PROGRAM STUDI ILMU KOMUNIKASI

FAKULTAS ILMU KOMUNIKASI

UNIVERSITAS MULTIMEDIA NUSANTARA
SEMESTER GANJIL TAHUN AKADEMIK 2023/2024

MSC 3001 – Interdisciplinary Communication Foundation

1st Meeting
FOUNDATIONS OF COMMUNICATION THEORY

 Defining Communication
 The Value of Understanding Communication Theory
 Defining Theory
 Component of theory
 Dimensions of theory
 Evaluating Communication Theory
 PERATURAN PERKULIAHAN

1. Mahasiswa yang terlambat hadir 15 menit atau lebih boleh mengikuti

perkuliahan tetapi dianggap absen (tidak hadir).
2. Ketiadaan mahasiswa di kelas karena terlambat, ke kamar kecil, dsb.
dapat berisiko ybs. tidak mengikuti kuis, pemeriksaan kehadiran, dsb.
3. Mahasiswa tidak berhak mengikuti Ujian Akhir Semester (UAS) bila
menghadiri kurang dari 11 kali perkuliahan yang diselenggarakan.
4. Mahasiswa perlu aktif agar memahami topik 2 bahasan.
5. Makalah tugas dan jawaban ujian perlu jelas dan mengikuti format yang
diminta untuk memermudah pemeriksaan oleh dosen.
6. Plagiasi dalam tugas dan ujian tidak dibenarkan. Plagiasi adalah
pernyataan dengan susunan kata2 yang merupakan salinan pernyataan
pihak lain. Plagiasi tidak harus satu kalimat penuh.
 EVALUATION

 Mid Term Test 30%

 Final Test 30%
 Assignment (Paper, presentation, quiz) 40%
 REFERENCE AND RESOURCES

 Griffin, Ledbetter, Sparks. 2019. A First Look At Communication Theory,

10th edn. McGrawHill.
 West & Turner. 2018. Introducing Communication Theory: analysis and
application, 6th edn, McGraw-Hill.
 Littlejohn, Foss, Oetzel. 2017. Theories of Human Communication, 11th
edn. Waveland.
 Rogers, E.M. 2003. Diffusion of Innovations, 5th edn. Free Press.
 DEFINING COMMUNICATION

 Defining the term communication is a necessary first task in the study of

communication theories.
 Frank Dance identified 126 definitions of communication
 Communication is defined in so many ways because it involves so many
aspects of human experience
 THE VALUE OF UNDERSTANDING
COMMUNICATION THEORY
 Understanding communication theory cultivates critical thinking skills.
 Understanding communication theory helps you to recognize the breadth
and depth of research.
 Understanding communication theory helps you to make sense of
personal life experiences.
 Communication theory fosters self-awareness.
 DEFINING THEORY

 Griffin et al. (2019) :

A set of systematic, informed hunches about the way things work.

 West & Turner (2018):

an abstract system of concepts and their relationships that help us to
understand a phenomenon.

 Littlejohn et al. (2021) :

any organized set of concepts, explanations, and principles that depicts
some aspect of human experience.
 COMPONENTS OF THE TEORY
(West & Turner, 2019)

 Concepts
Labels for the most important elements in a theory
 Nominal concept : concepts that are not directly observable
 Real concepts : concepts that are directly observable

 Relationship
The ways in which the concepts of a theory relate to one another
 Komponen/konsep utama komunikasi:

Participant 1 Penyampaian pesan

Participant 2
Penyandian (Media) Pembalik-sandian

Pesan Pesan
Gagasan Persepsi
Persepsi Penginderaan
Gagasan
Pesan Pesan
(Media)

Komunikasi:
Pertukaran gagasan untuk saling memahami
demi pencapaian tujuan bersama
Pengaruh eksternal pada nilai
(nilai = pola pembentukan gagasan)

Persepsi /
NILAI Pesan
Gagasan

nt al
Me i s ik
F

Perbedaan lingkungan perbedaan nilai

 Pengaruh internal pada nilai
(nilai = pola pembentukan gagasan)
11

Akal

Persepsi /
Nurani NILAI Pesan
Gagasan

Ego

Pesan komunikasi komunikasi seseorang berdasarkan NILAI-nya.

 DIMENSIONS OF THEORY
(Littlejohn et al., 2021)

 Philosophical Assumptions – basic beliefs that underlie the theory

 Concepts – the building blocks of the theory
 Explanations – the reason why things happen
 Principles – guidelines for action suggested by the theory

MSC 3001 – Interdisciplinary Communication Foundation - Pertemuan 1

 DIMENSIONS OF THEORIES
Philosophical Assumptions
 Epistemology is the branch of philosophy that studies knowledge or how
people know what they claim to know. The following questions are among
the most common questions of epistemological concern to communication
scholars:
• To what extent can knowledge exist before experience?
• To what extent can knowledge be certain?
• By what process does knowledge arise? (rationalism, empiricism,
constructivism)
• Is knowledge best conceived in parts or whole?
• To what extent is knowledge explicit?
 31

DIMENSI2 TEORI KOMUNIKASI

Asumsi Filosofis
Epistemologi: cabang filosofi tentang bagaimana manusia mendapat
pengetahuan. (3:16)
• Apakah pengetahuan ada sebelum pengalaman.
• Apakah kebenaran pengetahuan manusia mutlak atau relatif/berubah.
• Bagaimana proses memeroleh pengetahuan:
– Pandangan Rasionalisme
– Pandangan Empirisisme
– Pandangan Konstruktivisme
– Pandangan Konstruktivisme sosial
• Apakah pengetahuan bersifat parsial atau holistik.
• Sejauh mana pengetahuan eksplisit.
 DIMENSIONS OF THEORIES
Philosophical Assumptions
 Ontology is the branch of philosophy that deals with the nature of being.
In communication, ontology is centered on how the communicator is
conceptualized because that, in turn, determines what interactions are
possible. Four issues are important to ontology in communication:
1. To what extent do humans make real choices ?
2. Whether human behavior is best understood in terms of states or traits
3. Is human experience primarily individual or social ?
4. To what extent is communication contextual ?
 DIMENSI2 TEORI KOMUNIKASI
Asumsi Filosofis
Ontologi: cabang filosofi tentang keberadaan hal 2 yang kita ketahui. (3:17-)
• Apakah manusia membuat pilihan?
• Apakah perilaku manusia merupakan bawaan (traits) atau dipengaruhi
(states).
• Apakah pengalaman manusia bersifat perorangan atau sosial.
• Apakah komunikasi kontekstual.
 DIMENSIONS OF THEORIES
Philosophical Assumptions
 Axiology is the branch of philosophy concerned with the study of values.
In other words, what values are informing the research process, and what
are the implications of those values for the outcome of the research ? For
communication scholars, 3 issues are especially important.
1. Can theory be value free ?
2. To what extent does the process of inquiry itself affect what is
observed ?
3. Should scholarship be designed to effect change, or is its sole
purposive the generation of knowledge ?
 DIMENSI2 TEORI
Asumsi Filosofis
Aksiologi: cabang filosofi tentang nilai (values).
• Dapatkah teori bebas nilai.
• Sejauh mana pengetahuan dipengaruhi proses mendapatkannya.
• Apakah pengetahuan perlu bermanfaat.
 DIMENSIONS OF THEORIES
Concepts
 Concepts refers to the terms and definitions that structure a theory.
 Concepts indicate the essential and important components with which a
theoriest is concerned.
 The determine concepts, the communication theories observe human
interaction and then identifies and labels certain variables and pattern that
emerge.
 The resulting set of conceptual terms becomes an integral part of the
theory and is often unique to that theory.
 DIMENSI2 TEORI
Konsep2 Teori
Apa2 saja (biasanya dalam bentuk kategori2 unik) yang penting dalam suatu
teori.
Konsep2 dalam suatu teori mungkin tidak dapat diterapkan dalam teori lain.
Uraian tentang konsep2 disebut taksonomi konsep.
Teori tidak boleh berhenti pada taksonomi konsep, melainkan harus
menjelaskan bagaimana konsep2 itu saling berhubungan.
 DIMENSIONS OF THEORIES
Explanations
 At the level of explanation, the theoriest identifies regularities or patterns
to make sense of the relationship among variables.
 Explanation answers the question : Why ?
 An explanation identifies a ‘logical force’ among variables that connects
them in some way.
 DIMENSI2 TEORI
Keterangan Teori (3:19)
Menjawab pertanyaan “mengapa”.
Pola bernalar hubungan antar-konsep/variabel (sebab-akibat).
• Penjelasan kausal: satu variabel memengaruhi yang lain (fokus pada
sebab).
• Penjelasan praktis: bagaimana mengubah suatu variabel dengan
mengubah variabel lain (fokus pada akibat/hasil).
Ada perdebatan apakah teori komunikasi cukup memberikan penjelasan
kausal, atau harus memberi penjelasan praktis.
 DIMENSIONS OF THEORIES
Principles
 A principle is a precept, or guideline that enables someone to interpret and
evaluate an event and decide how to act in the situation. A principle has
three parts:
1. it identifies a situation or event
2. it includes a set of norms or values
3. it asserts a connection between a range of actions and possible
consequences.

MSC 3001 – Interdisciplinary Communication Foundation - Pertemuan 1

 EVALUATING COMMUNICATION THEORY

 Theoretical Scope
A theory’s scope is its breadth, comprehensiveness, or inclusiveness.
Theoritical scope relies on the principle of generality – the idea that a
theory’s explanation must be sufficiently general to extend beyond a
single observation
 Logical Consistency
Theories can be evaluated is whether there is logical consistency among
the various parts of the theory. Also important to consider is whether the
claims a theory makes are consistent with assumptions and with the
research methods used to test theory.

MSC 3001 – Interdisciplinary Communication Foundation - Pertemuan 1

 EVALUATING COMMUNICATION THEORY

 Heuristic Value
Will the theory generate new ideas for research and additional theory ?
Does it have heuristic value ?
Heuristic literally means serving as an aid to learning, discovering, or
problem solving.
 Parsimony
The test of parsimony involves logical simplicity or the degree to which the
explanation offered by the theory is clear and straightforward. If two
theories are equally valid, the one with the simplest logical explanation is
better.

MSC 3001 – Interdisciplinary Communication Foundation - Pertemuan 1

 EVALUATING COMMUNICATION THEORY

 Utility
Utility refers to the practical value of a theory. Is the theory useful in
providing a framework, model, or guidelines for practical application ?
Theories provide new ways of understanding that can be used to alter,
illuminate, or affect communication in some way.
 Testability
Testability is the degree to which a theory can be tested. Can it modified
and improved by research? When a theory’s concepts are too vague and
cannot be empirically observed and tested, it may be impossible to verify
or clarify through further research.

MSC 3001 – Interdisciplinary Communication Foundation - Pertemuan 1

 EVALUATING COMMUNICATION THEORY

 Test of Time
A theory that endures is one that continues to raise questions, offer
explanations, and stimulate other research.

MSC 3001 – Interdisciplinary Communication Foundation - Pertemuan 1