CHAPTER REVIEW

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CHAPTER9 REVIEW

Chapter Recap

CHAPTER RECAP

  • Interpersonal communication is dyadic and is your primary tool for building, maintaining, and ending relationships.

  • The four defining characteristics of interpersonal communication are that it is transactional, dynamic, relational, and impactful.

  • Scholars suggest that five factors influence how people form interpersonal relationships: proximity, resources, similarity, reciprocal liking, and physical attractiveness.

  • Though each type is unique, people build and maintain their relationships—romantic, family, friends, and workplace—through interpersonal communication.

  • Many relationships progress through certain stages, marked by differences in communication and intimacy. These turning points can be positive—initiating, experimenting, intensifying, integrating, and bonding—or negative—differentiating, circumscribing, stagnating, avoiding, and terminating.

image LaunchPad for Choices & Connections offers unique video scenarios and encourages self-assessment through adaptive quizzing.

image LearningCurve adaptive quizzes

image How to Communicate video scenarios

image Video clips that illustrate key concepts

KEY TERMS

Interpersonal communication, p. 216

Dyadic, p. 216

I-Thou, p. 218

I-It, p. 218

Impersonal communication, p. 219

Interpersonal relationships, p. 220

Mere exposure effect, p. 220

Resources, p. 220

Social exchange theory, p. 220

Birds-of-a-feather effect, p. 221

Reciprocal liking, p. 222

Beautiful-is-good effect, p. 222

Romantic relationships, p. 223

Liking, p. 224

Loving, p. 224

Passionate love, p. 225

Companionate love, p. 225

Family, p. 226

Friendships, p. 227

Workplace relationships, p. 229

Initiating, p. 231

Experimenting, p. 232

Intensifying, p. 232

image Integrating, p. 232

image Bonding, p. 233

image Differentiating, p. 233

Circumscribing, p. 236

image Stagnating, p. 236

Avoiding, p. 237

Terminating, p. 237

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ACTIVITIES

For more activities, visit LaunchPad for Choices & Connections at macmillanhighered.com/choicesconnections2e.

  1. Interpersonal vs. Impersonal

    Question

    Working with a partner, come up with your own definition of interpersonal communication based on how you use it daily. Include what distinguishes it from impersonal communication. Then, discuss how mediated forms of communication, such as Twitter, e-mails, and texts, can be interpersonal and how they can be impersonal. What makes the difference? Does the number of people impact whether an encounter is interpersonal? How? Come up with examples for each, and discuss how the technology can influence whether the communication is interpersonal or impersonal.

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    1. Working with a partner, come up with your own definition of interpersonal communication based on how you use it daily. Include what distinguishes it from impersonal communication. Then, discuss how mediated forms of communication, such as Twitter, e-mails, and texts, can be interpersonal and how they can be impersonal. What makes the difference? Does the number of people impact whether an encounter is interpersonal? How? Come up with examples for each, and discuss how the technology can influence whether the communication is interpersonal or impersonal.
  2. Love, Hollywood Style

    Question

    Identify three of the most romantic movies you’ve seen (The Notebook, The Fault in Our Stars, Love Actually, Brokeback Mountain). For each, assess how passionate love and companionate love are depicted. Is passionate love depicted as superior to companionate love? How do the movies deal with love over time? How do these depictions contrast with your own views of passionate and companionate love? What factors of loving and liking are shown, and which are ignored? What effect does this have on the portrayal of “real” romantic relationships in the movies?

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    2. Identify three of the most romantic movies you’ve seen (The Notebook, The Fault in Our Stars, Love Actually, Brokeback Mountain). For each, assess how passionate love and companionate love are depicted. Is passionate love depicted as superior to companionate love? How do the movies deal with love over time? How do these depictions contrast with your own views of passionate and companionate love? What factors of loving and liking are shown, and which are ignored? What effect does this have on the portrayal of “real” romantic relationships in the movies?