Transactional model of communication
The textbook presents communication as simultaneous mutual exchange shaped by each party's frame, not one-way transmission. Meaning is co-created between people in context.
Interplay
3 ideas
Perception and self shape messages
How we perceive others and manage our self-image filters what we send and receive. Effective communication requires awareness of these perceptual and identity biases.
Listening as an active skill
The book distinguishes hearing from the deliberate work of attending, understanding, and responding. Listening is taught as a trainable competency central to relationships.