The Effects of Theory on Reality in the Communication Sciences

Abstract

Summary: Social science theories are being progressively put into practice in ways which bear directly upon 'real life' .The communication sciences are a useful tool for analysing this phenomenon. Theories of communication lie at the heart of at least three effects on reality: the belief in communication as all-powerful, the revision of certain professional ways of thinking, and the creation of new areas of specialization within education. A study of the influences which produce these effects leads to two types of interpretation. The 'mechanistic model' stresses the direct diffusion of knowledge from academics, through professionals, to the public at large, but its limits lie in the inherent remoteness of the adademic world, the blurred distinction between researchers and professionals and the incomprehensibility of the messages.