Interpersonal Communication interweaves current research and theory with the skills needed to communicate effectively in today's complex and diverse "global village." Now in its fifth edition, this bestseller explains the principles and theoretical underpinnings of interpersonal communication while enriching students' everyday interactions with new interpersonal skills. The authors' five-point model of communication competence focuses on the keys to becoming a better communicator. Introduced in the first chapter and employed throughout the book, this useful model emphasizes how communication constructs relationships and how relationships in turn encourage or constrain communication practices. Every chapter contains fascinating applications of communication practices. Drawn from anthropology, ethnology, history, psychology, and popular culture, these applications illustrate how the information and skills needed for effective interpersonal communication can enrich students' enjoyment of most of life's activities. Interpersonal Communication, 5/e, is ideal for introductory classes on interpersonal communication. Revised and Updated for the Fifth Edition * Chapter 4, Verbal Competence, consolidates material on gender and language previously covered in separate chapters. It presents traditional findings and accompanying criticisms side-by-side in order to encourage careful interpretation and discussion. * Chapter 8, Self Competence, includes an expanded discussion and a new case study on the best way to handle coming-out disclosures-a topic that college students are encountering more and more frequently. * Chapter 11, Intimate Relationships, provides additional information on factors that lead to the break-up of personal relationships and discusses how gender roles affect relational satisfaction. It also offers a sampling of John Gottman's seminal work on relational conflict. * Chapter 12, Professional Relationships, has been revised substantially. It contains new sections on organized narratives and ritual, as well as discussions of how to manage professional relationships and set boundaries to separate home, work, and community. * Chapter 13, Cultural and Historical Influences, features a new discussion of several basic variables that define cultural difference, followed by an examination of how American cultural patterns fit those variables.

Table of Contents:
Preface; Each chapter ends with a section called "Process to Performance"-which includes Review Terms, Suggested Readings, Topics for Discussion, an Observation Guide, and Exercises; PART 1: INTRODUCTORY PERSPECTIVES; CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION: COMMUNICATION AND COMPETENCE; What Is Communication?; Definitions of Human Communication; Characteristics of Communication; BOX 1.1. BONZO GOES TO COLLEGE: ATTEMPTS TO TEACH LANGUAGE TO PRIMATES; A Model of Communicative Competence; Individual Knowledge and Communicative Competence; Social Context and Communicative Competence; BOX 1.2. INSULTING THE MEAT: AN INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION RITUAL; The Link Between Process and Performance; Skill Building: On Taking a Process Perspective; CHAPTER 2: INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION: BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS; What Is Interpersonal Communication? The Nature of Dyads; The Role of Interpersonal Communication in Relationships; What is a Relationship?; BOX 2.1. THE NEUROSCIENCE OF LOVE: WHY WE NEED RELATIONSHIPS; The Characteristics of Relationships; Relational Paths: Intimacy and Distance; Interpersonal Profiles: Private and Public Paths; Independence vs. Conformity: A Basic Interpersonal Dilemma; BOX 2.2. MIND YOUR MANNERS: SOME SOCIAL FUNCTIONS OF ETIQUETTE; Building Relationships: What Does It Take To Be Relationally Competent?; Communication Competence and Relationships; Some Characteristics of Healthy Relationships; Skill Building: A Preview; PART 2: SENDING AND RECEIVING MESSAGES; CHAPTER 3: NONVERBAL COMPETENCE; What Is Nonverbal Communication?; Spontaneous Communication; Symbolic Communication; The Power of Nonverbal Codes; The Functions of Nonverbal Codes: Three Ways to Use Them; Expressing Meaning; Modifying Verbal Messages; Regulation the Flow of Interaction; The Structure of Nonverbal Codes: Seven Channels for Message Making; Proxemics; Physical Appearance; Gaze; BOX 3.1. THE "GUARDED SELF": HOW TO AVOID BEING SEEN IN PUBLIC; Facial Expression; Kinesics; BOX 3.2. A NONLINEAR HISTORY OF HANDSHAKING; Vocalics; Tactile Communication; Balancing Nonverbal Codes: Compensating and Reciprocating; Equilibrium Theory; Compensating and Reciprocating in Everyday Life; The Interplay of Verbal and Nonverbal Communication; Skill Building: Communicating Feelings; Expressing Feelings; Reflecting Feelings; CHAPTER 4: VERBAL COMPETENCE; What Is Language?; Differences Between the Verbal and Nonverbal Codes; Characteristics of the Verbal Code; The Functions of Language; The Structure of Language: Three Levels of Meaning; Semantic Meaning: Language and the Level of the World; Syntactic Meaning: Language at the Level of Utterance; Pragmatic Meaning: Language at the Level of Speech Art; Language, Power, and Politics; Linguistic Determinism: The Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis; Language, Thought, and Action: Language and Naming; BOX 4.1. SPEAKING WITH NAMES: AN APACHE LANGUAGE RITUAL; BOX 4.2. TALKING TOUGH IN TEAMSTERVILLE: MALE ROLE ENACTMENT IN AN URBAN COMMUNITY; Group Membership and Language Use: Discourse and Identity; Skill Building: Initiating Conversation; CHAPTER 5: RELATIONAL COMPETENCE; What Are Relational Messages?; The Nature of Relational Messages; Sending Relational Messages; Relational Messages and Relational Definitions; The Content of Relational Messages; Sending Dominance Messages; Indicating Emotional Tone; Showing Similarity; Defining Episodes; Indicating Intimacy; How Relational Messages Affect Us; Confirming and Disconfirming Messages; BOX 5.1. NETIQUETTE: COMMON COURTESY ONLINE; Paradoxes and Double Binds; Pragmatic Patterns and Relational Sequences; Looking for Meaning in Patterns; Patterns vs. People: The Locus of Dyadic Communication; The Problem of Punctuation; Types of Patterns; Skill Building: Empathy and Perspective-Taking; PART 3: INTERPERSONAL PROCESSES; CHAPTER 6: INTERPRETIVE COMPETENCE: HOW WE PERCEIVE INDIVIDUALS, RELATIONSHIPS, AND SOCIAL EVENTS; Why Is Social Cognition Important in Interpersonal Communication?; Social Cognition and the Reception of Messages; Social Cognition and Action; Social Cognition and Control; Communication and Changes in Social Cognitions; The Structure of Social Cognition; How the Mind Works; Types of Cognitive Structures; The Perceptual Process: An Overview; Creating Structure, Stability, and Meaning; BOX 6.1. PERCEPTION GOES TO THE MOVIES: HOW CINEMATOGRAPHERS INFLUENCE WHAT WE SEE; Selective Exposure and Attention; Interpreting and Organizing Stimuli; Four Processes in Interpersonal Perception; Sizing Up Situations; Sizing Up People; Sizing Up Relationships; Explaining Behavior: Attribution Theories; Skill Building: Becoming a Competent Listener; BOX 6.2. INTERPRETIVE COMPETENCE: MAKING SENSE BY USING REFLECTIONS AND INTERPRETATIONS; Types of Listening; Developing Listening Skills; CHAPTER 7: ROLE COMPETENCE: ADAPTING TO SOCIAL EXPECTATIONS; Being Part of the Group: Following Social Rules; Social Control and Conformity Pressures; The Nature of Social Poles; BOX 7.1. THEY JUST LIKE TO BE NOT THE SAME AS US: PLAY PATTERNS AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF SEX ROLE IDENTITIES; Choosing Our Roles; Social Support and Role Identity; Commitment and Role Identity; Rewards and Role Identity; How Social Roles Affect Communication; Communication as Performance; BOX 7.2. WHEN A MAN IS A "REAL MAN"?; Communication and Story-Telling; Skill Building: Becoming More Mindful; Mindfulness and Open-Mindedness; Increasing Mindfulness; CHAPTER 8: SELF COMPETENCE: ESTABLISHING INDIVIDUAL IDENTITIES; The Self in History; Self-Concepts: Gaining Independence from Social Roles and Rules; What is the Self-Concept?; BOX 8.1. THE SATURATED SELF: WILL YOU STILL BE YOU TOMORROW?; Self as Negative; Self as Cognitive Schema; Self as Behavioral Indicators; Self as Relational Achievement; Self as Internal Dialogue; Individual Differences and Interpersonal Communication; BOX 8.2. ZEN AND THE ART OF SELFISHNESS: "WHAT IS YOUR ORIGINAL FACE BEFORE YOUR MOTHER AND FATHER WERE BORN?"; Communicator Style; Rhetorical Sensitivity; Communication Apprehension; Attachment Styles; Intimacy Motivation; Skill Building: Improving Competence Through Self-Disclosure; What is Self-Disclosure?; General Rules for Revealing the Self; A Case Study in Disclosure: The Coming Out Process; CHAPTER 9: GOAL COMPETENCE: INTERPERSONAL INFLUENCE; BOX 9.1. MOON FOR THE MISBEGOTTEN: METHODS OF CULT CONVERSION; Communication and Strategic Interaction; Instrumental, Rational, and Identity Issues; Symbolic Role-Taking and Social Sensitivity; Understanding Others' Needs; The Need for Rewards; The Need for Stability and Consistency; The Need for Self-Respect; Summary: Choice and Motivation; Identity and Influence: Source Characteristics; Power and Interpersonal Influence; Self-Presentation Strategies; Influence as Self-Persuasion; BOX 9.2. CAVEAT EMPTOR: TECHNIQUES OF CONFIDENCE TRICKSTERS; Planning Persuasive Messages: Compliance-Gaining Strategies; Kinds of Message Strategies; The Structure of Requests; Interpersonal Influence and Goal Competence; Skill Building: Becoming More Assertive; PART 4: RELATIONAL CONTEXTS; CHAPTER 10: FAMILY INTERACTION PATTERNS; Maintaining Family Ties; The Family as a System: Structure and Function; Family Structures; The Functions of the Family; The Evolving Family: Calibrating Change; BOX 10.1. A BETTER PLACE TO LIVE: HOW THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT SHAPES FAMILY AND COMMUNITY LIFE; The Dynamics of Change in the Family; Strategies of Coping with Change; Families in History; BOX 10.2. CHILDHOOD IN THE 18TH CENTURY: WHAT SHAPES THE FAMILY THAT SHAPES US?; Family Communication Patterns; Interaction Patterns in the Family as a Whole; Interaction Patterns in Family Subsystems; Communicative Competence and the Family; Family and Interpretive Competence; Family and Role Competence; Family and Goal Competence; Family and Self Competence; Family and Message Competence; Skill Building: Communicating to Comfort; CHAPTER 11: INTIMATE RELATIONSHIPS: CREATING DYADIC IDENTITIES; Have People Always Had Intimate Relationships?; How are Intimate Relationships Formed Today?; Defining Private Bonds; BOX 11.1 CUPID'S SHUTTLECOCK: INDIVIDUALISM AND ROMANTIC LOVE IN 19TH CENTURY AMERICA; Friendship and Romantic Relationships; Influences in Defining Intimacy; The Creation of Intimate Relationships; Interpersonal Attraction: Opening the Door; Duck's Filtering Theory of Attraction; Interpersonal Magnets: Factors That Pull Us Together and Push Us Apart; The Closer the Better: Revealing Self to Other; Stages of Development in Friendship; Stages of Development in Romantic Coupling; BOX 11.2. PLAYING THE DATING GAME: A SOCIAL HISTORY OF COURTSHIP; Two Close for Comfort: Maintaining Identity in Intimate Relationships; Balancing Self-Identity and Relational Identity; Stages of Relational Dissolution; Warning Signs: Gottman's "Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse"; Communicative Competence and Intimate Relationships; Intimacy and Interpretive Competence; Intimacy and Role Competence; Intimacy and Self Competence; Intimacy and Goal Competence; Intimacy and Message Competence; Skill Building: Managing Interpersonal Conflict and Stress; Positive Aspects of Interpersonal Conflict; Mismanaged Conflict; Effective Feedback During Conflict; Conflict Containment; CHAPTER 12: PROFESSIONAL RELATIONSHIPS: COMMUNICATING WITH COLLEAGUES AND OTHER STRANGERS; Interpersonal Communication in Public Situations; Public Realms in History; Interacting in the Public Realm Today; Communication in our Communities; Space and Place: Community Design and Communication; Third Places: Connecting with your Community; Interpersonal Communication in the Workplace; BOX 12.1. THE CONVERSATIONAL ORGANIZATION; Sizing Up Organizational Cultures; Making the Team; Serving the Customer; Drawing the Line on Relationships; BOX 12.2. "SORRY I'M NOT APOLOGIZING": CONVERSATIONAL RITUALS BETWEEN WOMEN AND MEN AT WORK; Communicative Competence and Professional Relationships; Professional Relationships and Interpretive Competence; Professional Relationships and Role Competence; Professional Relationships and Self Competence; Professional Relationships and Goal Competence; Professional Relationships and Message Competence; Skill Building: Creative Conflict Management and Negotiation; Choosing Your Conflict Style; Taking a Problem-Solving Approach to Negotiation; Rules for Cooperative Problem Solving; CHAPTER 13: CULTURAL AND HISTORICAL INFLUENCES: COMMUNICATION COMPETENCE IN CONTEXT; Cultural Influences; How Cultures Differ; BOX 13.1. WHEN EAST MEETS WEST: HIDDEN DIFFERENCES IN CORPORATE COMMUNICATION STYLES; American Cultural Patterns; Ethnic, Regional, and Class Differences; BOX 13.2. IF YOU CAN'T STAND THE SHAME: DON'T PLAY THE GAME: PLAYING THE DOZENS AS A CONFLICT RITUAL; Communicating Across Cultures; Barriers to Intercultural Understanding; Communicative Competence and Culture; Culture and Interpretive Competence; Culture and Role Competence; Culture and Goal Competence; Culture and Self Competence; Culture and Message Competence; Historical Influences; The Colonial Period (1600-1780); The Early Industrial Period (1830-1880); The Modern Period (1900-1960); Communicative Competence and Historical Change; History and Interpretive Competence; History and Role Competence; History and Goal Competence; History and Self Competence; History and Message Competence; Skill Building: Increasing Sensitivity to Context; Adapting to International Differences; Increasing Subcultural Understanding; References; Indexes; Illustration Credits