A. The Linear (Action) Model  - archery metaphor  [ Lasswell's Who says What in what Channel to Whom with what Effect] model, Woods 17.

1. An active sender / passive receiver - one-way flow

2. Message/meaning is fixed

3. Sender and receiver are unchanged by the communication event

4. Fault for problems is said to lie with the sender

B.  The Interaction Model - ping-pong metaphor  (see Woods, 18.)

1. An active sender THEN an active receiver (feedback) - two-way flow, sequentially

2. The fixed message/meaning can be "misunderstood" by the receiver

3. Sender and receiver are unchanged by the communication event

4. Fault for problems is said to lie (usually) with the receiver

C.  The Transaction Model - multi-player video game metaphor   (see Woods, 19.)

1. Simultaneously, active participants (sender-receivers)

2. The fixed message/meaning can be "misunderstood" by either party

3. Sender and receiver are unchanged by the communication event

4. Fault for problems is said to lie with either participant

D.  The Constructivist Model  (not in Woods text)

1. Simultaneously active participants (sender-receivers)

2. Message/meaning is jointly created by both participants.  Meaning "belongs" to no one.

3. Both participants are changed by the communication process

4. Assigning blame for communication problems is largely irrelevant

The Social Dialectic

• Groups/organizations are the product of communication constructions of individuals; yet
• Individuals only become who they are as a result of the social environment (groups) they are a part of.

Thus individuals both simultaneously create and are created by our social groups.

• Take this Quiz (click the link) before coming to class Mon. 9/3 and come prepared to support your answers.