The Communication Phenomena: Ideas and Definitions

It is acceptable then to say a definition of communication phenomena is the exchange of thoughts and ideas that are observable or observed and takes place In remarkable or arc There isn’t a more powerful example of a communication phenomenon in modern times than the coloratura evolution that has been brought on by the advent Of the mobile telephone. Beginning with the bulky, primitive models of the past and continuing on with today’s advanced smartness, this communication phenomenon has not only had a significant impact on the urban lifestyle, it has also reshaped the urban landscape.

Small group communication, a subfield within the broad field of communication, has been changed significantly in large urban cities because of the mobile telephone. In the times before that technology was available, it was a challenge for an individual to acquire basic information such as the location of the closest bus stop that is still operating in the direction they need to go or even what time the next bus will arrive. This difficulty was amplified if the individual was alone and could not find anyone else to ask, as commonly happens during the late night & early morning hours.

Equipped with a data enabled smartened, an individual simply loads an application or visits a mobile website to find out he basic information they wanted. Additionally, detailed information is available such as GAPS map and navigation data, weather information along the route or even if a particular store along the way has something they are interested in on sale. Even if an individual doesn’t have a complex smart phone there’s a good chance the information will be available via voice- response systems.

Another communication phenomenon that is taking place in both urban centers and rural areas is changes in the efficiency and scope of public address communication systems. Historically, whenever the need arose to communicate information rapidly to a large group of people it was handled in traditional ways. Depending on the time period those methods ranged from men on horses with bullhorns, smoke signals, sirens, radio and eventually broadcast television. While they were considered effective for their time, those methods had varying weaknesses.

Some suffered from large coverage area gaps while others relied on the target audience being within close proximity to the source of the announcement. Mobile telephones have enabled instantaneous nationwide communication via voice and text messaging for the first time in history. Even after satellite technology allowed for nationwide television broadcasts, nothing has been able to specifically target groups of individuals across such vast land areas as quickly and efficiently as mobile telephones are able to.

United States national security has even been bolstered by the newly created Presidential Alert System. Amazingly the President and other designated individuals can compose a message and send it to almost every single smartened in less than 5 minutes. One might think that modern methods of communication using advanced smart devices have caused the biggest communication phenomena in recent decades. However that title has been earned by the first generations of cellular phones that were adopted very quickly by society after they were born in the AT&T Labs in 1983.

Even though they were bulky and the very early models even had separate battery packs, they allowed mankind to finally “cut the cord” thus creating a communication phenomenon so large that caused a technological and social paradigm shift which changed how unmans interact forever. An interesting side-effect of this digital revolution is the negative interpersonal communications phenomena that occur. Prior to information being so easily accessible and available, people communicated verbally with one another in almost every situation in their day to day lives.

Word of mouth was a very common way information was spread. It was not uncommon to barely be able to hear yourself think over the din of conversation anywhere people would congregate such as subway cars, train stations and even busy street corners. Now most people rely on their devices and new media sources for the same information they would get from verbal communication with other people or print media like newspapers.

It’s an almost eerie sight to be on a packed subway car where the only noise you hear is the clicking and notification sounds of smartness supplying the masses with the information they so desire. Occasionally though, as if the energy of times past was able to manifest itself, there will be an event significant enough to cause many people on that train to be notified at once. Then you start to hear muffled conversation confirming the information with a fellow passenger. That muffled verbal communication quickly turns into an all-out discussion of the event.

For a brief period of time it’s as if the devices didn’t exist, however almost as quickly as it started, the passengers realize that they want more information and grow silent as they head back to their various digital streams of information. Utilizing the Non research methods of quasi-experiments & pre-experiments from our textbook, there are several different ways to explore how the communications phenomena that mobile loopholes have created effects the process and outcome of scenarios in daily life.

Using the quasi-experiment method, which uses pre-tests to see where subjects are in reference to the variables tested, our two subjects are both in a large city around BPML and have to locate a bus Stop where they can catch a bus heading in their required direction of travel. Subject A has a smartened with all the current technology such as GAPS sensors, navigation technology and a “Find my Bus” type application provided by the local transportation authority. Subject B has no cell phone or means to communicate outside of the people and places in her immediate vicinity.

They are both less than a mile away from a bus stop in a safe well-lit area that will get them a direct bus to their destination. Subject A is in their office getting ready to leave for the day. They decide they want to stop at a restaurant on their way home and get some take-out food for dinner and surprise their family. In order to accomplish this goal, they simply take out their smartened and enter in the destination addresses of their home and the assistant.

The application(s) plot the locations of all relevant bus stops that are close along with the connecting bus information when they reach the restaurant. Simple walking directions are also provided in relation to their location. Since the closest bus stop is only a 10 minute walk away they are able to stay in their office until right before they have to head out, When the time comes they leave their office and have an uneventful walk to the bus stop and make it to the restaurant on time to pick up the food and make it to their connecting bus home.