Table of Contents

Introduction: Meta-Theory and Theory in Interpersonal Communication Research - Dawn O. Braithwaite, Paul Schrodt, and Kristen Carr
PART I: Individually Centered Theories of Interpersonal Communication
Action Assembly Theory: Forces of Creation - John O. Greene
Attribution Theory: Finding Good Cause in the Search for Theory - Brian H. Spitzberg and Valerie Manusov
Evolutionary Theories: Explaining the Links Between Biology and Interpersonal Communication - Tamara Afifi, Shardé Davis, and Amanda Denes
Goals-Plans-Action Theory of Message Production: Making Influence Messages - James Price Dillard
Imagined Interaction Theory: Mental Representations of Interpersonal Communication - James M. Honeycutt
Planning Theory of Communication: Goal Attainment Through Communicative Action - Charles R. Berger
Problematic Integration Theory and Uncertainty Management Theory: Learning to Hear and Speak to Different Forms of Uncertainty - Austin S. Babrow and Katie M. Striley
Relational Framing Theory: Drawing Inferences About Relationships From Interpersonal Interactions - Rachel M. McLaren and Denise Haunani Solomon
Supportive Communication Theories: Dual-Process Theory of Supportive Message Outcomes and Advice Response Theory - Graham D. Bodie and Erina L. MacGeorge
Theory of Motivated Information Management: Struggles With Uncertainty and Its Outcomes - Walid A. Afifi and Stephanie Robbins
PART II: Discourse/Interaction-Centered Theories of Interpersonal Communication
Communication Accommodation Theory: A Situated Framework for Relational, Family, and Intergroup Dynamics - Howard Giles and Jordan Soliz
Communication Theory of Identity: Multilayered Understandings of Performed Identities - Michael L. Hecht
Critical Approaches to Interpersonal Communication: Charting a Future - Leslie A. Baxter and Bryan Asbury
Critical Feminist Theories: Giving Voice and Visibility to Women’s Experiences in Interpersonal Relations - Julia T. Wood
Expectancy Violations Theory and Interaction Adaptation Theory: From Expectations to Adaptation - Cindy H. White
Face Theory: Goffman’s Dramatistic Approach to Interpersonal Interaction - Sandra Metts and William R. Cupach
Grounded Practical Theory: Theorizing Communicative Practices - Karen Tracy
Narrative Theories: Making Sense of Interpersonal Communication - Jody Koenig Kellas
Politeness Theory: How We Use Language to Save Face - Daena J. Goldsmith and Emily Lamb Normand
Relational Dialectics Theory: Navigating Meaning From Competing Discourses - Leslie A. Baxter and Kristen M. Norwood
Speech Codes Theory: Traces of Culture in Interpersonal Communication - Gerry Philipsen
PART III: Relationship-Centered Theories of Interpersonal Communication
Affection Exchange Theory: A Bio-Evolutionary Look at Affectionate Communication - Kory Floyd, Colin Hesse, and Mark Alan Generous
Attachment Theory: A Communication Perspective - Laura K. Guerrero
Communication Privacy Management Theory: Significance for Interpersonal Communication - Sandra Petronio and Wesley T. Durham
Interpersonal Deception Theory: Purposive and Interdependent Behavior During Deceptive Interpersonal Interactions - Judee K. Burgoon and David B. Buller
Media Multiplexity Theory: Technology Use and Interpersonal Tie Strength - Andrew M. Ledbetter
The Relational Turbulence Model: Communicating During Times of Transition - Leanne K. Knobloch
Stage Theories of Relationship Development: Charting the Course of Interpersonal Communication - Paul A. Mongeau and Mary Lynn Miller Henningsen
Social Exchange Theories: Calculating the Rewards and Costs of Personal Relationships - Laura Stafford
Social Information Processing Theory: Impressions and Relationship Development Online - Joseph B. Walther

About the Author

Dawn O. Braithwaite (Ph.D. University of Minnesota) is a Willa Cather Professor of Communication, University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She studies discourse dependent families, dialectics of relating, and communication rituals in step- and voluntary families. She has published six authored and co-edited books, including Engaging Theories in Interpersonal Communication (2nd ed.), Family Communication: Cohesion and Change (10th ed.) and over 125 articles and chapters.

 

Dr. Braithwaite was named a Distinguished Scholar of the National Communication Association and the Western States Communication Association. She received NCA’s Brommel Award for Family Communication, and the Samuel Becker Distinguished Service Award, She received the Distinguised Service award for WSCA and is a Past President. Dr. Braithwaite is a Past President of the National Communication Association.

Paul Schrodt (Ph.D., University of Nebraska – Lincoln; M.A., University of North Texas; B.A., University of Texas at Arlington) is the Philip J. & Cheryl C. Burguières Professor and Graduate Director in the Department of Communication Studies at Texas Christian University. He is nationally recognized as one of the leading scholars in interpersonal and family communication. He is currently a member of the Publications Board of the National Communication Association (NCA), as well as a past chair of the Family Communication Division of NCA. He is the recipient of numerous research and teaching awards, including the 2012 NCA Brommel Award for Family Communication, the 2011 Early Career Award from NCA’s Interpersonal Communication Division, the 2006 Outstanding New Teacher Award from the Central States Communication Association, the 2005 Sandra Petronio Dissertation Excellence Award, and more than 35 Top Paper Awards from national and regional associations. He has published more than 80 journal articles and book chapters, and he currently sits on the editorial journal boards for Communication Monographs, Communication Education, and the Journal of Family Communication.

Reviews

"A highly beneficial contribution to the field with chapters that are clear and concise and illuminate the interesting and important aspects of interpersonal communication. With each chapter students are informed about the components of the theory and are also provided with examples that they can relate to, which really brings these theories to life."
*Rene Dailey*

"love this book for its insight, organization, and inclusiveness. I like that the authors use specific examples and then apply their theory to the examples for illustration-this is how students begin to learn how to use and understand theories. What an accessible, thorough, and user-friendly book."
*Maureen P. Keeley*

"This book is clearly needed as our discipline is advancing almost exponentially in the area of theory and theory development. For so long we have relied, in whole or part, on the theories of other disciplines and consequently fragmented "readings." For students, this book provides an interpersonal link to what we′ve borrowed in the past and presents future implications of how we might take the current theoretical developments and use them to further test the respective theories or to guide subsequent research."
*Clark D. Olson*

"Useful, thorough examination of interpersonal theories that will help my students apply theory competently to their own experience."
*Leanne Pupchek*

"This book had an excellent review of the relevant theories in Interpersonal Communication. The text was perfect for an advanced undergraduate course."
*Nancy Tobler*