Communication
Department of Communication
Chairperson: David W. Schlueter
Graduate Program Director: Leslie A. Hahner
Communication (CSS)
Communication within the organization and its relationship to organizational structure, roles, leadership, and management orientations.
Theory and practice of performing and supervising training activities in an organizational setting. Emphasis on the design, execution, and evaluation of communication training and development programs and strategies.
The intersection between leadership and communication, emphasizing the theory, research, and practice of leadership communication.
Examines advanced and complex types of small-group interaction, leadership, and collaboration. Taught in London.
Survey of communication dynamics and issues in nonprofit organizations. Emphasis on assessing and developing best practices in external and internal communication. Course topics include: stakeholder messaging, interorganizational collaboration, member relationships, and role development.
Application of survey and probing interview techniques with emphasis on career development.
See PSC 4310 for course information.
The role of communication in managing conflict in interpersonal, group, organization, and community contexts.
Examines advanced and complex types of communication contexts involving relational and group facilitation strategies, systemic interviewing practices, and the development of a basic understanding of systemic inquiry as a communication management strategy. Taught in London.
Survey of communication issues related to theory and research regarding relationships within the modern family system.
Design and implement a communication assessment of for-profit or non-profit organizations.
Health communication theory and practice, including patient-provider communication, healthcare organizational communication, and health information technology.
Advanced survey of theory and research regarding communication and personal relationships.
Examines pervasive health narratives, including best practices for the communication surrounding illness both from those living with the illness and those in support roles.
The ways in which communication is facilitated by new technologies with an emphasis on various theories related to computer-mediated communication and new communication technology.
Examination of the influence of culture on communicative aspects of individuals’ health.
Seminar topics vary each semester. May be repeated once with change in topic.
Analyzes the historical fight for women’s rights and contemporary arguments about gender-based rights through the tools of rhetorical criticism.
Significant public speeches in contemporary society, with emphasis on applying principles and methods of rhetorical criticism.
Influence of contemporary organizations on public attitudes and public policy through analysis of communication campaigns during both favorable and unfavorable conditions.
An analytical approach to the discourse generated by United States foreign policy in the post-World War II era. Topics covered include the nature of public opinion and foreign policy, rhetorical and political constraints on foreign policy discourse, and in-depth analysis of the arguments for and against the conflict in Vietnam.
Rhetorical strategies of African Americans, focusing on the historically important documents of oratory, argumentation, homiletic, and narrative.
Exploration of ideas about communication, rhetoric, and race. Emphasis on rhetorical criticism as a methodological approach to public discourse and analysis of race as understood in contemporary American culture.
Selected theories of persuasion in Western culture from the Greco-Roman period to the present. Topics covered include the relationship of rhetoric and poetic, arguments for a behavioristic approach to rhetoric, and contemporary claims concerning rhetoric as a way of knowing.
Theories and methodologies pertaining to visual rhetoric.
Origin and development of rhetoric in American social movements, with emphasis on the characteristics of various types of communication situations and the discovery, analysis, and evaluation of common persuasive strategies.
Analysis of major speeches, pamphlets, and essays in England and America on politics and political change from the early seventeenth century through the American Revolution. Topics addressed include the birth of the public sphere, church and state relations, and natural rights.
Intended primarily for directors of speech activities in high schools and colleges. May be repeated once for credit.
To fulfill requirements for non-thesis master's students who need to complete final degree requirements other than coursework during their last semester. This may include such things as a comprehensive examination, oral examination, or foreign language requirement. Students are required to be registered during the semester they graduate.
An overview of criticism regarding continuing developments in communication theory.
An in-depth analysis of interpersonal theory and research.
Advanced theoretical work on the form and function of argumentation. This course explores field theory, examines the utility of argument diagram, and considers approaches to ordinary language argument.
An analysis of the function of rhetorical discourse in contemporary society.
An analysis of small-group communication theory and research with a focus on topics such as decision making, leadership, social influence, and interaction analysis.
An analysis of organizational communication theory and research.
Organizational change is viewed from a communication perspective with special attention placed on the conversational architectures that create sensible and coherent change.
Analysis of major theoretical statements on the changing nature of the public sphere in western democracies and the related implications for the role of argumentation and rhetorical discourse in the formation of public policy.
An advanced examination of scholarly theory, research, and quantitative/qualitative research methods used for academic investigation of topics and issues related to communication within the family.
Explores the interwoven relationship between educational leadership and persuasive communication. By the end of the class students should be able to fashion compelling persuasive messages as well as interpret the attempts at persuasion by others.
Explores the relationship between communication and one's self-concept as it is defined and shaped by membership in workplaces, civic organizations, churches, clubs, and other social groupings. Discussion and analysis of the processes and practical consequences of organizational identification.
Examines the theory, research, and communicative processes related to disruptive events in organizations.
This seminar focuses on how rhetoric and discourse shape organizational life in terms of power, culture, change, identity, and crisis.
Methods of rhetorical criticism influenced and intersected by cultural studies, beginning with early twentieth century and continuing into present day.
See PSC 5350 for course information.
Methods of quantitative inquiry in the study of communication theories. Emphasis on application theory and methods in a variety of communication research contexts, e.g., organizational communication, mass communication.
Quantitative/critical methodology utilized in the analysis of public discourse.
Examines the lines of inquiry that guide rhetorical theorizing and lenses that inform the practice of rhetorical criticism from ancient to contemporary usages.
Introduction to the approaches and procedures used in designing and analyzing communication research studies.
Provides graduate students opportunity for application of communication-related skills and knowledge under the supervision of a professional employer in a corporate organization.
Designed to give individual students opportunities for additional work in their area of concentration. May be repeated in a different semester for a maximum of six semester hours.
Seminar topics vary each semester. One to three semester hours may be earned in a semester. May be repeated once with change in topic for a maximum of six semester hours.
Satisfies the non-thesis option for the master of communication. Under the direction of a supervising professor, a student will select a problem or topic in communication and will write a substantial paper or produce a substantial project for submission to the faculty. Maximum three hours.
At least 150 hours of applied learning in a communication-centered role/field. Final project that includes a written and verbal report and draws from scholarly literature, original research, and field experiences.
Research, data analysis, writing, and oral defense of an approved master's thesis. At least six hours of CSS 5V99 are required.