Uncertainty Reduction Theory: Uncertainty Reduction Theory by Charles Berger

There are a lot of uncertainties in the world. It is something we cannot avoid, and this is what makes the world fun. In this topic, we will tackle about how uncertainty works in our life and how we manage it.

Charles Berger is the man who formulated the Uncertainty Reduction Theory. He received his B.S. in Psychology from Pennsylvania State University. After completing his undergraduate studies, he attended Michigan State University where he received his M.A. and Ph.D. in Communication.

He is a former president of the International Communication Association, a former editor of Human Communication Research, and a former co-editor of Communication Research. He has published over 100 articles and book chapters. He co-edited the first edition of the Handbook of Communication Science with Steven H. Chaffee.

• New relationships involve uncertainty

• Communication reduces uncertainty

• Motivation to reduce uncertainty increases from the three conditions:

~Anticipation of future interaction: We know we will see them again.

~Incentive value: They have something we want.

~Deviance: They act in a weird way.

Berger borrowed the idea of Shannon and Weaver's Information Theory:

As well as Fritz Heider's Attribution theory:

Behavioral Uncertainty (how to behave?) - there are accepted protocols to ease the stress like good manners.
Cognitive Uncertainty (who is this person?) - acquiring more information about the other.

Verbal Communication - Verbal communication of strangers increase, uncertainty decreases. The more you talk to each other, the lesser you will feel uncertain.

Non-verbal Warmth - Uncertainty reduces when nonverbal affiliative expressiveness increases; when a person shows actions or gestures that signifies he or she is willing to communicate.

Information Seeking - High levels of uncertainty cause increases in information-seeking. When a person seeks information about the other, uncertainty decreases.

Self-Disclosure - Low levels of uncertainty produce high levels of intimacy. When a person opens up anything about him/herself to another person, their uncertainty about each other will decrease.

Reciprocity - High levels of uncertainty produce high rates of reciprocity; more "I told my stories, now tell me yours."

Similarity - People who have similarities or have the same interests will feel less uncertain.

Liking - Low uncertainty level produce increases in liking. If you have something you want from a person or if you like the person, your uncertainty reduces faster.

Shared Networks - Shared communication networks reduce uncertainty, and vice versa. If you follow each other in social media and read each other's posts, you will know more about each other and your uncertainty decreases.

Theorem is a proposition that logically and necessarily follows from two axioms.

From the 8 theorems, Berger formulated 28 theorems.

Message plans are mental representations of action sequences that may be used to achieve goals.

Most social interaction is goal-driven; we have reasons for saying what we say.

Berger switched his research focus to:
The thought process that people go through in order to produce the messages they speak.

Berger labeled his work as "A Plan-Based Theory of Strategic Communication"

Strategy 1: Seeking Information
Three approaches we can use to find out how others might react to our messages:

Passive Strategy - Observing others from a distance on how a person interacts with others; "fly-on-the-wall" tactic.
Active Strategy - Asking a third party for information.
Interactive Strategy - Talking face-to-face with other person and asking specific questions; quickest route to reduce uncertainty.

Strategy 2: Choosing Plan Complexity

Measured in the level of detail the plan includes and the number of contingency plans (back-up) prepared in case the original plan fails.
Having a Plan B or C when the first plan fails.

But enacting a complex plan may also deteriorate the verbal, and nonverbal fluency, and results to loss in credibility.
Because of your different plans, the consistency may lose.

Strategy 3: Hedging

Use of strategic ambiguity and humor to provide a way for both parties to save face when a message fails to achieve its goal.

Using two or more meanings; "Joke!" "Just Kidding!"

Strategy 4: The Hierarchy Hypothesis

The prediction that when people are dissatisfied in their attempts to achieve goals, their first tendency is to alter lower-level elements of their message.

An additional hedge against failure is asking a "true friend" who will critique your action plan before you put it into effect.

AUM is a theory related to URT.

Anxiety/Uncertainty Management Theory by Gudykunst is an intercultural theory that claims high level of uncertainty and anxiety lead to greater misunderstanding when strangers don't communicate mindfully.

Gudykunst's AUM Theory differs in 5 significant ways from Berger's URT

Anxiety - the feeling of being uneasy, tense, worried, or apprehensive about what might happen. Uncertainty is cognitive while anxiety is affective --- an emotion.
Effective Communication - The end goal of AUM theory is effective communication rather than closeness or relational satisfaction. It is the extent to which a person interpreting a message does so in a way that's relatively similar to what was intended; minimizing misunderstanding.
Multiple Causes of AUM - The vast array of axioms which are not shown.
Lower and Upper Thresholds - There's a balance for fear and doubt, and in that balance is where we actually communicate.
Mindfulness - According to AUM, mindfulness is the process of thinking in new categories, being open to new information, and recognizing multiple perspectives.