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    Uncertainity Reduction Theory (Charles Berger) - Simplified

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    Rajesh Cheemalakonda
    Charles Berger's uncertainty reduction theory contends that people are motivated to reduce uncertainty in new acquaintances, especially if they anticipate future interactions, want something from the other person, or find their behavior deviant. The theory outlines how reducing behavioral and cognitive uncertainties through information seeking, self-disclosure, and focusing on similarities can increase reciprocity, liking, and relationship development over time. While influential, the theory has been critiqued for its assumptions around human motivation.

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    Uncertainity Reduction Theory (Charles Berger) - Simplified

    Uploaded by

    Rajesh Cheemalakonda
    2K views2 pages
    Charles Berger's uncertainty reduction theory contends that people are motivated to reduce uncertainty in new acquaintances, especially if they anticipate future interactions, want something from the other person, or find their behavior deviant. The theory outlines how reducing behavioral and cognitive uncertainties through information seeking, self-disclosure, and focusing on similarities can increase reciprocity, liking, and relationship development over time. While influential, the theory has been critiqued for its assumptions around human motivation.

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    Uncertainity Reduction Theory(Charles Berger)_Simplified

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    Charles Berger's uncertainty reduction theory contends that people are motivated to reduce uncertainty in new acquaintances, especially if they anticipate future interactions, want something from the other person, or find their behavior deviant. The theory outlines how reducing behavioral and cognitive uncertainties through information seeking, self-disclosure, and focusing on similarities can increase reciprocity, liking, and relationship development over time. While influential, the theory has been critiqued for its assumptions around human motivation.

    Copyright:

    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf
    2K views2 pages

    Uncertainity Reduction Theory (Charles Berger) - Simplified

    Uploaded by

    Rajesh Cheemalakonda
    Charles Berger's uncertainty reduction theory contends that people are motivated to reduce uncertainty in new acquaintances, especially if they anticipate future interactions, want something from the other person, or find their behavior deviant. The theory outlines how reducing behavioral and cognitive uncertainties through information seeking, self-disclosure, and focusing on similarities can increase reciprocity, liking, and relationship development over time. While influential, the theory has been critiqued for its assumptions around human motivation.

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    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
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    UNCERTAINTY REDUCTION THEORY OF CHARLES BERGER

    * All friends begin as strangers. Berger contends that our drive to reduce
    uncertainty about new acquaintances gets an exffa boost from any of three
    prior conditions.
    A. Anticipation of future interaction: we know we will see them again.
    B. Incentive value: They have something we want.
    C. Deviance: They actin aweird way.

    UNCERTAINTY REDUCTION: TO PREDICT AND EXPLAIN

    .E Two kinds of uncertainties: Behavioural and Cognitive


    'l' Behavioural: In the first meeting one does not know how to face the other and
    how one should act towards the new person. Should you shake hands or say
    'Namaste"? Who must pay the bill when going along with a stranger? Often
    there are accepted procedural protocols to ease the stress that behavioural
    uncertainty can cause.
    {. Cognitive: Cognitive questions are aimed at discovering who the other person
    is as a unique individual. What makes her happy? Does she have other
    friends? Reducing cognitive uncertainty means acquiring information that
    allows you to discard many of these possibilities. That's the kind of
    uncertainty reduction Berger's theory addresses.

    AN AXIOMATIVE THEORY: CERTAINTY ABOUT LINCERTAINTY

    .t Eight key variables of relationship development: Verbal ou@ut, nonverbal


    warmth, information seeking, self-disclosure, reciprocity, similarity, liking,
    shared networks. Axioms are traditionally regarded as self-evident truths that
    require no additional proof.
    l Verbal output: As uncertainty is further reduced, the amount of verbal
    communication will increase.
    2. Nonverbal warmth: As nonverbal affiliative expressiveness increases,
    uncertainty levels will decrease in an initial interaction situation.
    Information seeking: High levels of uncertainty cause increase in information
    seeking behaviour. As uncertainty levels decline, information-seeking
    behaviour decreases.
    4. Self-disclosure: High levels of uncertainty in a relationship cause deqiS
    the intimacy level of communication content. Low levels of urrcffifu*y
    produce high levels of intimacy. People express attitudes, values, and fbdings
    when they have good idea what the listener's response will be.
    5. Reciprocitv: High levels of uncertainfy produce high rates of reciprocity. Low
    levels of uncertainty produce low levels of reciprocity.
    6. Similarity: Similarities between persons reduce uncertainty, while
    dissimilarities produce increases in uncertainty. The conversation grows when
    we are able to find qualities that both like and because we both like to design
    something on the computer; we become familiar with each other and in other
    words uncertainty decreases.
    7. Likine: Increases in uncertainty level produce decreases in liking; decreases in
    uncertainty produce increases in liking.
    8. Shared networks: Shared communication networks reduce uncertainty, while
    lack of shared networks increases uncertainty. This idea goes beyond the two
    strangers' meeting.

    STRETEGIES TO COPE WITH UNCERTAINTY

    {. Berger says "most social interaction is goal-driven". He felt that we


    continually construct cognitive plans to guide our social actions. According to
    Berger, "Plans are mental representations of action sequences that may be
    used to achieve goals."

    Overall Strategy:
    Build relationship
    with dispatcher

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    CRITQUE

    ..1. Motivational assumption of axiom 3 as the problem


    * Berger's analysis of human interaction is a major contribution to
    communication studies.

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