Communication in the Real World: An Introduction to Communication Studies

by University of Minnesota

Communication in the Real World: An Introduction to Communication Studies is adapted from a work produced and distributed under a Creative Commons license (CC BY-NC-SA) in 2013 by a publisher who has requested that they and the original author not receive attribution. This adapted edition is produced by the University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing through the eLearning Support Initiative.

This adaptation has reformatted the original text and replaced some images and figures to make the resulting whole more shareable. This adaptation has not significantly altered or updated the original 2013 text. This work is made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license.


Communication in the Real World: An Introduction to Communication Studies originally authored by Richard G. Jones, Jr. overviews the time-tested conceptual foundations of the field while incorporating the latest research and cutting-edge applications of these basics. Each chapter will include timely, concrete, and real-life examples of communication concepts in action.

A key feature of this book is the integration of content regarding diversity and organizational communication in each chapter through examples and/or discrete sub-sections. Discussions of diversity are not relegated to feature boxes. Also integrated into the content are examples that are inclusive in terms of race, gender, sexuality, ability, age, marital status, religion, and other diverse identity characteristics.

Communication in the Real World engages students with a conversational tone while still including key theories and concepts that will challenge students to think about communication in new ways. References to current events and hypothetical examples also challenge students to think critically about communication ethics. The content and pedagogical strategies in the book are based in integrative learning, which is a perspective that encourages learners to reflect on how the content they are learning connects to other classes they are taking or have taken, their professional goals, and their civic responsibilities. In keeping with this perspective, the author makes frequent use of concrete and relevant examples that refer to diverse relationships such as family, friends, co-workers, and romantic relationships, and communication contexts such as interpersonal, organizational, academic, mediated, and civic. In addition, each chapter has some key takeaways and exercises that carry a “Getting Integrated” identifier, which directs students and instructors to consider how concepts are integrated into multiple parts of our lives.

Genres: Textbooks, School

745 pages, ebook

Published January 1, 2016

Reviews

[Wesley Morris · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this for school, it wasn’t as dry as most textbooks.
No other comments.

[Kaylynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

yess finally scom is over this week!!!

[Brandi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Textbook for my communication studies class. Written in a clear and accessible style, with lots of examples, but some chapters felt unnecessarily long.

[Mari · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't have any strong opinions on this book. It was my textbook for an Into to Communications course. Is it the best ever? No, but it did cover many communications aspects reasonably well. No complaints. Wouldn't read this for fun unless you are really interested in the subject matter, in which case it is at a good beginner level.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a textbook, it was pretty interesting and engaging.

[D L]

Didn't notice any typos, which is more than I can say for my other communications textbook.