Download Verbal Communication as an agreed- upon and rule

Verbal Communication as an agreedupon and rule-governed system of
symbols used to share meaning.
• Symbols are arbitrary representations of thoughts, ideas,
emotions, objects, or actions used to encode and decode meaning
• Symbols have 3 distinct qualities:
o Arbitrary- no direct relationship to the idea or object they
represent
o Ambiguous- several possible meanings
o Abstract- words are not physical or material.
• Rule-Governed: We all follow an agreed upon set of rules to make
sense of the symbols we use.
• Phonology: study of speech sounds. It has the rules that tell us
what letters sound like and how they are pronounced
• Semantic Rules: focuses on the meaning of words based on rules
we accept
• Denotative meaning: the standard definition of the word.
What you see in the dictionary
• Connotative meaning: based on the meaning according to your
personal experience and belief.
• Syntactics: study of language structure and symbolic
arrangement
• Pragmatics: studies how people use verbal language and
communication
Spoken versus Written Communication
Spoken
Informal
synchronous
not recorded
Written
Formal
asynchronous
archived
• Synchronous: takes place in real time
• Asynchronous: not immediate, occurs over time
Functions of Verbal Communication
• Verbal communication helps us define reality
• Verbal communication helps us organize complex ideas and
experiences into meaningful categories.
• Verbal communication helps us think.
• Verbal communication helps us shape our attitudes about our
world.
Key Terms
• abstract
• ambiguous
• arbitrary
• archived
• asynchronous
• connotative meaning
• context
• denotative meaning
• formal
• informal
• phonology
• pragmatics
• reclaim
• rule-governed
• semantics
• symbols
• synchronous
• syntactics
• verbal communication