Interpersonal & Mass Communication:

A Literature Review and Discussion of Convergence

University of Texas at Austin

Kevin D. Thomas

Table of Contents

Introduction

Literature Review

Strong Effects

Weak Effects

Conditional Effects

Convergence Discussion

References

Introduction

Communication is an essential aspect of the human condition.  Through speech, writing, signals, and behavior, communication enables the transmission of thoughts, feelings, messages, and information.  By way of communication we express and are reminded of our humanity.  Yielding such power, scholars have attempted to understand and describe the many facets and components of communication since ancient times.  The greatest minds in ancient Greece -- Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle spent a considerable amount of their time deconstructing the affect of rhetoric (persuasion through the use of oral, visual, and written language).  During the medieval times the trivium, composed of grammar, logic, and rhetoric formed the foundation of all university education.  The twentieth century introduced Communication studies as a legitimate academic field to institutions of higher learning across the globe.  While much has been theorized over the course of time, many aspects of communication remain unknown or misunderstood.  

What is Communication?

Communication is an allusive construct.   Its elements are strangely simple yet complex, which has made the task of defining communication quite challenging.  Communication has been described as a ‘fuzzy’ concept with blurred boundaries that are not altogether certain (Ellis and Beattie 1986).  It has also been said that all social interactions are communicative and thus any social action presumes communication (Hummel and Lechner 2002). Since its inception the Journal of Communication has drafted over fifteen different definitions of communication, which has only served to further complicate matters (Holli and Calabrese 1998).  However, commonalities do exist among the vast array of working definitions of communication.  It is largely agreed that communication possess intersubjectivity and impact.  Intersubjectivity refers to the goal to understand others and be understood, while impact represents the measure of change in thoughts, feelings, or behavior that is brought about by a message (Hargie 2003).  There are a number of prerequisites that must be met in order for intersubjectivity and impact to transpire.  First, individuals must have some capacity of sensory involvement.  While one need not have all of the sensory channels at their disposal, communication does require the availability of some sensate interaction (Berger 2002).  In addition to having access to physical sensations, individuals must also have the cognitive means to process and interpret sensory inputs within the context of the set environment (Berger 2002).  Therefore, the construct of communication is dependent upon physiological, psychological, and sociological factors.  As a result the study of communication is inherently interdisciplinary and necessitates the use of concepts and frameworks initially developed in the science and social science fields.  As such, the review of communication studies literature that follows incorporates the works of many researchers outside the realm of communication.

Literature Review

Three Key Paradigms

As presented by the Leckenby (1999) Communication Development Taxonomy, the body of persuasive communication theories and theoretical frameworks can be departmentalized into one of two board categories.  There are those that tout persuasive communication as having strong effects on the audience, the bulk of which are derived from scholars in the field of psychology.  Then there are theories and frameworks that deem the effects of persuasive communication as fundamentally weak, support for this view generally stemming from researchers within the field of sociology.  Positioned between the two broadly focused paradigms of strong and weak effects exist a third category.  One in which the presented concepts incorporate aspects of psychology and sociology and consider the persuasive effects of communication to be subjective and highly dependent on motivational, emotional and environmental factors.  This third cluster of theories and frameworks will be considered the “conditional effects” paradigm.  The literature review that follows examines the seminal theories and frameworks presented in each of these broad conceptual paradigms.

Strong Effects Paradigm

Magic Bullet Theory (Harold Lasswell 1927)

The strong effects paradigm began with the magic bullet (or hypodermic needle) theory.  Harold Lasswell, a sociologist and member of the Chicago School of pragmatism formed the tenets of the magic bullet theory while researching propaganda.  Lasswell (1927) proclaimed propaganda as “one of the most powerful instrumentalities in the modern world”. Lasswell along with other early researchers of mass communication reasoned audience members as extremely passive and susceptible to media messages (Doob 1935, Lippmann 1922).  As vulnerable targets they posited that the opinions and behaviors of audience members could easily be swayed to a message senders’ desired effect.  Early thinking was that messages were like magic bullets; they struck all members of the audience equally and created uniform effects among them.  A powerful representation of this theory came in the form of Orson Wells’ War of the Worlds radio broadcast in 1938, which was followed by panic and mass-hysteria.   However, many assumptions were made under the magic bullet theory.  Researchers assumed audiences as being captive, attentive, and gullible (Sears and Kosterman 1994).  The measurement methods utilized for studies relied heavily on informal and anecdotal evidence, and few attempts were made to track the attitudes of message recipients prior to and following message receipt (Bryant and Zillman 2002).    The magic bullet theory portrays communication as a one-way activity, wherein it is assumed that a receiver will input, process, and comprehend a message just as the sender intends.  It further assumes that following message comprehension the receiver will decide to change their attitude and behavior to fit that of the senders’ desired effect.  In light of these significant leaps of faith, the magic bullet theory did not hold as the dominate framework in communication studies for very long.  While Lasswell’s magic bullet theory may have be rather short-lived his five stage framework for analyzing mass media (“Who?” “Says what?” “In which channel?” “To whom?” “With what effect?”) laid the foundation for future communication modeling.

Effects Theory / Message Learning Approach (Carl Hovland 1949)

Maintaining the notion of a passive audience Carl Hovland conducted a series of experiments wherein through the use of heightened control and manipulation ability, he was able to isolate specific components of communication and detect their effects.  He concluded that mass communication had the power to change attitudes; however for the change to occur a series of events needed to unfold.  First, the message had to gain the attention of and be comprehended by its intended audience.  Second, the message needed to be remembered by the audience; Hovland believed a message could only be persuasive if remembered.    Finally, if the message presented an incentive for attitude change that was greater than the benefits received by the currently held attitude all the necessary elements would be in place and a change in attitude would arise (Petty and Cacioppo 1981).  This process was categorized as the message-learning approach.  Components of the source, message, channel, and audience would affect the message-learning process and thus vary the impact of a communication.  In regards to source, the level of credibility would directly influence message effect; messages advocated by experts would render higher rates of change than those given by nonexperts (Hovland Janis and Kelly 1953).  Conversely, Hovland et al. reasoned that the use of an untrustworthy advocate would result in less attitude change than promoters who were not dubious.  Effect would also be altered by message.  Hovland et al. were chiefly concerned with elements that affected the comprehensibility of a message; in one such study they studied the effects of one-sided versus two-sided messages (Hovland Lumsdaine and Sheffield 1949).  A subsequent research project by Faison (1961) found that two-sided messages were more effective when linked with a product that was well-liked, widely used, had a loyal customer base, and relatively few competitors.  Attitudinal change would also be influenced by channel type; face-to-face communication was found to provide a stronger effect than mass media channels (Cartwright 1949, Katz and Lazarsfeld 1955).  Lastly, the characteristics of the audience, such as level of intelligence and gender would serve an influential role in determining effect (Janis and Rife 1959).  However, Hovland et al. believed the affect of audience characteristics to be quite minimal as compared to the other components.

Stimulus Response Theory & Behaviorism (John B. Watson 1917)

Inspired by Ivan Pavlov’s classical conditioning experiments, Psychologist John Watson developed the field of behaviorism around the stimulus response theory.  The main tenet of the stimulus response theory was that behavior was learned and not a product of the unconscious; a belief of the Freudian school of thought.  Watson (1924) described behaviorism as follows: “Behaviorism ... holds that the subject matter of human psychology is the behavior of the human being. Behaviorism claims that consciousness is neither a definite nor a usable concept.”   Since consciousness, awareness, and will were not observable constructs, behaviorist deemed them useless for academic study.  They instead concern themselves only with observable behavior, meaning what an organism does or says.  Behavior is measured in two parts -- stimulus and response.  The stimulus is any object or physiological change in the condition of the studied organism, while the response is anything the organism does, such as turning away or toward a light, jumping at a sound, building a skyscraper, drawing plans, having babies, or writing books (Watson 1924).  Watson believed that through the practice of behaviorism scientist could learn to predict and control human behavior.  The ramifications of which were monumental in the area of persuasive communication.  Much like Lasswell’s magic bullet theory, the conditions outlined in the stimulus response theory portrayed persuasive communication as wielding enormous influence over the masses.  The key perception being a communicator need only provide the correct stimulus for the desired response to take place.   It is rather interesting to note that following his academic career Watson went on to become extremely successful in the advertising industry.

Attitude Theory (L.L. Thurstone 1931)

Present day social psychology owes a considerable debt to L.L. Thurstone for his achievements in the area of attitude study.  While Thurstone is predominately known for the construction of the law of comparative judgment, he also pioneered the tandem use of theory and measurement (Pratkanis Breckler and Greenwald 1989).  Thurstone saw the construct of attitude, which is hypothetical and incapable of direct observation, as a complex psychological entity; complex in the sense that it consists of many elements, like a chair or place of business.  He postulated that attitude in its entirety could not be measured by a single quantitative index, just as the complete measure of a chair or place of business could not be assembled by one form of calculation.  However, Thurstone believed that one or more key characteristics of all three could be identified.  Just as a business person typically puts considerable stock in understanding the profit-loss indicator regarding a business entity, Thurstone believed social scientists should be most interested in the positive-to-negative affective aspect of an attitude (Platkanis Breckler and Greenwald 1989).  His attitude theory set forth a means of understanding attitude through the utilization of theory and measurement.  Much of Thurstone’s work pertained to media effects on attitude.  Through his research Thurstone came to the conclusion that the mass media could bring about attitude change that “persist for a considerable period of time”.  He also documented one of the first occurrences of what came to be known as the “sleeper effect”, wherein he found the attitude change of a message to be greater six months later than the initial exposure (Petty and Cacioppo 1981).    

Learning Theory (Hermann Ebbinghaus 1902)

The work of Ebbinghaus has greatly influenced the methods of media scheduling. Ebbinghaus (1902) identified three basic memory processes.  First, the rate at which people forget is negatively accelerating.  Ebbinghaus observed that after twenty minutes his subjects had forgotten a third of the learned information, after six days they forgot an additional one-fourth of the information, and in the interval of a month they forgot one-fifth more of what they had learned.  Second, learning is influenced by serial position effects, wherein items positioned at the beginning or end of a series are learned easier than items in the middle, which are the first to be forgotten.  Third, long conscious memory can develop through the act of overlearning – practice of a newly required skill well beyond the point of initial mastery (Bryant and Zillman 2002).  Two other key findings by Ebbinghaus include the following.  Items that are associated with one another are more easily remembered together and the ability to learn nonsense material (things that are not understood) is quite poor.  A great deal of effort is needed to learn nonsense material.  Additionally, the forgetting curve associated with nonsense material is extremely steep.  Conversely, meaningful material, or that which makes sense due to its relation to previously known material, takes approximately one-tenth of the effort to learn and the forgetting processes is far more gradual.  In regards to the effective administering of persuasive communication it is difficult to overstate the importance of Ebbinghaus’ work.

Balance Theory (Fritz Heider 1958)

The fundamental principle of Heider’s (1958) balance theory posits that there “is a tendency towards balanced states in human relationships.”  Heider was not concerned with the degree to which the relationships were good or bad, respected or disrespected, or esteemed or abhorred, but whether it was “positive or negative” (Severin 1997).  Heider’s experiments mainly consisted of three elements; two individuals (P and O) and a third object (X). If P and O liked one another and also liked X, the relationship was said to be balanced.  If in relation to P, O, and X, one of the relationships was positive and the other two negative, then the result was also said to be a balanced state.  Any other combination would result in a state of imbalance (Heider 1958).  “Balance was the most pleasant, desirable, stable, and expected state of relationships” (Petty and Cacioppo 1996).  An unbalanced state would produce psychological tensions within an individual (Severin and T1997).  Motivation to return to a state of balance was seen as a consequence of a state of imbalance.  In the context of persuasive communication, balance theory provided a framework for testing and predicting the effectiveness of messages in relation to the positive and negative relationships held by the audience.

Cognitive Dissonance (Leon Festinger 1959)

Constructed along the same logic as Heider’s balance theory, Leon Festinger’s theory of cognitive dissonance asserted that individuals in a state of dissonance will be motivated towards an activity that will alleviate or reduce the dissonance.  Festinger defined dissonance as a motivational state that energized and directed behavior (Petty and Cacioppo 1996).  Stated plainly, cognitive dissonance is the negative emotion that results when a person’s behavior conflicts with their attitudes. Festinger explored the effects of dissonance by exposing subjects to an unpleasant task and then given them the option of convincing a second person to participate in the task. The subjects were also offered a reward of varying values for persuading another person. Following the completion of the second task, the subjects were given a questionnaire to elicit their opinion of the first task. Subjects that convinced another person to complete the unpleasant task for a small reward amount stated that they enjoyed the task more than those who received a greater reward (Fesinger and Carlsmith 1959). The subjects' negative attitude toward the original task conflicted with their persuasive behavior during the second task. The subjects were thus forced to either change their attitude about the first task or change how they viewed their behavior during the second task. Since their persuasive behavior was only moderately rewarded, they could not focus the cause of their conflicting behavior on the reward. As a result, the subjects changed their attitude toward the original tedious task (Axsom & Lawless 1992).  However, Festinger left many factors of cognitive dissonance unspecified, such as the features of a cognitive element, if and how one cognitive element follows from another, and identifying the mode of resolution that is least resistant to change (Petty and Cacioppo 1996).  As such, Festinger’s theory has served more as a useful heuristic or general framework for researching persuasive communication rather than a specific declaration of when and how much attitude change is expected in a given circumstance.

Criteria Integration Theory “Hierarchy of Effects” (Robert Lavidge & Gary Steiner 1961)

Lavidge and Steiner understood the effects of advertising to be inherently long-term, and thus viewed advertising as a long-range investment (Barry 1987 pg. 261). The duo composed an intricate representation of the consumer purchase flow that expanded upon the constructs of the AIDA (Attention, Interest, Desire, and Action) model of consumer behavior.  Lavidge and Steiner did not believe a consumer would typically switch from a mode of disinterest to convinced purchaser in one instantaneous step.  Rather, their approach consisted of a series of steps wherein the actual purchase was the final threshold (Lavidge and Steiner 1961). Lavidge and Steiner perceived the following seven steps to encapsulate the consumer purchase process:

1) Unawareness of product/service
2) Awareness of product/service
3) Knowledge of product/service features
4) Favorable attitude toward product/service
5) Preference towards one brand versus others
6) Desire to purchase accompanied by conviction
7) Actual purchase   

In practice Lavidge and Steiner held that consumers could simultaneously move through multiple steps of the process for they did not deem the steps equidistant from one another (Barry 1987).  Lavidge and Steiner also theorized that the weight of importance given to and the time allotted for a customer to proceed through the steps would be contingent upon the level of psychological and/or economic commitment involved in purchasing of the said products or services.  Conversely, consumers are likely to move rather quickly through the steps when faced with the purchase of a product or service that requires less of a commitment (Lavidge and Steiner 1961).

 Three Hierarchies (Michael Ray 1973)

Michael Ray (1973) expanded upon the work of Lavidge and Steiner by proposing three arrangements to the hierarchy of effects concept; learning, dissonance-attribution, and low-involvement.  The learning arrangement corresponded to the conventional hierarchy: cognition-affect-conation (think-feel-do). The dissonance-attribution borrowed from the work of Festinger and took the reverse form of the conventional hierarchy: conation-affect-cognition (do-feel-think).  Ray postulated that the dissonance-attribution arrangement would most likely arise in a high involvement purchasing situation wherein there was little difference between the brand alternatives.  The eventual purchase choice would be made using relatively trivial factors, and in order to reduce post-decision dissonance attitudes would be rearranged.  In search of a rationalization for the purchase choice the consumer would pay close attention to advertising.  Thus it is important that marketing communication provide follow-up information that is supportive of a consumer’s need to be satisfied with their purchase decisions, if this information is not supplied consumers may seriously question future purchase activity.  Extensively based on the research of Herbert Krugman, the low-involvement arrangement is represented by the hierarchy: cognition-conation-affect (think-do-feel).  A low-involvement situation is typified by low consumer involvement and limited differentiation between items under consideration.  Within a low-involvement hierarchy affective influence may develop if audience members are repeatedly exposed to a persuasive message.   

Weak Effects Paradigm

Functional Theory (Elihu Katz and Paul Lazarsfeld 1955)

The functional theory serves as the antithesis to Lasswell’s magic bullet theory as it counters the argument that media messages have a direct effect on audiences.  While conducting research on the flow of information, Katz and Lazarsfield discovered that influential individuals, which they coined opinion leaders, act as intermediaries in the information flow process.  Rather than receiving a message directly from the mass media, Katz and Lazarsfield (1955) suggested that audience members receive source messages from, and are influenced by opinion leaders.  They classified this phenomenon as the two-step flow of communication with the main implication being that there is not a direct path from mass media communication to audience.  Rather than the mass media being the most influential aspect of the communication flow process, the members of the population that act as opinion leaders serve as the most persuasive dynamic.  In terms of persuasive communication the functional theory laid the ground work for segment, target and niche marketing.  The ideology presented by functionalists enables persuasive communicators to transmute their view of an audience from largely homogenous to a myriad of distinct subgroups -- in essence, reintroducing the construct of interpersonal communication to the fold. 

Diffusion of Innovations (Everett Rogers 1962)

The diffusion of innovation theory attempts to explain how, why, and at what rate new ideas permeate through culture.  This research topic began in the 1950s at the University of Chicago with funding from television producers who sought a way to measure the effectiveness of broadcast advertising. It soon became apparent that advertised products or services were "innovations" in the culture. The diffusion of innovations posits that the most influential channel of influence is not the mass media.  Rather, imitation is the strongest influence channel.   Adoption of an innovation occurs through a series of stages wherein current adopters influence potential adopters (Rogers 2003).  The staging begins with a small number of early adopters coined “innovators”, which is then followed by a second and highly influential group of adopters classified as “opinion leaders”.  The adoption of an innovation by opinion leaders leads to critical mass and soon thereafter an innovation becomes prevalent within a culture.   There was also lateral influence within each level. Broadcast messages could reinforce the propagation from one adopter level down to the next, but lower levels are unlikely to respond until the level above them has adopted. Therefore, the most effective marketing strategy is to first sell to the early adopters, and then reinforce the diffusion to each successive level, but not to waste resources on trying to reach any given level before it is ready for it.

Values and Lifestyles “VALS” (SRI International)

VALS - short for values and lifestyles – provides a means for categorizing people on the basis of their attitudes, needs, wants, beliefs, and demographics. The approach is holistic, drawing on insight and many sources of data to develop a comprehensive framework for characterizing the ways of life of Americans The VALS program was original developed in 1978 by Arnold Mitchell (futurist), VALS was redefined in 1989 to maximize its ability to predict consumer behavior. The update consisted of refocusing VALS so that it segmented customers on the basis of enduring personality traits rather than social values, which can change over time.  By using psychology to analyze and predict consumer preferences and choices, the current VALS system provides a direct link between personality traits and purchase behavior.    

Uses and Gratifications (Jay Blumler 1974)

Uses and gratifications approach is a highly influential tradition in media research. Two basic ideas exist within this approach:

In the mass communication process, the uses and gratifications approach embraces the audience member as the ultimate decider of need gratification and media choice. It suggests that are person’s needs influence what media they will choose, how that media outlets will be used, and what gratifications the media will receive from it. This approach differs from other theoretical perspectives in that it regards audiences as active media users as opposed to passive receivers of information. In contrast to traditional media effects theories which focus on “what media do to people”, uses and gratifications approach is more concerned with “what people do with media” (Katz, 1959). It incorporates the personal needs of audience members, which are a function of their social and psychological background.

Uses and gratifications approach also postulates that the media compete with other information sources for audience’s need satisfaction (Katz et al. 1974a). As traditional mass media and new media continue to provide people with a wide range of media platforms and content, it is considered one of the most appropriate perspectives for investigating why audiences choose to be exposed to different media channels (LaRose et al., 2001).  The approach emphasizes choice by assessing the reasons for using a certain media at the expense of another (Severin & Tankard 1997).

Cultivation Theory (George Gerbner 1969)

Cultivation theory suggests that television plays a significant role in shaping conceptions of social reality (Gerbner 1969). The combined effect of substantial television exposure by viewers over time subtly forms the perception of social reality for individuals and, ultimately, for the culture as a whole. Gerbner argues that the mass media cultivate attitudes and values that are already present in a culture.  This process binds the attitudes and values to the culture. He has argued that television tends to cultivate conventional political perspectives. Gerbner coined this effect ‘mainstreaming’. Cultivation theorists distinguish between ‘first order’ effects, which are general beliefs about the everyday world and ‘second order’ effects that consist of specific attitudes.  There is also a distinction between two groups of television viewers: the heavy viewers and the light viewers. Cultivation theory concentrates on the former, heavy viewers. People who watch a lot of television are likely to be more influenced by the ways in which the world is framed by television programs than are individuals who watch less, especially regarding topics of which the viewer has little personal experience. The concept of resonance describes the exaggerate effect television has on an audience when what people see on television corresponds with a life experience. This double dose of the televised message tends to intensify the cultivation effect.

Agenda Setting Theory (Maxwell McCombs 1972)

McCombs investigated presidential campaigns in 1968, 1972 and 1976. In the research done in 1968 he focused on two elements: awareness and information. Investigating the agenda-setting function of the mass media, he attempted to assess the relationship between what voters in one community said were important issues and the actual content of the media messages used during the campaign. McCombs concluded that the mass media exerted a significant influence on what voters considered to be the major issues of the campaign.  Two basis assumptions that underlie most research on agenda-setting are:

The study of political advertising acts as an extension of the agenda-setting theory.  Researchers such as Marilyn Roberts conduct investigations into the influential impact of political messages on the agenda setting process, particularly in the area of policy formation.

Viewer Response Profile “VRP” (Mary Schlinger 1979)

The VRP gauges affective reactions to advertisements.  It focuses on the emotional component of communication effects and indicates how people feel after seeing a commercial rather than what they know (Beardon and Netemeyer 1999).  The VRP assesses seven functions relating to how people feel about an advertisement, as follows:

Low Involvement “Social Learning” (Herbert Krugman 1965)

The low-involvement follows the hierarchy sequence of cognitive-conative-affective or learn-do-feel.  In this sequence, a consumer first becomes aware of a product before purchasing it.  After the purchase, their experience with the product then creates an attitude.  Social learning theory states that when the audience in not involved in a message, attitude change is unlikely based on that message.  A key construct of the social learning theory is its suggestion that repetition of a message accompanied by low-involvement results in cognitive change, namely memory.  Krugman's theory argues that when audience members are not highly involved, advertising can only serve to increase product awareness among them (Krugman, 1965).  However, he also states that when there is very little difference between the alternatives, mass media may play a larger influential role.

Conditional Effects

Elaboration Likelihood Model “ELM” (Richard Petty and John Cacioppo 1980)

Petty and Cacioppo (1980) ELM is predicated on the idea that attitudes guide decisions and other behaviors, and thus are the most important factor of behavioral change.  While the duo concedes that attitudes result from a number of sources, they theorize persuasion as the primary source.  Building on these assumptions their ELM presents two routes of persuasive influence: central and peripheral.   The ELM provides an explanation for the differences found in persuasive communications.  Some messages contain detailed cogent information, while others depend heavily on basic constructs coupled with highly visual cues regarding an object, action, or circumstance.  Petty and Cacioppo viewed an individual’s level of involvement as the key to how a message would be processed.  A person’s involvement foretold the extent of their elaboration -- evaluation, recall, critical judgment, and inferential judgment are all encompass elaboration.  When people are motivated and able to think about the content of a message, elaboration is high. In a state of high elaboration messages are processed via the central route.   Conversely, the peripheral route is utilized when under a low elaboration state. When processing via the peripheral route persuasion is not guided by message assessment, as in the case of the central route.  Instead, the receiver decides to follow a principle or a decision-rule which is derived from the persuasion situation.  Persuasion may occur within either route. However the content of the message must correlate with the level of elaboration.  Under high elaboration (central route) messages should include compelling information that is highly relevant to the subject matter, while messages that will be processed with low elaboration (peripheral route) should consist of applicable cues.

Social Cognitive Theory (Albert Bandura 1986)

The social cognitive theory (SCT) seeks to describe the process of acquiring and maintaining behavioral patterns (Bandura, 1991).  While human behavior has generally been espoused as a product of the environment or as a function of physiological composition, SCT posits that behavioral change is influenced by three factors: people, behavior, and environment (Bandura, 1991).  The relationship between these three factors is not static, but rather one factor is constantly influencing the others; meaning behavior is not simply the result of the environment and the person, and the environment is not simply the result of the person and behavior (Glanz et al, 2002). The environment factor encompasses both social and physical dimensions.  The social environment is composed of social networks, wherein families, friends, and co-workers dwell, and the physical environment is represented by the conditions and aspects that define a specific area, such as the size of a room or the furniture that resides within it.  Another key assumption of SCT is its agentic perspective.  People are not just viewed as merely reactive organisms, but as having the capacity to act in self-organizing, proactive, self-reflecting, and self-regulating ways, and as a consequence of these capacities individuals shape and are shaped by social systems (Bandura, 2001).

The SCT describes communication systems as operating through one of two routes; direct or socially mediated.  Under the direct route the communication system speak directly to participants and promotes change by directly informing, enabling, motivating, and guiding them.  However, via the socially mediated route media effects are carried out through community settings and social networks, which “provide natural incentives and continued personalized guidance, for desired change” (Bandura, 2001).

 Convergence of Interpersonal & Mass Communication

The convergence of media has (and will continue) to transform the landscape of communication.  No longer are the channels of communication distinctly interpersonal or mass media based, through technological advances mass communication devices are now able to function as outlets for interpersonal communication as well.  A prime example of communicative integration via media convergence is the Internet, which combines the resources of telecommunication with the computer.  Users of the Internet are provided access to a myriad of media content that was once only available through distinct channels.  When accompanied by the Internet a computer offers all of the functionality of traditional video, audio, and print mediums.  It can be utilized to view the same mass media based content of television, newspapers, radio, and magazines.  Additionally, through functions like email, chat rooms, and blogs the Internet can also be used as a device of interpersonal communication.  Therefore, the convergence of telecommunication technology with and the computer has resulted in the creation of one medium wherein both mass and interpersonal communication needs can be attended.

The convergence of interpersonal and mass communication continues to progress.  The recent advent of smartphones (i.e. Apple Corporation’s iPhone), provide all the convergence of the Internet and add the benefit of mobility.  Allowing individuals to not only engage in convergence while in a fixed state (sitting in front of their computer), but also while they are on the move -- convergence to-go.  Indeed, the merging of what use to be two divergent communication styles will have lasting effects on how society functions.    

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