Chapter 4/ Making Sense of Our World

This Chapter goes off on what is called the Uncertainty Reduction Theory, and also touches up on violations of expectancy.  In my eyes, humans use this theory as a fuel for their relationships.  The theory of reduction says that lacking the ability to predict some one elses behavior acts as a form of attraction.  People will thrive on this as in initial interactions develop.

This means that we may want to retain more and more information about someone in order to predict some one's personality, that way we can decrease uncertainty about them. This chapter suggests that there are a variety of strategies of coping with uncertainty in order to predict accurate expectancies in others.

I'm uncertain about what to talk about.. There was alot to this chapter. I'll just touch up on some strategies for reducing uncertainty.

Accoring to Close Encounters: Communication in Relationships, people can reduce uncertainty using passive, active, or interactive strategies.  According to uncertainty redution theory,  "people often reduce uncertainty using strategies other than face-to-face or direct communication.  Specifically, Berger and his colleagues identified three general ways people go about reducing uncertainty in initial encounters"(Guerrero, Anderson, Affifi).

Passive Strategies:
Passive strategies consist of checking some one out. In an informal setting, observing some ones behaviors, studying there interactions, and assuming some ones age, nationality, and relationship status are known to be passive strategies.  Sometimes you are able to reduce uncertainty if you end up being correct about one of those traits.

Active Strategies:
Active strategies are used to see the other person's reaction. Their reaction can lead you to believe a certain characteristic in which they bear. For example, if I ask a partiular girl to come over for a party that involved beer and drugs, I am looking for two things: I want to see if she immediately responds with a yes or no, and I want to see if her reasoning behind her decision is accurate. Perhaps she is interested but wants to bring friends, which may imply that she is shy but willing to come out of her shell. If she is down to come alone, does that mean she is solely interested in meeting with just me? Maybe she just likes to party hard....Im uncertain..but the uncertainty will decrease after she makes her decision.

Active strategies may also include a third party. If i asked Jeff what he was doing tonight, and he told me he was going to take Sabrina (a girl that I am highly interested in) out on a date to the movies. I would immediately ask Sabrina what she was doing tonight. In this situation she tells me she is going to the movies. But what I am really looking for is to see if she says that she is going with Jeff.....or some one else.....or she might not include who she is going with at all. Her reply will increase certainty about her personality.....or will it?

Interactive Strategies:
Interactive strategies consist of  one on one communication. It involves asking questions and self-disclosing information about one another. If two people communicate efficiently, the level of comfort will help disclose appropriate information about your self to some one. Their feedback should decrease uncertainty about the other, as you get to know each other over time.