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Expectancy Violations Theory

Expectancy Violations Theory. Theory Originator: Judee Burgoon Academic Area & Rank: Communication, Professor Institutional Affiliation: The University of Arizona. Expectancy Violations Theory. D-Epistemology: Social Scientific/Objectivist

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Expectancy Violations Theory

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  1. Expectancy Violations Theory • Theory Originator: Judee Burgoon • Academic Area & Rank: Communication, Professor • Institutional Affiliation: The University of Arizona

  2. Expectancy Violations Theory • D-Epistemology: Social Scientific/Objectivist • Questions/Problems: What happens when someone performs a nonverbal behavior that surprises you? How are perceptions of surprising and/or ambiguous nonverbal behavior related to interpersonal attraction, credibility, influence, and involvement? • D-Method: Experimental, Survey • Data: Nonverbal human behaviors (e.g., physical touch, physical space, eye gaze, facial gestures, body posture and lean)

  3. Key Terms and Concepts Expectancy Violations Theory • Proxemics:The study of people’s use of (interpersonal) space (an indicator or cultural norms) • Proxemic Zones (4) • Intimate Distance: 0-18 inches • Personal Distance: 18 inches to 4 feet • Social Distance: 4 to 10 feet • Public Distance: 10 feet +

  4. Key Terms and Concepts Expectancy Violations Theory • Expectancy: an expectation/prediction of nonverbal behavior • Violation Valence: process of assigning meaning, positive or negative, to the nonverbal behavior violation • Communication Reward Valence: outcome of the nonverbal violation. The sum of all positive and negative attributes (see conditions) that the violator brings to the table + the potential that the violator has to reward or punish us in the future

  5. Expectancy Violations Theory Theoretical Propositions: • Nonverbal behavior is symbolic behavior whose meanings are culturally-situated. • People have expectations of and make unconscious predictions about the nonverbal behavior that will occur in a given interpersonal situation. (expectancy) • When nonverbal expectations are violated, people search for and assign positive and/or negative meaning(s) to those violations. (violation valence) • When the meaning of a nonverbal violation is unclear, individuals will likely assign meaning that favors the violator’s influence in our lives (reward valence)

  6. Expectancy Violations Theory Practical Utility • Increases non-verbal behavior awareness • Gives practical advice on when it might be advantageous and disadvantageous to be nonconformist wrt to nonverbal behavior • If you violate nonverbal expectations and/or use nonverbal behaviors that are ambiguous, be sure the receiver likes you and/or that s/he believes you have something of value to offer them • Otherwise CONFORM.

  7. Theory Evaluation Strengths • describes & explains • simple, even elegant • testable/falsifiable • useful (practically, academically) • historically-grounded and interesting Weaknesses • fails to predict reliably • conclusions seem mundane

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