ABSTRACT
The study of human communication has a long and distinguished history. We can safely say that, since humankind rst acquired the ability to communicate through verbal and nonverbal symbols and norms, people have “studied” communication. Indeed, one advantage we hold over other animals is the ability to communicate abstractions such as time, place, and space as though each was a concrete object. Thus, since the beginning of our time, we have studied human communication-albeit unscienti cally at rst, but through more formal systems as we came to better understand both the role of communication in society and its role in daily activity. The importance of the study of human communication is found in its inclusion in educational programs since the rst formal schooling systems were developed over 5,000 years ago.
