· Consider the pragmatic perspective. Does it make sense to think of communication as patterned interaction? How is communication like a game? How is it different from a game?
The pragmatic perspective presents the idea that conversation between two people, “consist of a system of interlocking, interdependent behaviors that become patterned over time” (Trenholm p. 32). This is an interesting thought and I can see how this would be the case in many situations, but I can also see how it could be a disastrous assumption in other situations.
In a way it makes sense to think of communication as patterned interaction; take for instance a married couple who have been together for many years and have come to know and understand how their partner communicates, the cultural background that initially shaped their partner, have a pretty good understanding of their nonverbal communication, and where they tend to deviate from their usual communication habits. This does seem like a game; know the rules, use strategy, and know and/or figure out your opponent.
However, it would be foolish to think that you could have such defined lines and rules to adhere to when communicating with another person; that you would always know the next move or that it would level out and eventually become patterned. So, on the flip side, communication is different from a game in that it is always flowing and changing and there are so many ingredients that make up individuals, which in turn affects the way they communicate and make interpretations.
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3 comments:
Hello Cherry,
I totally agree with you about how it does make sense to think of commuication as a patterned interaction, there are not defined lines where you can predict the other's person's next move.
I have been married for 4 years now. My husband and I got married pretty quickly after we met (1 year and 3 days after we met) and at first it was hard to predict how he would react to certain things and the little things that make him happy or sad. But now, 5 years after knowing him, I can usually predict how he is going to react and I don't get worked up over little things.
However, just because he reacts a certain way most of the time (like if I spend too much money on shoes every now and then and he's okay with it as long as I need them), doesn't mean that he's always going to be okay with it. The way he communicates is always going to change - it depends on the circumstances. So there are a lot of "what if's" and "it depends" involved.
I like the example you use of the married couple. After being married for many years, you begin to leave how to communicate effectively with each other. Although, sometimes the communication that you think is working might not work in the end because people change. It is so much like a game because you are never sure how it is going to end. You try your hardest each and everyday to play the game fairly however sometimes you have to give up and sometimes you even have to cheat. It is also true that there are no defined line and rules. Like I said before, sometimes you have to do whatever you can in order to win the game. This is mainly because you want to feel good about yourself and you want win. I think you did a great job in trying to understand this perspective.
I agree that communication cannot just be thought of as patterns that you can follow. You never know if the person you are talking to is going to change direction or change the pattern of the conversation. I do believe some conversation never change and sometimes you can predict the outcome. I also believe though that people are forever changing that people are individuals. This means conversations are subject to change. I agree will Molly McMuffin in that circumstances can change a conversation completely. How do you follow a pattern when the things around you, or events that are happening affect you. You conversation will obviously be affected because you will not always react to same things the same way under different circumstances.
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