COM 611
Event Analysis Assignment

Overview

Your assignment here is to choose an interesting communication event that you can observe closely, consider the major communication theories that Littlejohn & Foss present, choose a theory that you believe applies particularly well (recall the concept of appropriateness), and use the theory to describe and explain what you have observed. Finally, you will evaluate the theory in terms of how well it works, including an assessment of its validity.

Relevant syllabus objectives

Steps

  1. Choose a communication event that you can observe closely that will take place in the month of October. Just check with me to let me know the event you choose.
  2. Before observing the event, review the Littlejohn & Foss text, including chapters we have yet to cover that may include useful theories for you to use. Choose two or three theories that you think might apply best. Then review additional literature to get a better understanding of the theories on your short list. You might want to start with the works that Littlejohn & Foss cite -- see the selected bibliography that starts on p. 350 for references. Also search for more recent cites.
  3. Participate in and/or observe the event carefully. Plan some time immediately after the event to take notes on what you observed.
  4. Choose the best theory.
  5. Write the paper within one week of observing the event (while your memory is still fresh!).

Sections of the paper

  1. Introduction -- What event did you choose and why was it theoretically interesting?
  2. Relevant theories -- Which theories did you choose for your "short list" and why?
  3. Event description -- What happened?
  4. Theory selection -- Which theory "fits" the event best? Why? What makes the theory you chose better than your other options? Explain the theory in this section.
  5. Theory evaluation -- What are this theory's strengths in helping you to observe, describe and explain the event? Would the theory help you predict what might happen in similar events in the future? How so?
  6. Critique -- What are the limitations of your observation? What are the limitations of the theory? What ideas for further research and theory-building do these limitations introduce?

Technical details

Due date - the class period falling not more than two weeks after your observation, so November 13 would be the very latest.

Length - I'm more concerned with how well you answer the questions for each section (above) than with how long the paper is. I'm guessing it would take at least five pages to get the job done. In any case, I encourage you to be concise and to-the-point.

Style - You may write in first-person, so the tone of the paper may be a little less formal than the theoretical review assignment. However, I do expect your paper to be edited carefully for grammar and clarity - more so than weekly response papers. Also, please make sure to cite your sources properly.

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