TALKING ABOUT THEORY

1
TALKING ABOUT THEORY

• THE MONSTER AD
• Bormanns Symbolic Convergence Theory

2
FEATURES OF MONSTER AD

• Ad was for Monster.com, an Internet job search
  company
• Showed in SUPER BOWL
• 100 million television viewers worldwide
• 30 sec black and white commercial
• Led to 300 increase in resume searches on
  Monstercom and significant increase in traffic

3
CONTENT OF THE AD

• Pictured children talking about what they wanted
  to be
• But what they said they wanted was clearly not
  anything that anyone would want e.g. I want to
  be a yes man I wanted to be underappreciated
  etc.

4
Explaining Success an Objective Theory

• Schwatz RESONANCE PRINCIPLE OF COMMUNICATION
• Most successful persuasive messages evoke past
  experiences (e.g. contrast between childhood
  dreams and pedestrian reality of work)
• Ad that triggers past experience matches viewers
  own thoughts, feelings, creates resonance.
• Past experience more than the persuasive message
  motivates peoples behavior
• Theory is scientifically testable comparing
  reactions to different ads and asking people
  about the associations that an ad triggers.

5
Explaining Success an InterpretiveTheory

• Kenneth Burkes Redemption Myth
• (1) object of desire fulfillment in work life
  (2) obstacles blocking desire boring work (3)
  motivation to seek the desired object guilt to
  be stuck in dead end (4) means to alleviate the
  guilt theres a better job out there.
• Guilt is roused by perspective by incongruity
  device

6
Bormanns Symbolic Convergence Theory

• This theory applies to communication in small
  group.
• It is about a particular kind of communication,
  namely fantasy theme analysis
• It looks at the relationship between dramatic
  imagery in speech AND group cohesiveness

7
Fantasy Themes

• Fantasy creative and imaginative interpretation
  of events, including reference to events in the
  groups past, speculation about the future, talk
  about life outside the group.
• Fantasies are expressed through stories, jokes,
  metaphors and other imaginative language that
  interprets or places a spin on familiar events

8
Symbolic Convergence

• Symbolic convergence occurs when such fantasies
  meet with positive response e.g. laughter,
  increased energy, upbeat tempo in conversation,
  chaining out thus a fantasy theme.
• Through symbolic convergence a sense of
  community or group consciousness (I, Me
  pronouns give way to Us, Our etc), more
  overlapping speech etc.
• Fantasy themes may cluster e.g amongst ranchers,
  disdain for interfering gun-control lobbyists
  or tree-hugging environmentalists.

9
Objective Evaluation

• Theory explains (e.g. chaotic group behavior),
  answering the question why (fantasy themes
  relieve tensions within group)
• Doesnt predict well when a fantasy will ignite
  and trigger a chain reaction
• Relatively simple
• Difficult to test most groups already have a
  history when do fantasy themes reflect group
  cohesiveness, when do they create it?
• Has practical use value organizational
  communication

10
Interpretive Evaluation

• Offers new understanding of people universal
  patterns of symbol using
• Brings peoples values into the open
• Sometimes fails test of aesthetic appeal
• Establishes community of agreement most
  scholars find use in the theory
• Contributes to social reform merging scientific
  and humanist perspectives.