Convergence

Communication is the collaborative process of using messages to create and participate in social reality.

Face-to-face; mediated

Interpersonal communication is with or between partners who approach one another as unique individuals in an interaction. Small group communication is communication among a small group of people working toward a common goal or purpose. Public communication is when a person delivers a message to an audience unified by some common interest. Mass communication is directed toward a large, distant, and undifferentiated audience. Masspersonal communication refers to situations in which (a) a mass communication medium is used for interpersonal purposes, or (b) an interpersonal medium is used for mass communication purposes.

In the transmission metaphor of communication, a source sends a message through a medium or channel to a receiver in an atmosphere of noise. The metaphor is useful for understanding a person relays information through a channel and demonstrating how noise interferes with effective transmission. However, this metaphor portrays communication as linear and one-way, which can be misleading.

In the interaction metaphor of communication, partners engage in a two-way process of reciprocal message exchange. Senders and receivers adapt to one another through feedback and are influenced by their unique fields of experience. In the transaction metaphor of communication, partners are seen as simultaneous senders/receivers linked by their relationship to one another. The transaction metaphor differs from the interaction metaphor by recognizing that messages not only carry information and coordinate activity, but also change people and relationships.

Social construction

Effectiveness and appropriateness

Ethics is a code of right conduct based on respect for self, others, and surroundings.

True