Week 12- Question 3

Pick one other concept in the book that you feel needs further discussion?

The concept I feel that needs further discussion is the concept of culture being a dynamic. Cultures are consistently changing therefore people have to learn new behaviors and cultural norms change as well. Intercultural contact is not bout memorizing the do’s and don’ts on how to act. For just as soon as you’ve learned a rule about how to communicate with the “natives” of a culture, you’ll probably find that the rule is obsolete (Trenholm, 347). Being prepared for intercultural contact is to be open and sensitive to all kinds of differences that occur between cultures and developing the ability to learn by observing.

Week 12- Question 1

(Regarding Chapter 13) Which of the research methods listed in Table 13.3 seem the most interesting? Assume you want to study some aspect of deception. Frame a research question. Which method would you choose to answer the question. Why

The most interesting research method that I found was Ethnography. This research method is really interesting to me because you can go undercover. As a researcher you can be in the same environment and draw conclusions first hand. This method reminds me of the movie Never Been Kissed. She had to go to her old high school and act as a student and find a story worth writing about. I would love to go into an environment and observe and be able to draw my own conclusions from them.

With regards to doing a study in a aspect of deception, I would use Performance research to code they’re responses. In deception I would be interested in affairs. Specifically, focusing on the husband and mistress relationship. I would become a mistress and play that role to come up with my conclusions. My research question would be; How do mistresses believe that they will eventually become the wives of their lovers
when the husband hasn’t filed for divorce? I feel like if I observe and listen to people that are in situations like this we would all know why people in affairs do what they do.

Week 12- Question 2

What concept/s in this class have you found most interesting? What was it about that concept/s that you found interesting?

The concept I thought that was really interesting was The Kinesic Code II: Facial Expression and Eye Behavior. Facial displays and eye behavior are such big factors in non-verbal communication. According to Trenholm, it states that each culture, certain expressions, are encouraged and reinforced, where as others are discouraged. We learn to neutralize and mask our emotions without facial displays and can intensify or deintensify certain emotions. I found it interesting when I see this in everyday life that it can make or break my day. In nonverbal communication all you can do is assume what the person is feeling from their actions. We can misinterpret and get the wrong idea from when they happen.

Week 11- Question 2

Do you agree with Marshall McLuhan that the medium is the message, i.e. that the format or logic of a medium is as important as its content and, in fact, determines what content will be broadcast through that channel? Evaluate his idea that television is a cool medium.

Living in a technology driven world television is one of the most accessible and is favorable strategically. Households these days have two to 3 television sets and on all day whether people are watching intently or not. I do agree that he medium is important as the content trying to be sent out. This is usually what companies, organizations and the average Joe uses in their everyday lives so it would only be smart to use television, radio, internet etc. to distribute information. Television has come to focusing on reality shows, gossip and soap opera type of shows so everyone is tuning in on the tube.

Week 11- Question 1

Have you made friendships that exist exclusively in cyberspace? If so, how are they different from f2f relationships? If you have not formed cyber relationships, why not?

I have a lot of cyberspace friends and some of them need to stay that way. Cyberspace friends for me are usually are friends that you make because of MySpace and Facebook. The connection of mutual friends gives people the opportunity to meet more people. They are different because you don’t see them and I feel like if they get in contact with you they actually care don’t from a distant way. Sometimes people like cyberspace relationships because you don’t have to see them yet be able to get close to them through words. Some of the people I have met through cyberspace have come really close to me.

Week 11- Question 3

Pick one concept from the assigned reading, that we have not already discussed, that you found useful or interesting and discuss it.

The concept that I thought was really interesting this week was the inverted pyramid. Iam a PR major and I took a journalism class and I learned how to write in this way. It is a special format journalists write stories with. It gives the most important information of the news story in the first few paragraphs. This lets the editor possibly cut the story from the end but still have the reader get the most important parts if they potentially stop reading mid way through. This is the format where the climax is in the beginning of the story instead of at the end like a novel.

Week 10- Question 3

Pick one concept from the assigned reading (not already discussed for this week) that you found useful or interesting and discuss it.

A concept that I really thought was interesting this chapter was the promotion of professionalism in workplace relationships, mainly in Romance in the workplace. According to surveys it is seem that coworkers are of with workplace romances and think that it doesn’t affect performance. A lot of people find their significant others in the work place because you are in constant contact physically or verbally, you carry meaningful conversations, and engage playful banter. I personally don’t think you should mix “business with pleasure.” It clouds the mind and blurs the lines of boundaries. For me I would like to work without knowing that my significant other is in the cubical right next to me. But we had a fight the night before about the toilet seat being up and now we aren’t talking making the projects we are on together, breaks, and lunches uncomfortable. I would like to worry more about proposals, meetings, and business lunches. I think it just disrupts everything.

Week 10- Question 1

How are organizations tied to the environment? What is the relationship between the school you attend and the city or town in which it is situated? What, if any, ethical obligations do an organization like a college or universities have to the local community?

There are many organizations like educational institutions should be taking the initiative to take care of their environment that the institution is on and motivate their students to care about it too. They can fundraise and hold special days to devote it to the environment. Yet, I feel like the city and San Jose State are not connected. The only thing that we have in common is the library but even that is separated out by floors. The students mostly stay on the sixth floor or higher, while the community is on the lower floors. That is not much of a connection in my eyes.

Our obligations should be to the city and the city to us. As a college of San Jose, we should want to improve the relationship that we have with the community because we live here and learn here. The community in return should want its graduates to be well education so that they can keep their community growing and involving. It would be a win-win situation if both make an effort to change the way we are today.

Week 10- Question 2

Review the etiquette rules suggested in the text. Respond to each one. Have you ever been bothered by cell phone, answering machines, or beepers? What do you feel about call waiting? Is it rude to put people on hold to take another call?

I must say there have been numerous times that I have been bothered by call cell phone, answering machines, and beepers. There were instances when I was younger, my mom being a nurse, carried around a pager.

When I would be at my piano or dance recitals I would hear her pager go off during my performances. I would know that it was her pager because it had the jingle bells tune whenever the hospital would page her. So whenever I hear jingle bells I know I would be going home with my aunt that night.

I hate my house answering machine. Its sOoooo loud that I would be asleep and depending whether I came home late after a night of partying, came home late after work, or just sleeping in general, that thing would go off and I would be awake shortly there after. I have literally gone downstairs and pulled the line out off the wall because it would be some annoying telemarketer asking if we were interested in something they were selling.

Cell phones have gotten me in trouble so many times during class when they would go off. I also think that cell phones a somewhat ruining everyone that goes to school because I know when I write papers I get marked down for word that are abbreviated. For example, I see would be IC, or the word some is sum.

I think call waiting is great invention because you know when there are incoming calls and you can catch important phone calls. I guess it could be rude if you just cut someone off to catch the other call. But these days its normal to tell someone to hold for another call.

Week 9- Question 2

Think about the filters you use to eliminate people from consideration as potential romantic partners. What characteristics or behaviours lead you to judge others as unattractive? Does Duck's theory make sense to you? Have you ever eliminated someone by using a sociological or pre-interaction cue only to reconsider them based on interaction and cognitive cues?

The interaction cue is the factor that would make me either like the person and consider them as a potential romantic partner because this determines whether we have things in common through having conversations to see if it’s rewarding to both sides. This is the part where I see if the potential can keep up with either playful banter or serious and intellectual conversation.

Duck’s theory does make sense to me because I have been in a long distance relationship myself and physical proximity is a big factor in why my relationship didn’t work. Being away for long periods of time without seeing your partner can take a toll on you mentally, physically, and emotionally. Sociological and incidental cues are major factors in which a long distance relationship can either work or crash and burn. Long distance relationships need a certain type of strength and a certain type of mentality from the people involved.

Week 9- Question 1

Which pattern (rigid complementarity, competitive symmetry, or submissive symmetry) do you think would be the most difficult to change? Why? Which would be the most damaging to a relationship? Which would be the most potentially damaging to the self-esteem of the individuals involved?


The pattern that would be the most difficult to change to me would be submissive symmetry and competitive symmetry. But i would moreover choose submissive symmetry because it’s very hard to become decisive over night. I’m very laid back and I know sometimes I can be really submissive and just go with what other people want to do pertaining to going out or extra circular activities. Whenever you ask a submissive person what they want or want to do they are thinking about other factors like; what the other person wants to do, if they would approve or if the other person has a better idea.

A pattern that could be the most damaging to a relationship would be competitive symmetry because having to strong headed people in one relationship will have a lot of conflict pertaining to any situation. The conflict would arise because in perspective there are two opinions trying to be victorious. Both fighting for the one-up position can help encourage but ultimately there will be stress and "loser," and that causes unhappiness on one partner.

Rigid complementarity would be the most damaging to self-esteem of individuals involved because one person making all the decisions and taking control of everything can make people angry and upset. Tempers are more likely to arise and if it hasn't already then there could be pent up animosity between partners. In the end all that animosity could be the reason of depression or be the breaking point of a relationship. This could make the one-down partner role feel worthless or make them question their self-worth.

Week 9- Question 3:

Pick one concept from the assigned reading, that we have no already discussed, that you found useful or interesting, and discuss it.

An interesting concept I really enjoyed this week was the concept of balancing the interpersonal tensions. They are called Dialectics, the tension between them, the pull in relational tension, change is the norm and relationships are always doing this. The three are called expressive-protective, autonomy-togetherness, and novelty-predictability dialectic.

Expressive-protective dialectic is finding a balance between the need to share personal information and the need to maintain privacy.

Autonomy-togetherness dialectic is finding a balance between spending more time together and the pull from wanting more privacy, being to themselves.

Novelty-predictability dialectic is the tension between becoming too boring with the same behaviors pattern and too much novelty makes one feel uncertain about outcomes of certain situations

Week 8- Question 2

Do you believe in the rationality, perfectibility, and mutability premises? What social institutions and practices are based on these beliefs?

I think that the rationality, perfectibility, and mutability premises are true. I’m the type of person to always see the good in any situation because situations can always be worse than it is. Since these premises are for the progression of human kind then I think that it is true. Not everyone is the same and there are a select few that contradict these premises but they’re problems might have other factors that keep them from making these premises true i.e. psychological problems and different types of cultural upbringing and religion. Some institutions and practices (rationality) are universities, schools, and the judicial system, political system, child/parent influence to an extreme extent because the child trusts the parents unconditionally to make sound decisions for them, (perfectibility) religion, (mutability) peer relationships, classism, social structure, elementary middle high schools.

Week 8- Question 3

Pick one concept from the assigned reading, that has not already been discussed during this discussion week, that you found useful or interesting, and discuss it.

A really interesting concept about this chapter was Ethnocentrism. I think that it is good to be proud to be who you are and where you are from. But this is the belief that one owns culture is superior to all others and the tendency to judge all cultures by one’s own culture (Trenholm, p.359). I agree that this concept is irrational and hinders people from thinking with an open mind and growing positively as people. Hitler and the country of Argentina are known for this and are known for his ethnocentric nature and they’re ethnocentric nationalism. We all have to be able to accept differences and not classify them as negatives. If we as cultures cannot believe and practice this we will never establish respect and trust with each other.

Week 8- Question 1

Do you agree with anthropologist Ruth Benedict that we are "creatures of our culture" and that our habits, beliefs, and impossibilities are shaped by our culture? If so, how can we break through the limits of our cultures?

I do believe that we are all “creatures of the culture” we are raised into. The cultures that we are brought into are the ways of past generations and customs they have built for many years. The environment, religions, and political influences I’m sure have largely to do with what has been passed down from generation to generation. As a child we have no real control of choosing, or knowing whether our habits, beliefs, and impossibilities are shaped by our culture.

It is our parent’s jobs to teach us what they have learned and all we can do is live and respect what you were taught and how you were raised yet be open minded to other cultures. As you grow older you change and so does the culture. It all depends on the person. Some people are biracial and are raised in a mixed culture. I can only imagine the hardships and happiness that comes from having to be raised into both parent’s beliefs and life styles.

I think that it is awesome to be raised in a specific culture because that is what makes us all different. This keeps other people from other cultures curious and wanting to learn new things. And that is how we break through the limits of our culture, by living side-by-side with different kinds of people. By making friends with other people from other cultures, having interracial relationships, and engaging in open-minded conversations and activities.

Week 7- Question 2

Although nonverbal messages are more universal than verbal messages, nonverbals do not always carry the same meanings in other cultures. Can you give examples of some of the nonverbal displays that take on different meanings in other countries? If you have moved around within this country, have you ever encountered regional differences in nonverbal meaning?

At my community college I remember watching a movie about non-verbal messages. It showed all kinds of non-verbal messages from all over the world in different cultures. For, example, the thumbs up in America means good job or “ok,” but in Iranian culture it is an obscene gesture meaning screw you. Next, another gesture that is used to describe a bunny to make babies laugh is when people take both their index fingers and placing them on the side of their head; in Japanese culture this means that they are angry with you. So there are a lot of similar gestures in the world but can mean anything depending on the culture.

Week 7- Question 3

Pick one concept from the assigned reading, that has not already been discussed this week that you found useful or interesting and discuss it.

The concept I thought that was really interesting was The Kinesic Code II: Facial Expression and Eye Behavior. Facial displays and eye behavior are such big factors in non-verbal communication. According to Trenholm, it states that each culture, certain expressions, are encouraged and reinforced, where as others are discouraged. We learn to neutralize and mask our emotions without facial displays and can intensify or deintensify certain emotions. I think that’s why my boyfriend always says I can tell how your feeling by just looking at your face. Eye behavior serves to maintain social positions and are good indicators of both positive and negative emotions. Also the eyes signal our willingness to relate to one another (Trenholm p.120).

Week 7- Question 1

Because nonverbal messages can be ambiguous, they are open to misinterpretation. Have you ever been wrong about the meaning of someone’s nonverbal message? Describe what happened. How can people increase the accuracy with which they interpret nonverbal message?

Yes, I have been wrong to a lot of peoples meaning of someone’s nonverbal messages. When I was in they eighth grade we had a graduation pool party and I was with all my friends having a good time. But my friend told me to jump off the high diving board. So I did it and when I got out of the pool I didn’t realize that my top had gone up a little while I was coming out of the pool. I didn’t know and my other friend from the other side of the pool starts waving at me and moving her hands to pull my suit up and I thought she said to come her way. So I walked the whole way of the pool with my breast somewhat exposed. I was mortified! But I really played it off well by jumping into the pool and when I came out I made it to the other side without coming up for air. Loll. People need to pay more attention to others and really read their signals before making any next moves. Also, paying attention to your environment, how others are acting, and how the situation is playing out to interpret these messages.

Week 6- Question 3

Pick one concept from the assigned readings, other than what has already been discussed this week, that you found useful or interesting and discuss it.

The concept I chose is Improving Language Choices. According to Trenholm, We should always remember that talking about something doesn’t necessarily mean it’s real and that meanings are in people, not in words. I have had a lot of experiences where what I have said had been misconstrued and misunderstood plenty of times. Meanings are no means objective and we should all be careful to take context into account both when interpreting others messages and when creating ones own. Although there is no single right way to use language we have to make choices. Choices are based on purposes, audience, and conventions of the discourse we all use.

Week 6- Question 2

Do you agree that men and women use language differently? In what areas?

I do think men and women use language differently. They use different language styles in romantic relationships, parenting styles, and other relationships in general like friends and family.

In most romantic relationships women tend to be more caring, and sharing style when they speak. Women are more willing to be open and voice their feelings to their partner. Men tend to be more the opposite and into showing their emotion through actions. Also, they seem to simplify things opposed to women giving more detailed and more reasons when they talk about things.

Parenting styles are very different in my household growing up. I had a strict dad and my mother is really soft spoken and maternal of course. My dad would talk to us in a firm and demanding way even if he wasn’t necessarily feeling that way. My mother is nice and warm when she talks to us and makes us feel comfortable to talk to her.

Depending on how good of friends you are, men and women tend to speak differently to their closest and not so close friends. From personal experiences, I can adapt really well to people and personalities and figuring out whether how “manly” or “girly” I have to be. Loll. For example, I was with a classmate of mine and his friend; we were talking about sports and some other stories. I tended to use a lot of bad words but still said “awww…” or gasped with an “Oh my goodness” in disgust. On the other hand, with my gal pals, I find myself using “feeling” words and expressing and expanding more on what I would talk about. (there would be a bad word here in there. loll)

Week 6- Question 1

Is it possible to perceive others without, in some way, judging or categorizing them? If so, how? If not, how can we make the judgments we do make, more fair?

I don’t think it’s possible to perceive others without in some way judging or categorizing them. It’s not a bad thing to have initial assumptions and judgments towards people because we use this as a defense mechanism at times. For example, as an extreme, you wouldn’t approach a man in a van trying to bribe you with candy to get in with him.

Having those initial feelings towards someone is natural, but what we do with them after the meeting is a critical part in making them “more fair.” To make them “more fair,” we have them then leave them “at the door” and give the person the benefit of the doubt. We shouldn’t keep the judgments and hold it against the person before they’ve even had time open up to you and show they’re true personality.

I feel that people these days are so judgmental that they lose out on really different, nice, genuine people. Life is too short to not go out in the world and grow with people different than you and get exposed to new things.

Week 5- Question 1

The speaker that is most memorable to me is this guy named Alex. He is one of the most eloquent, charismatic and uses humor to get our attention. Although humor is always said to not be used in a speech, he is very carefully yet natural. He was talking about something for my communications class and the topic was so boring, but he made it really exciting. He used great gestures and had great tone. He kept everyone on their toes  because we did not know what he was going to say.

The worst speaker I ever heard was our past president. I just feel like he was reading what was written for him. He tried to be funny but fails miserably and often messes up his jokes. Also, i feel that he just relied on his writers to make his speech. 

Week 5- Question 2

Consider a well-known speaker, for example, the current President of the United States. What is the speaker's strongest characteristics as a speaker? Is it credibility, attractiveness, power or all three? In what ways could the speaker build ethos in these areas?

President Barak Obama is one of the best speakers I have ever heard. I believe he speaks about the topics and issues really care about. You can tell when he speaks that he cares about the people and has done his homework on all the issues he is fighting for. His strongest characteristic as a speaker is his confidence and knowledge about his topic.

Obama is the type of speaker that has all three (credibility, attractiveness, power). He has the support of the people, the desire to get our nation back to work and back on its feet, and he is using all of his resources to get that in motion. Not a lot of people are blessed to take on such big responsibility and still have the charisma and confidence to get their dreams for a whole nation to come true. Having all three is a power package to have in as a speaker and as a person.

I think that what he is doing is fine and is informing us all about his plans. He is giving us hope. I know there is always room for improvement, but I’m really confident in his ethos in all three.

Week 5- Question 3

Pick one concept from the assigned reading that you found useful or interesting and discuss it. (Choose a topic that has not already been covered in this weeks discussion).

For the first few weeks of school our discussions mostly focuses on how we can communicate through models, some basics on becoming a good public speaker and what kind of speaker we are according to the Greeks etc. This week I thought the concept of being a good listener was really interesting and that being a listener and part of the audience, we have our own responsibilities. I learned that we cannot blame all unethical speakers for our own conclusions and choices. It is our responsibility to get the right information, pay attention to both sides of an argument, and carefully evaluate and breakdown evidence and proposals of either side. In doing this we will wont “passively accept whatever we hear,” (Trenholm, 273).

Week 4-Question 2

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 patterned interaction makes a lot of sense because relationships can be looked at in a different light. In relationships you have no choice but to interact and sometimes that can take a toll on people. If you look at it through the Pragmatic Perspective there would be less fights or bad feeling towards each other like the example in the book about the couple. Also, this perspective can work depending on the situation and people involved. I feel the Pragmatic Perspective can be better practiced within a company or a small group of people.

Communication in a pragmatic perspective is much like a game because people have an innate sense to try and have and make the best for themselves. For example, dating is such a big arena for communication like a game. Daters are trying to figure out what the other person is going to do in order to make the next move and get to the next level. In contrast, this perspective doesn’t look at the desires and needs of the person and that is important factors in how people are retaining information and signals.

Week 4- Question 1

Consider the social constructionist perspective. How do we “build worlds” through communication? Think of some ideas we talk about in our culture that may not exist in other cultures. How do these concepts contribute to our happiness or success (of the lack of these) in our culture?

Considering the Social Constructionist Model, we as people use what we have learned and use what is in our environment to build our worlds. We learn, get accustomed to worlds that were already there and take oral traditions from our family and culture.

Apart from being brought up in the American culture I follow and practice a lot of the Filipino culture through out my everyday life. For example, when I see a grandma or grandpa or anyone in my family that is older than me, I would bless them. Blessing them would be me taking their hand and putting it against my head. It is a sign of respect and salutation in the Filipino culture. Some people would think that the gesture is weird and wouldn’t understand the reasons for me doing it. In America people would just say hi or hello and hug. We hug too but “blessing” before hugging and saying hello is the best and the most respectful thing you can do to an elder. Different cultures build different world’s thorough communication.

These things that I have learned through the two very different cultures I live in have really helped me in many different ways. I have learned to assimilate to both the American and Filipino culture when it comes to being courteous to others.

Week 4- Question 3

"Pick one concept from the assigned reading that you found useful or interesting and discuss it."

The Pragmatic Perspective according to the book is a system of interlocking, and interdependent “moves” which become patterned over time. This is seen as a game in communication and I thought it was really interesting that in the viewpoint of pragmatists in the Pragmatic Perspective, personality and culture are irrelevant. They don’t ask why people act the way they do and don’t hold into consideration the desires, intentions, and needs. The only things they are interested in are the patterns of interactions. They use the systems approach and that looks at the interdependent patterns of behavior and focus more at the structure, function, and evolution of communication.

Week 2- Question 3

The concept I chose from chapter one is the Five Caons Of Rhetoric. These are the basics of Communication and a great way of getting your feelings and belifes in a really effective way. The five stages are inventoin, style, arrangement, memory and delivery. The invetion step is to find your information and choosing a good subject that has a soution or conclusiton. Style is the way you talk about your subject matter. Arrangement is tha organization of ypour ideas in logical order. Memory is the skill of having all the previous steps seen all together in your speech or argument. Finally, delivery is your voice projection, and gestures. Having all of these canons will help you to be more thorough, have you speech or argument projected and understood better. 

Week 2- Question 1

“Think of a speaker you admire. Does his or her power to persuade come from ethos, pathos, or logos? Think about your own ability to persuade others. What personal qualities do you have that make you persuasive? Does Aristotle's classification scheme work for them, or do they fit into another category?”


The speaker that I really admire is President Barack Obama. He has such a way with words and evokes emotion in the message he sends. He is a great persuasive speaker because he uses logic. But he is also an ethos type of speaker as well because his personality and emotion come out of his speeches. He has so much charisma and confidence when speaking its undeniable that he is one of the best communicators of our time. But I really cannot place him any one specific category because he is a chameleon and can adapt to any group of people. He uses Pathos, Ethos, and Logos styles, and that’s what makes him a great speaker because he can put all the elements together and give powerful speeches.


When I speak I tend to persuade more in an emotional approach. I feel like the people I’m talking to can identify with me more. But of course still using logic and concrete facts to best explain what ever I’m talking about. Aristotle's classification theme does work for my approach and President Barack Obama’s.

Week 2- Question 2

"The Greeks believed that to be an orator, an individual had to be morally good. Comment on whether you agree or disagree. What, if any, is the connection between goodness, truth, and public communication?"

I disagree and agree with what the Greeks believed in because the person being morally good has nothing to do with the art of public speaking. Just because you have the ability to deliver a good speech and impact the people you are addressing it doesn't mean you live your life morally good and believe and practice good morals. I agree too because being a good person is a benefit to getting people to trust you and your beliefs. People can identify with you more.

We live in different times and the Greeks probably practiced that as a precautionary measure to get people to believe what the orator is preaching. In this day and age you never really know if a person is morally good or bad through their speeches and what not. I think if you have a way with words, know your topic, and can adapt to your audience then you are good at what you do

The connection between goodness, truth, and public communication is that if a person has a good reputation and is knowledgeable in the matters they are talking about then most likely people will trust them and want to listen to what they have to say. A person’s track record with communicating within their publics, their actions outside of public speaking, and the passion and delivery of a person are big factors in public communication.

A little bit abOut me

Hi everyone!

I'm a graduating senior and I'ma Public Relations major and minoring in Communication Studies.