Stanley Deetz

Gary P. Radford

Michael Vicaro

A generative conceptual framework for empowering diverse groups and individuals to make productive and creative choices together Communication Theory at the Crossroads proposes a new way of thinking about communication to generate new insights, promote new interaction practices, and directly address a new set of human problems. Rooted in a systemic constructionist perspective, this groundbreaking volume provides the theoretical foundation for fostering mutually beneficial solutions to contemporary issues of divisiveness, interdependence, rapid social change, technology-mediated human experience, and other contemporary social difficulties. Rather than merely explicating a novel conceptual framework, Communication Theory at the Crossroads positions students as active and engaged social scientists equipped with a unified, fully integrated theory they can use across traditional divisions of communication to navigate their complex, rapidly changing world. Throughout the text, the authors identify the limits of the communication theories currently in use, discuss the critical choices facing today’s communication students and scholars, explain the theory of relational constructionism, and much more. Helping students frame their understanding of life difficulties and use theory-based concepts to inform their choices, Communication Theory at the Crossroads is an essential textbook for mid-level undergraduate courses in Communication Theory and Human Communication.

Communication Theory at the Crossroads

According to Deetz, our obsolete understanding of communication processes and power relations prevents us from seeing the corporate domination of public decision making. For most people issues of democracy, representation, freedom of speech, and censorship pertain to the State and its relationship to individuals and groups, and are linked to occasional political processes rather than everyday life decisions. This work reclaims the politics of personal identity and experience within the work environment as a first step to a democratic form of public decision-making appropriate to the modern context.

Stanley Deetz

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