Dustin Buller-September Blog Post-Social Reality Construction

Dustin Buller

27 September, 2016

COMM 160

Professor Ivey

Social Reality Construction

The textbook for this communication course, Communication: A Critical/Cultural Introduction, has provide many insights about how individuals perceive and experience their communication experience. There is a few concepts and quotes that have stood out, which are very influential to the act of communication and its effects on individuals. These focus points are primarily about the additional variables that are present in communication, which could often be overlooked by those who are evaluating an experience. These variables seem to control or alter individuals’ ability to actually understand another person, and recognition of them inside the communication process is essential for a holistic evaluation of the communication process or experience.

While reading the Identity and Perception chapter, the impact of someone’s world views being constructed by repeated communication patterns was presented. This encompasses a wide range of communication. An example of this would be the repeated performance of gender mannerisms that are present and reinforced in society. In addition, this concept is not always evident because of the inability for individuals to perceive their own culture. This is primarily due because an individual’s culture is a constant, so there is nothing to compare or contrast it with. This influence, which is often perceived as natural, is usually an unnoticed persuasive entity, and it highly effects an individual’s decisions. The authors of the textbook was able to elegantly phrase this idea in a clear manner. John T. Warren and Deanna L. Fassett wrote, “In this way, context-the social worlds we create and make sense of through communication-is everything. Like Harper’s identity, our identities are formed in contexts-contexts that are, as we argue here, produced though communication” (p.65). The ripple effect of this concept applied to individuals could arguably be the very essence of who individuals are, and perhaps it is a foreshadowing of what people might become.

The concept of an individual’s history or personal story having a massive impact on the world they perceive was also presented, and a tactic to approach this communication variable. This idea seems self-evident, but the depth of its actual effect is massive. The attitudes, values, morals, and theologies that individuals carry around are not only constructed by the communication that they encounter, but how they perceive it. This is one step beyond repeated communication patterns that are present in society; the manner that individuals internalize the messages from their experiences adds an additional variable to the communication they receive. The textbook gives an example of how to navigate through this communication barrier. John T. Warren and Deanna L. Fassett wrote, “Consider how Valerie tells her story; how she aims the story in meaningful ways; how she does not tell all of the history of the field but only those parts that might provide enough of a foundation for the field while keeping the response focused on the questions Gabriella asks” (p.33). A large portion of this is the intersectionality of the multiple identities that individuals hold, and one natural way for individuals communicate effectively past this limitation or phenomena is to construct answers for the receiver of the communication.