50118 Public Communication Processes

Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences: Public Communication
Credit points: 6 cp
Result Type: Grade, no marks

Handbook description

This subject introduces students to key communication processes which underpin and inform professional communication practice. Students develop their understanding of how personal, social and cultural constructs and images are formed. Students examine the roles of perception and attitude formation, for example, in influencing meaning making for individual readers/viewers of the texts, events and strategies they develop in their professional practice. Students analyse communication dilemmas and learn presentation skills essential to effective communication in a professional setting. Students assess group processes relevant to their work with internal and external publics.

Subject objectives/outcomes

At the completion of this subject, students are expected to be able to:

demonstrate understanding of communication processes necessary to professional communicators who advise others about communication and implement creative campaigns;
demonstrate an understanding of those factors and dimensions of meaning which affect audience opinions, attitudes, images and behaviours;
demonstrate developing communication expertise in interaction management and written, oral and audiovisual presentations;
understand how personal, social and cultural images and constructs are formed;
critically examine the role of public communication in its broad social, cultural and historical contexts, with particular emphasis on public relations and advertising.

Contribution to graduate profile

Gain an interdisciplinary and coherent knowledge of public communication to inform ethical, creative and socially responsible practice.
Demonstrate ability in critical analysis, multiple perspective-taking and strategic and creative problem solving to achieve a thorough and critical understanding of public communication processes and their social, economic and political contexts.
Be able to engage productively with new challenges.
Gain by class work and group work the specific skills associated with successful professional work in public communication including research and writing skills necessary for professional practice.
Have demonstrated capabilities in interpersonal and organisational communication processes.
Be competent in researching, diagnosing and addressing communication problems and possess highly developed oral and written communication skills and the capacity to engage in lifelong learning.
Be able to facilitate and provide professional advice on effective interaction with colleagues, clients and the public as public communication professionals, recognising the needs of all salient publics and working to establish genuine consultation and dialogue.

Teaching and learning strategies

Understanding public communication processes can be achieved by learning through experience and reflection upon experience. This subject will employ a variety of learning experiences in lectures and seminars focusing on specific topics and will address a wide range of practical issues in workshops. Students will use case studies to uncover practice and will apply their developing expertise to real world examples and problems.

Content

Processes in communication: Communication processes and factors which underpin interactions between people, texts and readers, and producers and consumers: for example, perception, attitude formation, values, image creation, attribution, culture, construct systems.
Communication contexts: Social, cultural and historical forces affecting the professional and industry practices of public communication. Contextual influences on communication at the levels of individuals, groups, organisations and society. Decision making and roles in groups. The role of the public communication professional as communication adviser.
Media for communicating: Cultural and personal constructs. Language, nonverbal communication and audio and visual texts/images. Oral presentations.
Understanding meaning making in groups: Sharing ways of understanding the world

Assessment

Assessment item 1: Literature review

Objectives	a, e
Value	20%
Due	Week 5
Task	For this assignment students will select two (three for 8cp) journal articles related to one of the following topics: meaning in communication; perceptual processes; aspects of attribution; stereotyping in communication; attitude formation, beliefs and values; gendered communication; language and communication; subcultures and communication.
Assessment criteria	Selection of appropriate, useful articles from reputable academic journals; Succinct and useful summaries of each article; Critical and integrated review of the articles in the context of wider reading of literature on the topic; Use of informal report format with clear and grammatical written expression, free from typographical, spelling and punctuation errors; Accurate use of Harvard referencing of source material and adherence to specified length.

Assessment item 2: Background analysis and briefing report

Objectives	a, b, c, d
Value	40%
Due	Week 10
Task	For this assignment students will adopt the role of communication adviser. Their task is to advise their lecturer (in the guise of a senior manager in their workplace) on the appropriate approaches and actions in three client situations. These clients have sought the advice of their senior manager. Their report will analyse the situations for their manager, with reference to communication theory and research, and provide a briefing which gives recommendations for approaches or actions in the scenarios described by the three clients.
Assessment criteria	Evidence of reflection on the scenarios presented and the possible consequences of alternative approaches/actions; Appropriate language and style for the role of a professional communication adviser; Presentation of a sound analysis and well-reasoned explanation of your choice of advice with reference to appropriate literature and concepts; Demonstrated understanding of the relationship between theory and practice in professional communication; Full, useful and timely participation in the group task; Professional presentation in report format with clear and grammatical written expression, free from typographical, spelling and punctuation errors. Accurate use of Harvard referencing of source material (do not use footnotes) and adherence to specified length.

Assessment item 3: Presentation and portfolio of related written material

Objectives	a, b, c
Value	35%
Due	Presentations as scheduled in Week 13 and 14 Portfolio in workshop in final week's workshop Week 14 Brief report component Week 14
Task	For this assignment students will adopt the role of communication consultant to a client organisation. Their task is to prepare and present a persuasive case to the board members of this organisation on the uses and importance of an aspect of communication training for their staff. The topics from which they can choose are listed in the Structure section below. To accompany this presentation they will also present a portfolio of written material plus a critique of their own performance (8cp includes extra item: feature article).
Assessment criteria	Use of language and nonverbal communication in their presentation appropriate for this client and this aspect of communication. Demonstrated ability to produce an interesting, engaging and appropriate presentation. Well-supported argument for their client's participation in the training program they propose. Well-written speech with appropriate structure, language, etc. to achieve a persuasive argument. Appropriate and useful speech cards or notes. Evidence of appropriate research in the production of an accurate and useful Backgrounder. Persuasive and well-written profile. Demonstrated ability to produce and use appropriate visual aids for their topic and to generate interest in the program they propose. Insightful analysis of your own performance and products in a brief report. Professional presentation of written documents with clear and grammatical expression, free from typographical, spelling and punctuation errors. Complete and accurate referencing.

Assessment item 4: Editing Group participation

Objectives	c
Value	5%
Due	Throughout the semester
Task	Throughout the semester students will be expected to take part in Editing Groups. These groups are made up of four students whose task is to edit the work of group members. Each group member will rotate roles for particular editing tasks: punctuation, spelling, grammar and style. Evidence of participation will be marked-up copies of student papers as well as group member affirmation. Further details will be provided in Week 2 of semester. A Book of Readings has been prepared to help students fulfil their editing roles.
Assessment criteria	Peer assessment of: Participation in the editing process Timely submission of edited material Cooperative approach to group task

Minimum requirements

Students are expected to read the subject outline to ensure they are familiar with the subject requirements. Since class discussion and participation in activities form an integral part of this subject, you are expected to attend, arrive punctually and actively participate in classes. If you experience difficulties meeting this requirement, please contact your lecturer. Students who have a reason for extended absence (e.g., illness) may be required to complete additional work to ensure they achieve the subject objectives.

Attendance is particularly important in this subject because it is based on a collaborative approach which involves essential workshopping and interchange of ideas. Students who attend fewer than ten classes are advised that their final work will not be assessed and that they are likely to fail the subject.

Recommended text(s)

Tyler, S., Kossen, C. & Ryan, C. 2005, Communication: A Foundation Course 2nd edn, Pearson Prentice Hall, Sydney.

Indicative references

This is not an extensive list. Many other texts in the library will be useful for this subject and journals are recommended as a resource for more recent research. Please note that the Lewis and Slade (2000) text may be particularly helpful for this course.

Adler, R.B., Rosenfeld, L.B. & Proctor II, R.F. 2003, Interplay: The process of interpersonal communication, 9th edn, Oxford University Press, New York.

Banks, S.P. 2000, Multicultural public relations: A social-interpretive approach, 2nd edn, Iowa State University Press, Ames.

Barker, L.L., Wahlers, K.J. & Watson, K.W. 2001, Groups in process: An introduction to small group communication, 6th edn, Allyn and Bacon, Boston.

Barry, A.M. 1997, Visual intelligence: Perception, image and manipulation in visual communication, State University of New York Press, Albany, NY.

Canary, D.J. & Dainton, M. (ed.) 2002, Maintaining relationships through communication: Relational, contextual, and cultural variations, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Mahwah, N.J.

Conville, R.L. & Rogers, L.E. (eds.) 1998, The meaning of 'relationship' in interpersonal communication, Praeger, Westport, Conn.

DeVito, J. 2001, The interpersonal communication book, 9th edn, Longman, NY.

Dingena, M. 1994, The creation of meaning in advertising: interaction of figurative advertising & individual differences in processing styles, Thesis publishers, Amsterdam.

Dozier, D. with Grunig, J. & Grunig, L. 1995, Manager's guide to excellence in public relations and communication management, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Hillsdale, NJ.

Hirokawa, R.Y. & Poole, M.S. (eds.) 1996, Communication and group decision making, 2nd edn, SAGE Publications, Thousand Oaks, Calif.

Frey, L.R. & Barge, J.K. (eds.) 1997, Managing group life: Communicating in decision-making groups, Houghton Mifflin, Boston.

Griffin, E. 2003, A First Look at Communication Theory, 5th edn, McGraw-Hill, New York.

Kaye, E. 2002, Maximize your presentation skills: How to speak, look, and act on your way to the top, Prima, Roseville, Calif.

Kaye, M. 1994, Communication management, Prentice-Hall, Sydney.

Kim, M-S 2002, Non-western perspectives on human communication: Implications for theory and practice, Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks, Calif.

Knapp, M.L. & Daly, J.A. (eds.) 2003, Handbook of interpersonal communication, 3rd edn, Sage Publications,Thousand Oaks, CA.

Knapp, Mark L. 2001, Nonverbal communication in human interaction, 5th edn, Harcourt Brace, Fort Worth, Texas.
Lewis, G. & Slade, C. 2000, Critical communication,2nd edn, Pearson Education Australia, Frenchs Forest.

Littlejohn, S.W. 2002, Theories of human communication, 7th edn, Wadsworth Publishing Company, Belmont, CA.

Littlejohn, S.W. & Domenici, K. 2001, Engaging communication in conflict: Systemic practice, Sage, Thousand Oaks, London.

Martinko, M.J. (ed.) 1995, Attribution theory: An organizational perspective, St. Lucie Press, Delray Beach, FL.

Messaris, P. 1997, Visual persuasion: The role of images in advertising, Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks, Calif.

Mohan, T., McGregor, H. & Strano, Z. 1997, Communicating! Theory and practice, 4th edn, Harcourt Brace, Sydney.

Mortensen, C.D. 1997, Miscommunication, Sage, London.

Rajecki, D.W. 1990, Attitudes, 2nd edn, Sinauer Associates, Inc. Publishers, Sunderland, Mass.

Samovar, LA. & Porter, R.E. 2001, Communication between cultures, 4th edn, Wadsworth/Thomson Learning, Belmont, CA.

Singer, M.R. 1998, Perception & identity in intercultural communication, Intercultural Press, Yarmouth, ME.

Stewart, J. (ed.) 2002, Bridges not walls: A book about interpersonal communication, 8th edn, McGraw-Hill, Boston.

Tyson, T. 1998, Working with groups, 2nd edn, Macmillan Education Australia, South Yarra, Vic.

Wilcox, D.L. 2001, Public relations writing and media techniques, 4th edn, Longman, New York.

Wilson, G.L. 2001, Groups in context: Leadership and participation in small groups, 6th edn, McGraw-Hill, Burr Ridge, Ill.

Wolvin, A. & Coakley, C.G. 1996, Listening, 5th edn, Brown & Benchmark Publishers, Dubuque, IA.

Wood, J.T. 2002, Interpersonal communication: Everyday encounter, 3rd edn, Wadsworth/Thomson Learning Belmont, CA.