Page 92 - Essentials of Human Communication

Principles of Verbal Messages 71

Messages vary in abstraCtiOn
Consider the following terms:
Explore the Exercise
● Entertainment “Using the Abstraction
Ladder as a Creative Tool” at
● Film MyCommunicationLab
● American film
● Class American films
● Casablanca
At the top is an abstraction, or general concept—entertainment. Note that entertainment
includes all the other items on the list plus various other items—television, novels, drama,
comics, and so on. Film is more specific and concrete. It includes all of the items below it as
well as various other items such as Indian film or Russian film. It excludes, however, all enter-
tainment that is not film. American film is again more specific than film and excludes all films
that are not American. Classic American films further limits American film to those consid-
ered to be timeless. Casablanca specifies concretely the one item to which reference is made.
A verbal message that uses the most general term—in this case, entertainment—will con-
jure up many different images in listeners’ minds. One person may focus on television, an-
other on music, another on comic books, and still another on radio. To some listeners, the
word film may bring to mind the early silent films; to others it may connote high-tech special
effects; to still others it will recall Disney’s animated cartoons. Casablanca guides listeners
still further—in this case, to one film. So, as you get more specific—less abstract—you more
effectively guide the images that come to your listeners’ minds.
Effective verbal messages include words that range widely in abstractness. At times a
general term may suit your needs best; at other times a more specific term may serve better.
The widely accepted recommendation for effective communication is to use abstractions
sparingly and to express your meanings explicitly with words that are low in abstraction.

Messages Can DeCeive
Although we operate on the assumption that people tell the truth, it should come as no surprise to
learn that some people do lie. Lying also begets more lying; when one person lies, the likelihood of Explore the Exercise
“Must Lie Situations” at
the other person lying increases (Tyler, Feldman, & Reichert, 2006). Lying refers to the act of MyCommunicationLab
sending messages with the intention of giving another person information you believe to be false.
Large cultural differences exist in the way lying is defined and in the way lying is treated. For
example, as children get older, Chinese and Taiwanese (but not Canadians) see lying about the
good deeds that they do as positive (as you’d expect for cultures that emphasize modesty), and
taking credit for these same good deeds is seen negatively (Lee et al., 2002). Some cultures consider
lying to be more important than others—in one study, for example, European Americans viewed
lies less negatively than did Ecuadorians. Both, however, felt that lying to an out-group member
was more acceptable than lying to an in-group member (Mealy, Stephan, & Urrutia, 2007).

types of lies Lies vary greatly in type; each lie seems a bit different from every other lie.
Here is one useful system that classifies lies into four types (McGinley, 2000).
Watch the Video
● Pro-Social Deception: To Achieve Some Good These are lies that are designed to benefit the “Please Don’t Lie to Me” at
person lied to or lied about— for example, praising a person’s effort to give him or her MyCommunicationLab
more confidence.
● Self-Enhancement Deception: To Make Yourself Look Good Presenting yourself as younger
or as having a better job, in your social networking profile is a common example.
● Selfish Deception: To Protect Yourself These lies protect you, for example, not answering
the phone because you want to do something else.
● Anti-Social Deception: To Harm Someone These lies are designed to hurt another person,—
for example, spreading false rumors about someone or falsely accusing an opposing can-
didate of some wrongdoing.