Understanding Human Communication

UNDERSTANDING HUMAN COMMUNICATION IS UNDERSTANDING CHANGE.

For over three decades, this has been the best-selling text for the introduction to human communication course.Understanding Human Communication is written with one goal in mind: to provide students with the insights and skills to succeed in our changing world. Ronald B. Adler, George Rodman, and new author Carrie Cropley Hutchinson place communication theory within the context of everyday skills and draw from the latest media, culture, and scholarship, creating a distinctive pedagogy that gives students the tools they need to master--and enjoy--this intriguing and relevant subject.

NEW TO THE ELEVENTH EDITION

* New part-opening "Case Studies" present real-life communication challenges on the job, in school, and in personal relationships.
* A brand-new chapter, "The Changing World of Communication," considers demographic and cultural influences and the ways in which technologies have created both new opportunities and challenges in our modern world.
* This edition presents current research on many new topics including how we perceive strangers differently in mediated and face-to-face communication, how linguistic labels reflect cultural identity, the differences between conflicts online and in person, and the ways in which gender influences styles of conflict.
* New "@ Work" boxes demonstrate how key concepts presented in the book can be applied in the workplace.
* Part V: Public Communication has been streamlined and reorganized to give students a more efficient introduction to public speaking. Synthesizing material from previous editions, the new Chapter 11, "Preliminary Considerations," discusses choosing and developing a topic as well as managing communication apprehension.
* A new Appendix, "Communicating for Career Success," provides students with practical information on interviewing and networking.

DISTINCTIVE FEATURES

* Understanding Diversity sidebars address subjects such as managing identity during the process of "coming out," the potential for misunderstandings during translation, and how lessons from other cultures can enhance listening skills.
* Understanding Communication Technology boxes focus on topics related to mediated communication, including how social media can meet a variety of communication needs, the etiquette of revealing what one has learned about others online, the dangers of being overly connected via the internet, and the ethical principles for using and acknowledging information gleaned from the web.
* Invitation to Insight sidebars offer readings that show how the elements of communication operate in contemporary society, including the risks of broadcasting personal information via "sexting," social standards for using profanity, and the limitations of free speech when civil listening is absent.
* Critical Thinking probes encourage students to consider their own actions in light of concepts covered in the text.
* Ethical Challenges invite students to ponder contemporary ethical issues in communication, such as whether honesty is always the best policy, the acceptability of presenting multiple identities, the tension between allowing free speech and the acceptability of hateful language, and the challenge of dealing politely but effectively with obnoxious group members.
* Cultural Idioms appear in the margins of each chapter, helping non-native English speakers understand American colloquialisms while also showing more proficient speakers how supposedly everyday speech can be misunderstood by listeners