Real Communication An Introduction

Chapter 1  Communication: Essential Human Behavior 31

Activities

1. LaunchPad for Real Communication offers key term videos and encourages self-
   assessment through adaptive quizzing. Go to bedfordstmartins.com/ realcomm
   to get access to:

LearningCurve

Adaptive Quizzes.

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THINGS TO TRY

Video clips that illustrate key concepts, highlighted in

teal in the Real Reference section that follows.

2. Think of someone (a family member, a celebrity, a politician, a friend, a pro-
   fessor) who exhibits competent communication in a particular context. What
   behaviors does this person exhibit that make him or her particularly effective?
   Would you want to model some of your own communication behavior after this
   person? Why or why not?


3. Keep a log of all the different channels (face to face, written, computer medi-
   ated, telephonic, others) you use to communicate during the course of one
   morning or afternoon. Do you regularly communicate with a particular person
   via a specific channel? (For example, do you talk with your mother mostly over
   the phone, your romantic partner through text messages, and your childhood
   best friend via Facebook postings?) What channels do you prefer to use when

rebuilding effort. But the mayor failed to consider the situational context

for hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers still reeling from the storm. To

residents of the low-lying parts of the city, it seemed not only insensitive but

also impractical and dangerous to divert police and emergency services to

cover the marathon when large portions of the city were still lacking power

and basic necessities.

c Spotty cellular service meant that people in the affected areas were more

likely to see texts or Facebook posts than to have access to reliable on-

line news coverage. Former locals who lived elsewhere began posting

updates for their peninsula-bound friends and family, forming micro-

communication networks that traditional media could not replicate. At

the same time, residents left without electricity for months on end were

forced to confront their own reliance on electronic telecommunications

and gained a new appreciation for old-school news outlets like radio and

newspapers.

c The storm had an unexpected effect on relationships. Neighbors checked
on neighbors, shared what they had, and gathered to complain, commis-
erate, and comfort one another. Residents noted that in the aftermath of
the storm, they became friends with neighbors they’d never spoken with
before (Hardt, 2012). Real-world social networks were reinforced as local
clubs, charitable organizations, and fraternal organizations were formed or
strengthened by residents moved to help one another and their community
recover.