ABSTRACT
Many have noted the seeming contradiction between the notions that communication between people is: (a) virtually automatic and effortless, and frequently carried out both fluently and successfully with only minimal forethought and planning, and (b) sometimes the product of considerable conscious deliberation, calculation and effort (Kellermann, 1992; Langer, 1978, 1992; Reddy, 1979). Reddy (1979) has argued that the English language itself biases people to think and talk about the process of communication in ways that suggest feelings and ideas are put into words that serve as the vessels to carry meaning from the head of one person to the head of another. This conduit metaphor, as Reddy terms it, implies that communication is automatic and effortless and when it fails, it is primarily the message producer’s responsibility. It is message creators who fail to “put their thoughts into words,” rather than recipients who fail to understand.
