A speaker-oriented multidimensional approach to risks and causes of miscommunication
Arto Mustajoki | University of Helsinki, Finland
Combining ideas from different research directions and fields, the paper presents a multidimensional model of communication which enables to explain the risks of communication more comprehensively than before. The process of producing and interpreting speech is described through a message transfer circle. The model also includes the mental worlds of the speaker and the recipient, which substantially influence interaction. In addition, special attention is paid to recipient design, which plays a crucial role in interaction. One may even argue that such frequently mentioned factors as misreference or ambiguity are not causes of miscommunication but only risks for it; the real cause of miscommunication is incomplete recipient design. The common denominator is the egocentrism of the speaker: avoidance of cognitive effort, common ground fallacy, emotional overdrive, obstacles caused by physiological state or physical defects, and attaching greater importance to other things at the expense of recipient design.
Keywords: miscommunication, human interaction, mental world, common ground fallacy, communication failure, risk of communication, functional approach, recipient design, egocentrism, speaker orientation
Published online: 13 August 2012
https://doi.org/10.1075/ld.2.2.03mus
https://doi.org/10.1075/ld.2.2.03mus
Cited by
Cited by 31 other publications
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