McCroskey and the Types of Communication

What is Communication?

Like many other animals, humans are social creatures: we like to live in groups and work together. Because of this, humans are almost always communicating, sometimes without even knowing it. In the previous chapter, we provided a general definition of communication, but let’s take a step back and look at some others. Like Rhetorical communication, McCroskey (2016) divides communication into three categories:

(McCroskey, 2016, p. 20)

We are concerned with the third definition of communication: oral and written workplace communication. As you will see, the material in this course focuses on the meaning of messages rather than the media and tools of communication. Specifically, we aim to help you develop your communicative judgment as you create various technical communication messages. With that in mind, let’s break down that third definition even more. McCroskey (2016) identifies three types of communication that can fall under the third definition:

• Accidental communication
• Expressive communication
• and Rhetorical communication.

How do these three types of communication impact our messages? How have they occurred in your own life? The following sections will answer these two questions.

Accidental Communication

Has your communication ever gotten you in trouble by mistake? Do you sometimes feel that your audience misunderstands or misinterprets your communication? Your communication may exhibit some traits that McCroskey identifies as accidental communication.  Accidental communication occurs when one person conveys meaning to another without intending to do so and without necessarily being aware that they have done so (McCroskey, 2016, p. 21).

“People communicate their interests, needs, backgrounds, and sometimes their weaknesses without having the slightest desire to do so, and often despite a definite desire not to communicate these things” (McCroskey, 2016, p. 21).Two words commonly associated with accidental communication are ‘unaware’ and ‘unintended’. Whenever a speaker employs this type of communication, they often fail to realize the impact of the messages they convey to their audience. Consider the instances when your words were interpreted more negatively than intended—perhaps a non-verbal element in your message’s tone caused your audience to perceive you differently than you intended.

Non-verbal communication can play a large role in accidental communication. For example, McCroskey (2016) discusses the impact of how some North Americans inadvertently expressed unfriendliness in a Latin American context due to the cultural differences in what constitutes personal space.

As you can see, our aim as professional communicators is to identify and avoid any accidental communication in our lives. You must understand this type of unintentional communication to prevent it professionally.

Expressive Communication

Expressive communication “arises from the emotional, or motivational, state of the individual” (McCroskey, 2016, p. 21). This definition indicates that this form of communication is primarily speaker-centered. There is a transactional element involved whenever we communicate, with the audience playing a key role in the communicative process. In expressive communication, the emphasis is more on the speaker and less on the audience and how they receive the message.

As with accidental communication, we should avoid using expressive communication in a professional setting. Technical communication has both purpose and a connection to the audience, which are often missing in expressive communication.

Rhetorical Communication

“Rhetorical communication is the primary tool with which we influence and control the thoughts and actions of other people, as well as the environment in which we live.” (McCroskey, 2016, p. 19).Rhetorical communication is a crucial aspect of understanding effective communication in the workplace. McCroskey (2016) defines rhetorical communication as “the process of a source stimulating a source-selected meaning in the mind of a receiver using verbal and non-verbal messages” (p. 21). The “source” is another term for the speaker; the “source-selected meaning” implies that the source intends to create a specific meaning in the audience’s mind. McCroskey’s (2016) definition of rhetorical communication emphasizes the need for meaning to be made in the mind of the audience. He writes that this type of communication is “goal-directed” (McCroskey, 2016, p. 22, emphasis added) and is always purposefully directed toward an audience.

By the time you finish this course, you will see how rhetorical communication can help you in your career and know how to apply these principles in day-to-day job duties such as writing reports and giving presentations.