Communication - Experimental Psychology Course - PDF

Communication Experimental Psychology Course Prof. Federica Biassoni A.Y. 2024/2025 Communication is more than language Language is more than verbal language Communication: A definition A process by which information is exchanged between individuals through a common system of sym...

Communication Experimental Psychology Course Prof. Federica Biassoni A.Y. 2024/2025 Communication is more than language Language is more than verbal language Communication: A definition A process by which information is exchanged between individuals through a common system of symbols, signs, or behavior. Personal rapport. From the Latin verb "communicare", which means "to share" or "to make common”. The “Mathematic Model” (Shannon & Weaver, 1949) The “Mathematic Model” (Shannon & Weaver, 1949) Communication is a linear and one-way process that involves six elements: a source, a transmitter, a channel, a receiver, a destination, and noise. 1. The source is the person or entity that has a message to communicate and uses a coding system to express the message. 2. The transmitter is the device or medium that encodes the message into a signal that can travel through the channel. 3. The channel is the path or medium that carries the signal from the transmitter to the receiver. 4. The receiver is the device or medium that decodes the signal back into a message that can be understood by the destination. 5. The destination is the person or entity that receives and interprets the message. 6. Noise is any interference or distortion that affects the quality or clarity of the signal or message. We can include physical, semantic, psychological, or cultural noise. The “Mathematic Model” (Shannon & Weaver, 1949) feedback What about feedback?  The “Mathematic Model” (Shannon & Weaver, 1949) It provides a simple and clear way to identify and analyze the key components and factors of any communication process. BUT… By assuming that communication is a linear and one-way process, it does not account for the dynamic and complex nature of communication, where meanings are co-constructed and negotiated through dialogue and feedback loops. It also does not consider the emotional, social, or ethical aspects of communication, such as trust, rapport, empathy, or persuasion. Second, it assumes that the sender and the receiver have the same understanding and interpretation of the message, and that there are no differences or barriers in terms of language, culture, values, or beliefs. It does not acknowledge the diversity and multiplicity of meanings and perspectives that can exist in communication, and the potential for misunderstanding, confusion, or conflict.  Speech Acts Theory (Austin, 1962 & Searle, 1969) Speech Acts Theory is a subfield of pragmatics, that studies how words are used not only to present information but also to carry out actions. A speech act is something expressed by an individual that not only presents information but performs an action as well. Speech Acts Theory (Austin, 1962 & Searle, 1969) A speech act is something expressed by an individual that not only presents information but performs an action as well. «Is there any water?» «I would like some water. Could you pass it to me, please?»  Speech Acts Theory (Austin, 1962 & Searle, 1969) Almost any speech act is actually the performance of several acts at once: locutionary act à the act of saying something; the performance of an utterance: the actual utterance and its apparent meaning, comprising any and all of its verbal, social, and rhetorical meanings, all of which correspond to the verbal, syntactic and semantic aspects of any meaningful utterance illocutionary act à what one does in saying it, such as requesting; the active result of the meaning presented by the locutionary act (requesting, apologizing, promising, ordering, answering, complaining, warning, inviting, refusing, congratulating…) [see also: communicative intention] perlocutionary act à how one is trying to affect one's audience; the actual effect of the locutionary and illocutionary acts, such as persuading, convincing, scaring, enlightening, inspiring, or otherwise getting someone to do or realize something, whether intended or not. Activity «I pronunce you husband and wife.» Ø Locutionary act: Ø Illuctionary act: Ø Perlocutionary act: Activity «Will I have to come again?» Ø Locutionary act: Ø Illuctionary act: Ø Perlocutionary act:  The Speaker’s meaning (Grice, 1989) Implicature à the speaker uttering a particular word or phrase, implies more than its conventional meaning. It is important to understand the context, circumstances and suggested inferences of a word or phrase in order to create true understanding and meaning à central role of the intention the speaker is pursuing. Distinction between the literal meaning of linguistic utterances and their communicative meaning (i.e. what is meant, the implicature) — which can diverge.  On the metro… «Are you getting off at the next stop?» Activity https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2f2Kqt_KcE The Cooperative Principle (Grice, 1975, 1989) «Make your conversational contribution such as required, at the stage at which it occurs, by the accepted purpose or direction of the talk exchange in which you are engaged.» People are expected to communicate cooperatively and in a helpful way, so as to avoid mistakes or misunderstandings. The basic idea of Grice’s cooperative principle is to view communication as cooperative action. The sender of a message must convey the message to the other person in such a way that the other person can understand the message and understand its meaning. Only then is it possible to achieve the communication goal, which thereby creates understanding and meaning. Grice believes that communication cannot take place if the participants don’t have a common interest à we-intention (Searle, 1990). Grice’s cooperative principle encompasses “Four Conversational Maxims”. Maxim of QUANTITY Maxim of QUALITY Give enough information but Bet truthful and base your not too much contribution on evidence Maxim of RELEVANCE Maxim of MANNER Make your contribution Be brief, clear and relevant to the topic perspicuous. Avoid ambiguity and obscurity  Communication at a glance From communication as a linear and one-way process aimed to transmit information to Communication as a process rooted in intention decoding and meaning reconstruction through inference. Different Languages Communication process encompasses more languages than the verbal one. Which other languages do you know? Non- Verbal verbal Different Languages (Codes) Facial expressions Haptics (touch) Gestures NON VERBAL COMMUNICATION Proxemic Posture and (personal space) body movement Vocal non verbal Eye gazing (paralinguistics) Different Languages «You look amazing today!» The Global Act Theory (Anolli & Ciceri, 1990) Within each communicative act a local level (a single sign) and global level (the set of signs) can be distinguished. Meaning stems from the «game» within and between codes, from the integrated action of signs belonging to different codes (“syncoding”),. Vocal non verbal behavior Voice is a sound wave. It is described by different acoustic parameters. The three main featuring parameters are: rythm frequency Intensity. In addition, other acoustic elements convey meaning (think of vocalizations like sighs, sobs, uh…).  Vocal non verbal behavior: emotion expression Banse, R., & Scherer, K. R. (1996). Acoustic profiles in vocal emotion expression. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 70(3), 614–636. Functions of vocal non verbal behavior in communication