discussion 3

1. Do you think communication reflects reality or constructs reality?  Does it do both?  Can you think of examples of each?

2. We have looked at the way that symbolic behavior defines the self or your identity.  Is there ever a time when your actions or perceptions are not guided by your symbolic experience?

3. We spend a great deal of time talking about how to keep relationships from falling apart.  What about the termination process?  Is terminating a relationship a skill?  How would one skillfully terminate an intimate relationship?

4. Do you think that organizations can be pathological in the same way individuals can?  What would be an example?

5. We are bombarded by cultural messages telling us we are and what we should want?  Many of us learn to tune this noise out.  What are some of the ways that advertisers try to penetrate our defenses and make us pay attention to what they are saying?