Relational Dialectics

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Theory Summary and Comparison Paper Communication plays a huge role in our lives daily. If you think about it, where would we be without it? Try going a day without speaking, it honestly would be so challenging. But there is more than just being able to speak. Throughout this paper I will be talking about Symbolic Interaction and Relational Dialectics; two types of theories we have discussed in class this semester. I will be giving a quick summary and doing some comparing and contrasting of the two theories which hopefully gives you a better insight of how they play an important role in communication. Relational Dialectics is defined as “ a dynamic knot of contradictions in personal relationships; a ceaseless interplay between contradictory or opposing tendencies” (Griffin, Ledbetter, & Sparks 137) such as integration-separation, stability-change, and expression-non expression. Leslie Baxter and Barbara Montgomery coined the phrase “opposites attract” to make it simple in understanding Relational Dialectics. This theory is rooted in phenomenological tradition.The theory utilizes an interpretive approach. The basic premise for the communication involved with this theory is relationships take on meaning because of interplay of actions that can often be …show more content…

The book refers this to be like a game of charades, it’s just a continuous conversation. He was best known by sociologists but he never put his great thoughts or ideas into a book before he passed away. Although, following his death, some of his students pulled together some of his notes from class and published “Mind, Self, and Society” in his

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