Module No.

and Module 2
Title Communication Foundation

Lesson No. and Lesson 2

Title Study Areas in Communication Discipline

Learning 1. Identify the areas of study in communication discipline.

Outcomes 2. Describe the nature of each of the areas of study.
3. Point out the focus of communication in every area of study.
Time Frame 1 hour
Introduction This time you may already have initial knowledge about communication
as a discipline. Yet, for sure you still wonder since it is too broad and too
complex to understand. Thus, there is a need to go into specifics. The
following lesson will bring you to the explore the various areas of study
of the communication discipline.

Activity Take a look at the images below:

3
 4

Indicate what message content (real or imaginary) do you get from each
of the picture. Describe communication channels used in communicating
the message (mass media, person, group, etc.). Give 2 answers for each
box.

Image Message Content Message Channel

Image 1. 1. 1.
2. 2.

Image 2. 1. 1.
2. 2.

Image 3. 1. 1.
2. 2.

Image 4. 1. 1.
2. 2.

Analysis 1. Base on your answers in the previous questions, do you think

communication discipline focuses: a) on various subjects? ____
b) on various communication channels? _____
Support your answers:
a.___________________________________________________
b.__________________________________________________

2. Do you think communication discipline’s areas of study will

continue to expand as time goes by? _______

Why? You can cite example to clarify your point of view.

____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________
______________________.

Abstraction
Communication studies or communication sciences is an academic
discipline that deals with processes of human
communication and behavior, patterns of communication in interpersonal
relationships, social interactions and communication in different cultures.
Communication is commonly defined as giving, receiving or exchanging
ideas, information, signals or messages through appropriate media,
enabling individuals or groups to persuade, to seek information, to give
information or to express emotions effectively.
Communication studies is a social science that uses various methods
of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of
knowledge that encompasses a range of topics, from face-to-face
conversation at a level of individual agency and interaction
to social and cultural communication systems at a macro level.
Scholarly communication theorists focus primarily on refining
the theoretical understanding of communication, examining statistics in
order to help substantiate claims. The range of social scientific methods to
study communication has been expanding.
Communication researchers draw upon a variety
of qualitative and quantitative techniques. The linguistic and cultural
turns of the mid-20th century led to
increasingly interpretative, hermeneutic, and philosophic approaches
towards the analysis of communication. Conversely, the end of the 1990s
and the beginning of the 2000s have seen the rise of new analytically,
mathematically, and computationally rigorous techniques.
As a field of study, communication is applied
to journalism, business, mass media, public
relations, marketing, news and televisionbroadcasting, interpersonal and
intercultural communication education, public administration—and
beyond. As all spheres of human activity and conveyance are affected by
the interplay between social communication structure and individual
agency, communication studies has gradually expanded its focus to other
domains, such as health, medicine, economy, military and penal
institutions, the Internet, social capital, and the role of communicative
activity in the development of scientific knowledge.

The discipline of communication focuses on how humans use verbal and

nonverbal messages to create meaning in various contexts (from two
person groups to mass audiences) across cultures using a variety of
channels and media. The discipline is especially interested in the impact
of those messages on human behavior.
Communication as a discipline includes the study of communication in
interpersonal relationships, groups, organizations, and across cultures;
rhetorical theory and criticism; performance studies; argumentation and
persuasion; technologically mediated communication; and popular culture

Areas of Concentration in the Communication Discipline

The study of communication can focus on a wide array of sub-disciplines.
While areas of emphasis differ from one educational institution school to
another, some of the most common include:
• Applied Communication: The study of processes used to analyze
communication needs of organizations and social interaction,
including the design of training to improve communication
between supervisors and employees.

Applied communication is communication scholarship that

focuses on the study of a social issue or problem with the primary
purpose of identifying solutions and recommendations to address
the social issue. The hallmarks of applied communication are the
study of topics with social relevance and identifying ways to
improve the practice of communication. Scholars and practitioners
 typically look through an applied lens because of a desire to
conduct research that makes a difference and impacts those outside
academia. Applied communication is grounded in theory;
however, applied research does not have a focus on theory
building. Instead, applied communication scholars and
practitioners use theory as a way to find ways to communicate
recommendations and connect them to stakeholders related to the
social issue.

• Classroom and Training Communication: The study of

communication in the classroom and other pedagogical contexts.

• Communication Theory: The study of principles that account for

the impact of communication in human social interaction.

• Electronic Media: The study of radio, television, media

technology, and web design with streaming audio and video.

• Family Communication: The study of communication unique

to family systems.

• Gender Communication: The study of gender and sex

differences and similarities in communication and the unique
characteristics of male-female communication.

• Health Communication: The study of communication as it

relates to health professionals and health education, including the
study of provider-client interaction as well as the diffusion of
health information through public health campaigns.

• International and Intercultural Communication: The study of

communication among individuals of different cultural
backgrounds, including the study of similarities and differences
across cultures.

• Interpersonal Communication: The study of communication

behaviors in pairs and the impact it has on personal relationships.

• Language and Social Interaction: The study of the structure of

verbal and nonverbal behaviors occurring in social interaction.

• Legal Communication: The study of the role of communication

as it relates to the legal system.

• Mass Communication and Media Literacy: The study of the

uses, processes, and effects of mediated communication.

• Mediation and Dispute Resolution: The study of understanding,

management, and resolution of conflict within intrapersonal,
interpersonal, and intergroup situations.

• Organizational Communication: The study of processes used to

analyze communication needs of organizations and social
interaction, including the design of training to improve
communication between supervisors and employees.
• Performance Studies: The study of how performer(s), text,
audience, and context interact to create a performance.
• Political Communication: The study of the role communication
plays in political systems.
• Public Address: The study of speakers and speeches, including
the historical and social context of platforms, campaigns, and
movements.
• Public Relations: The study of the management of
communication between an organization and its audiences.
 • Rhetorical Criticism: The study of principles that account for the
impact of human communication between speaker and audience.
• Risk and Crisis Communication: The study of how government
agencies and organizations assess and manage risk and crisis
situations, and how they communicate the nature of a crisis to
stakeholders and members of the public.
• Small Group Communication: The study of communication
systems among three or more individuals who interact around a
common purpose and who influence one another.
• Visual Communication: The study of how visual data, such as
architecture, photography, web, visual art, and the images of
advertising, film, and television have an impact on audiences.

This time of pandemic where one of the guidelines to be followed

Application by the people is to observed social distancing and limit or avoid
face to face or interpersonal communication. These are being
practiced in schools in holding classes, in churches in attending
masses of religious services, even in business in purchase of goods
among others. What areas of communication study can you think
of as a substitute to face to face or interpersonal communication?

Give at least two areas of study and describe each in terms of n

a) content, b) channel used and c) processes involved.

1. 2. 3.

a. a. a.

b. b. b.

Closure Congratulations! You have just succeeded another lesson. Moving on

next, we will explore about careers in communication. Relax for now.
Stay safe.