7/3/2017 Human communication - Wikipedia

Human communication
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Human communication, or anthroposemiotics, is the field dedicated to understanding how humans

communicate. Human communication is grounded in cooperative and shared intentions.

Richmond and McCroskey (2009) state that "the importance of communication in human society has been
recognized for thousands of years, far longer than we can demonstrate through recorded history."[1]:223 Humans
have communication abilities that other animals do not. Being able to communicate aspects like time and place as
though they were solid objects are a few examples. It is said that humans communicate to request help, to inform
others, and to share attitudes as a way of bonding.[2]

Contents
1 Category of human communication
2 Types of human communication
3 Important figures
4 See also
5 References
6 Further reading

Category of human communication

The current study of human communication can be branched off into two major categories; rhetorical and
relational. The focus of rhetorical communication is primarily on the study of influence; the art of rhetorical
communication is based on the idea of persuasion. The relational approach examines communication from a
transnational perspective; two or more people coexist to reach an agreed upon perspective.

In its early stages, rhetoric was developed to help ordinary people prove their claims in court; this shows how
persuasion is key in this form of communication. Aristotle stated that effective rhetoric is based on argumentation.
As explained in the text, rhetoric involves a dominant party and a submissive party or a party that succumbs to that
of the most dominant party. While the rhetorical approach stems from Western societies, the relational approach
stems from Eastern societies. Eastern societies hold higher standards for cooperation, which makes sense as to why
they would sway more toward a relational approach for that matter. "Maintaining valued relationships is generally
seen as more important than exerting influence and control over others".[1]:227 "The study of human
communication today is more diversified than ever before in its history".[1]:229

Classification of human communication can be found in the workplace, especially for group work. Co-workers
need to argue with each other to gain the best solutions for their projects, while they also need to nurture their
relationship to maintain their collaboration. For example, in their group work, they may use the communication
tactic of "saving face".

Types of human communication

Human communication can be subdivided into a variety of types:

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Intrapersonal communication (communication with oneself)

Body language
Interpersonal communication (communication between multiple people)
Group dynamics (communication within groups)
Organizational communication (communication within organizations)
Cross-cultural communication (communication across cultures)

Important figures
Colin Cherry
Jacques Derrida
Wendell Johnson
Marshall McLuhan
Albert Mehrabian
Carl Rogers
Norbert Wiener

See also
Communication basic topics
General semantics
History of communication
Language
Mass communication
Mass media
Pragmatics
Semiotics

References
1. Stacks, D.; Salwen, M. (2009). An Integrated Approach to Communication Theory and Research. New York: Routledge.
2. "Origins of Human Communication" (https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/origins-human-communication). MIT Press.
Retrieved 2016-02-09.

Further reading
Richard Budd & Brent Ruben (http://www.fetchbook.info/search_Brent_D._Ruben/searchBy_Author.html),
Human Communication Handbook.
Budd & Ruben, Approaches to Human Communication.
How Human Communication Fails (http://www.cs.tut.fi/~jkorpela/wiio.html) (Tampere University of
Technology)

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Categories: Human communication

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