The Seven Established Traditions of Communication

The socio-psychological tradition: Communication as interpersonal

interaction and influence.

1. This tradition epitomizes the scientific perspective.

2. Scholars believe that communication truths can be discovered by
careful, systematic observation that predict cause-and-effect
relationships.
3. Researchers focus on what is without their personal bias of what ought
to be.
4. Theorists check data through surveys or controlled experiments, often
calling for longitudinal empirical studies.

The cybernetic tradition: Communication as a system of information

processing.

5. Norbert Wiener coined the term cybernetics to describe the field of

artificial intelligence.
1. Wiener’s concept of feedback anchored the cybernetic tradition.
2. Communication is the link separating the separate parts of any
system.
6. Theorists seek to answer the questions: How does the system work?
What could change it? How can we get the bugs out?

The rhetorical tradition: Communication as artful public address.

7. Greco-Roman rhetoric was the main communication theory until the

twentieth century.
8. Six features characterize the tradition.
1. A conviction that speech distinguishes humans from other animals.
2. A confidence in the efficacy of public address.
3. A setting of one speaker addressing a large audience with the
intention to persuade.
4. Oratorical training as the cornerstone of a leader’s education.
5. An emphasis on the power and beauty of language to move people
emotionally and stir them to action.
6. Rhetoric was the province of males.

The semiotic tradition: Communication as the process of sharing meaning

through signs.

9. Semiotics is the study of signs.

10. Words are a special kind of sign known as a symbol.
11. I. A. Richards was an early scholar of semiotics.
1. His “proper meaning superstition” identifies the mistaken belief that
words have a precise meaning.
2. Meanings don’t reside in words or other symbols, but in people.
The socio-cultural tradition: Communication as the creation and enactment
of social reality.

12. Communication produces and reproduces culture.

13. Edward Sapir and Benjamin Lee Whorf pioneered this tradition.
1. The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis of linguistic relativity states that the
structure of a culture’s language shapes what people think and do.
2. Their theory counters the notion that languages are neutral
conduits of meaning.
14. It is through language that reality is produced, maintained, repaired,
and transformed.

The critical tradition: Communication as a reflective challenge of unjust

discourse.

15. Critical theory derives from the German Frankfurt School.

16. The Frankfurt School rejected Karl Marx’s economic determinism, but
embraced the Marxist tradition of critiquing society.
17. Critical theorists challenge three features of contemporary society.
1. The control of language to perpetuate power imbalances.
2. The role of mass media in dulling sensitivity to repression.
3. Blind reliance on the scientific method and uncritical acceptance of
empirical findings.

The phenomenological tradition: Communication as the experience of self

and others through dialogue.

18. Phenomenology refers to the intentional analysis of everyday life from

the standpoint of the person who is living it.
19. The phenomenological tradition places great emphasis on people’s
perceptions and interpretations of their own subjective experiences.
20. Phenomenological tradition answers two questions: Why is it so hard
to establish and sustain authentic human relationships? How can this
problem be overcome?

Fencing the field of communication theory.

21. These seven traditions have deep roots in communication theory.
22. They have been mapped with respect to the objective/interpretive
dichotomy.
23. Hybrids are possible across traditions.
24. They might not cover every approach to communication theory—thus
the addition of the ethical tradition.
The ethical tradition: Communication as people of character interacting in
just and beneficial ways.
25. Since ancient Greece, scholars have grappled with the obligations of
the communicator.
26. The NCA recently adopted a “Credo for Communication Ethics,” which
includes the conviction that ethical communication:
1. Advocates truthfulness, accuracy, honesty, and reason.
2. Accepts responsibility for short-term and long-term consequences
of communication.
3. Strives to understand and respect other communicators before
evaluating and responding to their messages.
27. Concern for ethics spreads across the objective-interpretive landscape.
28. Craig’s framework of seven traditions helps us make sense of the great
diversity in the field of communication.