Communication Principles and Practices

Communication Principles is designed to summarize the foundations of communication that can be put into practice immediately both in the classroom and in "real life." In fact, most people in the business world acknowledge the value of communication, regardless of career path or profession. As Artificial Intelligence appears to be eliminating jobs, many experts continue to acknowledge that human skills, such as those promoted in a basic communication course, are irreplaceable. 

This book provides an overarching approach to communication that includes some theory behind the skills, so that the why (theory) continues to drive the what (skills) in a cohesive manner. The order of this textbook is unique in that it addresses public presentations in the first half, so that students can begin presenting early in a semester. The second half of the book addresses other communication contexts, beginning with the intrapersonal context and the intercultural context. The interpersonal context is layered onto the intrapersonal and intercultural backgrounds, followed by the small group context, where intrapersonal, interpersonal, and intercultural contexts intersect with greater complexity because of the number of people in groups. And finally we address conflict and reparation, which can happen in any context. Mediated communication is addressed specifically in the intrapersonal chapter, while also appearing where appropriate in the other contexts.