Communication in Public Contexts

Welcome to the Communication in Public Contexts class webpage. In this course, students will address issues concerned with communication activities that occur in or target audiences in public spaces. Such activities should be construed to include traditional means such as letters and memoes (i.e., hard copy) as well as e-communication such as email, social media, and webpages. Beyond those, this course will also address communication in advertising, which naturally includes much more than the written word.

Participants in this course should expect to address both theoretical issues that underpin such means of communication as well as examine and polish their skills in writing both traditional and electronic communication. We will also look at such themes as lexical use and tone, strategies for making requests, and conveying complaints or points of concern. Classes will include lectures, discussions, and presentations, and students are expected to actively (and proactively) participate.

On this page you'll find links to the various files we'll be using inside and outside of class. Moreover, feel free to see where the QR code leads.

Class 1 (April 14, 2015): Class introduction

Our class syllabus, either as Word document or as a pdf.

The worksheet on communication from class.

Although I can't promise to always do so in a timely manner, I will try to post class notes. Here is the first installment, which I have cleverly labeled class notes #1.

Homework:

✓Collect 12-15 email messages (in any language) from your communication with a professor, colleague, boss, or someone else in a professional or academic situation. In those messages consider the level of politeness and the vocabulary used, and be prepared to talk about your findings in class next week.

Class 2 (April 21, 2015) — Politeness in email

In today's class we will begin with a discussion of your email findings (the homework).

To more fully examine this issue of politeness, in a couple weeks I would like each of you to present one of the articles below. Specifically, I would like you to include the following:

✓provide the correct APA citation;
✓give an overview of the article (e.g., the background, the main points, the conclusion);
✓critique the article (strong points, weak points); and
✓provide your personal thoughts on the article.

As promised, here are the articles about politeness in email. The abstracts are on this page (simply mouseover to read them), and then please pick up a copy from the secret location of our class readings.

Blum-Kulka, S. (1987). Indirectness and politeness in requests: Same or different? (abstract here Abstract
The aim of this paper is to re-examine the notions of indirectness and politeness as applied to requests. It is argued that (contrary to current theories of politeness) the two notions do not represent parallel demensions; indirectness does not necessarily imply politeness. The relationship between the two was examined in a series of experiments designed to tap native speakers' perceptions of politeness and indirectness in Hebrew and English. The results indicate that the two notions are perceived as different from each other: The most indirect request strategies were not judged as the most polite. The strategies rated as the most polite, on a scale of politeness, were conventional indirect requests ('on record' indirectness); the strategies rated as the most indirect, on a scale of indirectness, were' hints used fom requests ('off record' indirectness). These results are interpreted in the framework of a suggested model for politeness. The thrust of the argument is that a certain adherence to the pragmatic clarity of the message is an essential part of politeness. Politeness is defined as the interactional balance achieved between two needs: The need for pragmatic clarity and the need to avoid coerciveness. This balance is achieved in the case of conventional indirectness, which indeed received the highest ratings for politeness. Tipping the balance in favor of either pragmatic clarity or non-coerciveness will decrease politeness; thus, direct strategies can be perceived as impolite because they indicate a lack of concern with face, and nonconventional indirect strategies (hints) can be perceived as impolite because they indicate a lack of concern for pragmatic clarity.
)

Duthler, K. W. (2006). The politeness of requests made via email and voicemail: Support for the interpersonal model. (abstract here Abstract
This study analyzes requests made via email and voicemail for properties of politeness (Brown & Levinson, 1987). Voicemail users have less control over planning, composing, editing, and executing messages, and must manage more nonverbal cues than email users. Thus, it is predicted that email will enable users to create more polite speech than voicemail. A 2 (communication medium: email or voicemail) x 2 (imposition: low or high) factorial design was implemented to test this hypothesis. One hundred fifty-one participants created request messages that were subsequently analyzed for properties of politeness. Overall, the results indicate email requests were more polite than voicemail requests. These results are consistent with the hyperpersonal model (Walther, 1996). )

Biesenbach-Lucas, S. (2007). Students writing emails to faculty: An examination of e-politeness among native and non-native speakers of English. (abstract here Abstract
This study combines interlanguage pragmatics and speech act research with computer-mediated communication and examines how native and non-native speakers of English formulate low- and high-imposition requests to faculty. While some research claims that email, due to absence of non-verbal cues, encourages informal language, other research has claimed the opposite. However, email technology also allows writers to plan and revise messages before sending them, thus affording the opportunity to edit not only for grammar and mechanics, but also for pragmatic clarity and politeness. The study examines email requests sent by native and non-native English speaking graduate students to faculty at a major American university over a period of several semesters and applies Blum-Kulka, House, and Kasperfs (1989) speech act analysis framework ? quantitatively to distinguish levels of directness, i.e. pragmatic clarity; and qualitatively to compare syntactic and lexical politeness devices, the request perspectives, and the specific linguistic request realization patterns preferred by native and non-native speakers. Results show that far more requests are realized through direct strategies as well as hints than conventionally indirect strategies typically found in comparative speech act studies. Politeness conventions in email, a text-only medium with little guidance in the academic institutional hierarchy, appear to be a work in progress, and native speakers demonstrate greater resources in creating e-polite messages to their professors than non-native speakers. A possible avenue for pedagogical intervention with regard to instruction in and acquisition of politeness routines in hierarchically upward email communication is presented. )

Bunz, U., & Campbell, S. W. (2004). Politeness accommodation in electronic mail. (abstract here Abstract
Email has become a common form of interaction between both individuals and groups in the online environment. Based on Buzzanell et al.fs (1996) research of politeness accommodation with telephone messages, this study has investigated politeness accommodation in email. Response rate was high at 81 % (n=121). Results indicated that subjects accommodated to verbal markers in the body of a message, and to greetings. Responses to those email messages that included either verbal politeness cues or structural politeness cues were significantly more polite than responses to those email messages that did not include such cues. This research provides a foundation for explaining issues of relationship forming, communication accommodation in an electronic environment, and discourse analysis in online interaction. )

Murphey, M., & Levy, M. (2006). Politeness in intercultural email communication. (abstract here Abstract
This paper presents initial results from analysis of data collected on the topic of politeness in intercultural email communication from a large cohort of Australian academic and general staff at an established metropolitan university. We were interested in the language used by these staff members while they conducted their initial email communication with their contacts overseas. The contacts overseas were, for example, fellow professional colleagues, representatives from educational institutions and foreign students. The staff members did not know personally their overseas email partners in the sense that they had not previously met face-to-face. In particular, we were interested in if and how the staff members incorporated politeness indicators in their email language and how they interpreted politeness, or lack thereof, in their incoming emails. The paper also describes and analyses the politeness strategies in intercultural emails used by a smaller cohort of Korean academics at seven universities in Korea. Results show differences in politeness, both in expectations and use, between Australian and Korean academics. )

Haugh, M. (2010). When is an email really offensive? Argumentativity and variability in evaluations of impoliteness. (abstract here Abstract
The analysis in this paper centres on an email exchange between a lecturer and a student at the University of Auckland which resulted in the dismissal of that lecturer. This dismissal gave rise to significant controversy, both off- and online, as to whether the email itself was simply "intemperate" and "angry", or more seriously "offensive" and "racist". Through a close analysis of the interpretations of the emails by the lecturer and student, as well as online evaluations made on blogs and discussion boards, it becomes apparent that the inherent discursivity of evaluations of impoliteness arises not only from different perceptions of norms, but also from the ways in which commentators position themselves vis-?-vis these evaluations. It also emerges that the relative level of discursive dispute is mediated by the technological and situational characteristics of the CMC medium in which these evaluations occurred. It is concluded that research into various forums of online interaction provides a unique window into the inherent variability and argumentativity of perceptions of offensive behaviour, as a public record of discursive disputes surrounding particular alleged violations of norms of appropriateness can be (re)scrutinized in such forums. )

Waldvogel, J. (2010). Greetings and closing in workplace email. (abstract here Abstract
his article reports on a study of the use and form of greetings and closings in the emails of two New Zealand workplaces: an educational organization and a manufacturing plant. Using discourse analytic techniques, 515 emails were analyzed and a number of differences were identified. In the educational organization, where restructuring has resulted in low staff morale and a mistrust of management, indirect and socially distant styles of communication prevailed and greetings and closings were not widely used. In the manufacturing plant, the more extensive use of greetings and closings reflected and constructed the open and positive relationships between staff and management and the direct, friendly, and familial workplace culture. The findings suggest that workplace culture is a more important factor accounting for the frequency and form of greetings and closings than are relative status, social distance, and gender. )

Bolkan, S., & Holmgren, J. L. (2012). "You are such a great teacher and I hate to bother you but ...": Instructors' perceptions of students and their use of email messages with varying politeness strategies. (abstract here Abstract
In this study we examined the impact of polite student emails on instructors' motivation to work with students and both their perceptions of students' competence and potential for success. Participants were 125 university instructors exposed to one of five hypothetical emails utilizing various politeness strategies accompanying a special request. We hypothesized that varying degrees of politeness would be associated with these outcomes by way of their influence on instructors' affect toward students. Our results suggest that the use of politeness strategies does, in fact, influence levels of affect toward students and that, when instructors have higher positive affect toward students, they are more motivated to work with students and have higher perceptions of both students' competence and potential for success in their classrooms. )

Homework:

✓Notify me of which of the articles you'd like to present and then pick up a copy of your article from our readings folder.

Here we have another exciting installment of jottings from class, the exquisitely titled class notes #2.

Class 3 (April 28, 2015) — Crafting Polite E-Mail Messages

Today's class will be devoted to writing and critiquing emails. A very helpful reference document might be this set of e-mail etiquette guidelines, courtesy of Western Michigan University.

A concommitant point to bear in mind is certain (nostly) unspoken elements of email. This list from Dave Johnson at CBS News outlines nine keys to email etiquette.

Yet again, we find our intrepid class notes #3.

Note that May 5 is a national holiday.

Class 4 (May 12, 2015) — Presentations & Handwriting

Our task today is to enjoy presentations of the various articles that you've enjoyed reading.

Time permitting, we will spend some time on that slipperiest of endeavors, by which I mean the challenge of producing legible script using one's hand (or paw). You will recall that I included a couple videos earlier, so let's return to them.

Just for your enjoyment, here are a couple YouTube clips concerning handwriting. To the left you'll find a clip dealing with '26 old characters', and to the right is one of my favorites: a clip of Luca Barcellona penning a simple yet beautiful message.

Yet another installment of my incoherent scribblings, the May 12th edition of our class notes.

Class 5 (May 19, 2015) — Cyberspace

Being surrounded by blogs of various stripes, perhaps you have wondered how this circus began? The answer is, of course, an interesting foray back just a few years to the adolescence of the Internet (or something like that). Here we find a very accessible account of the history of blogging (note the picture at the top of the page and the extremely small computer therein). The same story is here as a Word document if you would rather.

As if we need more tools for blogging (do we?), here is a recent addition to the pantheon. While preparing a speech, Evan Williams, a Twitter co-founder, had an epiphany that bothered him about the Internet: it hadn't changed the world but had instead become a convenience. Taking some of his many millions, Mr. Williams founded another platform and blogging tool called Medium for writers to author longer thoughts. As noted by the New York Times, Medium has gained a following among writers of various stripes.

What are we trying to do with Medium?
Now that sharing information is virtually effortless, how do we increase the depth of understanding, while also creating a level playing field that encourages great ideas coming from anywhere? We think that words (still) matter, so we built a better system for sharing them.

What, good people, should we make of our current cybersphere, replete as it is with social media and such things? Following, for your enjoyment and consideration, are two articles which we'll discuss in the next couple classes.

Halic, Lee, Paulus, & Spence. (2010). To blog or not to blog: Student perceptions of blog effectiveness for learning in a college-level course. (abstract here Abstract
Blogs have the potential to increase reflection, sense of community and collaboration in undergraduate classrooms. Studies of their effectiveness are still limited. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the use of blogs in a large lecture class would enhance students' perceived learning. Students in an undergraduate nutrition course were required to engage in blog conversations over the course of the semester to promote reflective learning. Sixty-seven undergraduates responded to a survey with dimensions on perceived learning and sense of community. Sense of community and computer expertise were identified as significant predictors of perceived learning, when controlled for age, gender, and previous blogging experience. While a majority of the students reported that blogging enhanced their learning and led them to think about course concepts outside the classroom, fewer perceived value in peer comments. Implications for integrating blogging into undergraduate classrooms are discussed. )

Kim, H. N. (2008). The phenomenon of blogs and theoretical model of blog use in educational contexts. (abstract here Abstract
Many educators have attempted to implement a blog in educational contexts to enhance the communication environment among students and teachers. However, it is uncertain as to why traditional computer-mediated communication (CMC) applications should be replaced with blogs. It is time to comprehensively explore the effects of educational blogs by considering the CMC tools. This paper reviews prior studies and develops a model for the use of blogs in educational contexts by taking into account socio-technical systems theory. The model contributes to interactivity, an open system, a visualization tool, and a decentralized environment of online communication circumstance. )

Class 6 (May 26, 2015)

Further discussion of social media and the cybersphere.

Brevity — a fine word, and especially so when applied to a pre-dinner speech. Seriously, every time I think about social media and the inherent brevity (140, perhaps), a certain minimalist form comes to mind. Courtesy of NPR, let us consider telling one's life story in a mere six words. Can you do that?

As you're certainly aware, many things on the Net have a limited shelflife. Think for a moment, if you would, about MySpace ... remember when it was going toe-to-toe with Facebook?

It seems that all the hullaballo about blogging might be fading some as users head to other media such as Twitter. After all, US President Obama finally joined the Twitterverse this week!

In a most timely article, here we have — if you care to be amazed for a moment — a eulogy for Twitter in The Atlantic in which Adrienne LaFrance and Robison Meyer suggest that "[t]he publishing platform that carried us into the mobile Internet age is receding." An interesting read whether or not you agree.

Class 7 (June 2, 2015)

Presentations of Halic et al. (2000) and Kim (2008).

As mentioned in class, here is the article by Helen Markus and Paula Nurius about possible selves.

Class 8 (June 9, 2015)

Here are the discussion questions from today's class — enjoy.

Class 9 (June 16, 2015) — Advertising Language

As we discussed in class today, you have a fun final project to complete by approximately the end of July.

As you'll recall from class, I mentioned an article by Oyserman, Bybee, and Terry (2006) titled "Possible selves and academic outcomes: How and when possible selves impel action." (abstract here Abstract
Puzzled by the gap between academic attainment and academic possible selves (APSs) among lowincome and minority teens, the authors hypothesized that APSs alone are not enough unless linked with plausible strategies, made to feel like "true" selves and connected with social identity. A brief intervention to link APSs with strategies, create a context in which social and personal identities felt congruent, and change the meaning associated with difficulty in pursuing APSs (n = 141 experimental, n = 123 control low-income 8th graders) increased success in moving toward APS goals: academic initiative, standardized test scores, and grades improved; and depression, absences, and in-school misbehavior declined. Effects were sustained over a 2-year follow-up and were mediated by change in possible selves. )

Class 11 (June 30, 2015) —

As requested, here are two papers from class. First is this sample paper that shows the format that I prefer. Second is that list of such formatting details as font size and spacing.

Class 12 (July 7, 2015)

As you certainly recall, last week we discussed several questions about advertising. That itself is ubiquitous, and the language therein has a profound effect on what we think and do. Below are a couple clips from a 1998 movie that took the 'reality show' concept to another level. In particular, in the second clip you can see the absurd role that advertising plays in the movie.

To the right you'll find the trailer to the 1999 movie titled "The Truman Show", which dealt with a somewhat contrived reality.

Immediately to the left is a second clip from The Truman Show. In this one we see some of the oh-so-contrived advertising in the movie.

Class 13 (July 14, 2015)

In class today we'll be looking at an article by McQuarrie and Mick titled "Figures of rhetoric in advertising language". As I mentioned in class, I'm interested in hearing how the categories outlined in Tables 1 and 2 align with the language of advertising in your respective first language.

Class 14 (July 21, 2015)

Final presentations, part 1.

Class 15 (July 28, 2015)

Final presentations, part 2.

The deadline for your course paper is July 31. Thanks, everyone.