Chapter 6: Expectancy Violations Theory

Chapter 6 focuses on Expectancy Violations Theory (EVT) with a concentration on personal space violations. Em Griffin uses the journal article of Judee Burgoon, a communication scholar at the University of Arizona, to reiterate his thoughts on personal space violations, and also gives an example of these violations when taking place in the classroom. Burgoon defined personal space as the "invisible, variable volume of space surrounding an individual that defines that individual's preferred distance from others," (84). In other words, everyone has a specific amount of space that others can approach, but once that space is invaded, depending on the content of the conversation and the likeability of the other communicator, lines can be crossed and good communication ceases to exist.
The use of proxemics, meaning "the study of people's use of space as a special elaboration of culture," (84), has a lot to do with the way Griffin reacted to his students. Two of the students made him feel comfortable, and two made him feel violated. The example of this theory helped me relate it to my own life. My mother, a fifth grade teacher at Canfield Middle School, comes home with stories like this on a regular basis. If her students are sitting far away from her when asking her about what assignment is due, or what they missed when they were sick, she becomes annoyed. She feels a discussion like that should take place after class, when she can speak to them one-on-one. On the other hand, if one of her students happens to lose a tooth, she wants no part of it and appreciates them to stay away from her, excuse themselves, and go to the bathroom to take care of it. It seems harsh, but the reality of it is that she has her own area of comfortability, and when it is crossed, communication is no longer as clear as it should be. This can also be applied to my life when it comes to males. If a guy came up to me who I barely knew, put his arm around me and said, "Hey, baby. How you doin?", I would immediately be turned off and want no part of the conversation. The intimacy factor would make me feel very awkward and send the message to my head that he was rude, unintelligent, and a pervert.
The Chapter goes into three important terms when dealing with EVT: context, relationship factors, and communicator characteristics. Context deals with cultural norms, and how these norms differ in certain countries, (Ex: Three feet is too close in England or Germany, yet too far away in Saudi Arabia) (89). Relationship factors deal with how one feels about someone else. For example, I would not mind my mother, friend, or boyfriend speaking to me at an intimate level because I have close relationships with all of them. Communicator characteristics include age, sex, place of birth, physical features and personality. A warm personality is certainly more appealing than someone who is unsociable and cold; and a bright, straight smile is more eye-catching than a crooked, discolored one. These characteristics catch the attention of the "receiver" and force them to either accept or reject the messages being sent to them.
The final topic I felt was important in Chapter 6 was Social Penetration Theory. This theory asks, "What can you do for me?" and also "What can you do to me?" (91). Burgoon uses the term communicator reward valence when referencing our potential gains and losses from a conversation. If a professor was discussing an extra credit assignment in class, I would give them my full attention because this opportunity could benefit my grade. However, if a professor was giving a lecture on the anatomy of the human body, I would not be as interested, and my attention would be somewhere else.
The content of Chapter 6 makes a lot of sense when thinking about how conversations can be affected by violations of personal space. When applied to my own life, I understand the main points of Expectancy Violations Theory and how it is of great importance to the field of Communications.