Language and Communication

Language and Communication

For the communication field, language can be understood as an organized system of symbols used for creating and transmitting meaning. Language involves the meaningful arrangement of sounds into words according to rules for their combination and appropriate usage. James Bradac (1999, p. 12) captured the multiplicity of conceptions of language when he noted three ways of defining it:

Language1: "[The] communicative agency[… that] allows speakers to accomplish routinized purposes (e.g., exchange greetings) and other purposes that are completely novel.… It is highly flexible and adaptable."

Language2: "[The] biologically based, hierarchical system studied by linguists. It has multiple levels, each complexly structured and interrelated with the others. The structures at each level can be represented by construction rules [… and] constitute part of the tacit knowledge of speakers."

Language3: "[A] collection of verbal features that are often influenced or even determined by environmental, physical, or psychological variables that are not under the conscious control of speakers.

A variety of aspects of language are studied in the communication field. These include consideration of the origins of language, language acquisition, phonetics, phonology, syntax, semantics, pragmatics, language and culture, language and diversity, and language and relationships.

Approaches to Language Study in the Communication Field

A variety of different methodological perspectives have been brought to bear on the study of language.

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