Advice

Advice is a ubiquitous form of support and influence, exchanged in diverse contexts. Communication scholars have examined how advice recipients evaluate advice, but have done less to explore the breadth of effects it can have. We contrast the “message paradigm” for advice research with three alternative paradigms, each developed primarily by scholars from other disciplines. We then spotlight five directions for future research, integrating elements of the alternative paradigms with communication questions, perspectives, and methods of inquiry. By acquainting our discipline with existing theory and research on advice, we encourage bolder exploration of this consequential interpersonal phenomenon.

it would be best by far

for all people by nature to have complete knowledge,

but if not, since that is not how things lean,

then it is well that they learn from good advice

Sophocles, Antigone ¹