a
conversation, activity, or project increases, communication becomes more
complicated. By studying interactions in groups and organizations, commu-
nication scholars help create strategies for managing the flow of information
and interactions among individuals in groups. We’ll explore this in Part 3 of
the book.