One of the field′s most respected scholars advances a dialogic perspective on communication in personal and familial relationships, presenting the next iteration of relational dialectics theory (RDT).
‘This is an excellent book and moves one of the major theories in the social sciences forward in very innovative ways. Indeed, this book extends beyond RDT by addressing limitations in the family, interpersonal, and personal relationships literature. I believe this book will prompt many discussions among theorists and researchers in those areas and has the potential to provide exciting new directions in the study of relationships.’ —Glen H. Stamp, Ball State University
‘Leslie A. Baxter is offering up something here that is desperately needed and fills a big hole for those who adopt RDT as their theoretical framework. . . . I found the conceptual content of the book to be clear, compelling, and provoking. . . . The chapter on contrapuntal analysis is the only one of its kind.’ —Melissa Wood Alemán, James Madison University
Voicing Relationships presents a dialogic perspective on relating, inspired by the dialogism work of the Russian theorist of literature and culture, Mikhail Bakhtin. Written by Leslie A. Baxter, one of the theory′s originators, this groundbreaking book presents the next iteration of the theory, along with a methodological primer for contrapuntal analysis that includes guiding readers through a sample analysis.
Developing a rich palette of dialogic concepts useful in the study of interpersonal communication, the book′s central argument is that meaning making emerges from the clash of competing systems of meaning, or discourses. Relationship communication is embedded in culture, history, difference, and conceptions of the ideal. In addition, the book gives us a method by which to study communication dialogically—contrapuntal analysis.
Key Features
- Centers communication at the heart of relationships with an interdisciplinary focus on communication from fields such as psychology, social work, and sociology
- Offers an up-to-date distillation of two decades of relevant research to organize major findings and issues
- Moves scholars and students beyond simplistic uses of rela tional dialectics or using the dialectical pairs in overly-simplistic ‘cookie cutter’ ways
- Provides scholars and students with guidance in using RDT to guide their own research
Intended Audience
Voicing Relationships is ideal for use in a wide range of courses, such as Interpersonal Communication; Family Studies; Couples, Marriage, and Family; and Counseling.
Table of Content
Preface
1. Introduction
Evaluation of RDT as a Theory
Reworkings: Alternative Framings of Interpersonal Communication
Overview of the Chapters
2. Mikhail Bakhtin, Dialogism, and RDT
Bakhtin’s Life and Selected Key Works
Bakhtin’s Dialogism 1919-1924
Bakhtin’s Dialogism Post-1924
Locating Bakhtin’s Theory of Dialogism in Communication Research
Locating RDT in Bakhtin’s Dialogism
3. Discursive Struggles of Culture
The Utterance Chain
Distal Already-Spokens of Culture
The Discursive Struggle of Integration
The Discursive Struggle of Expression
Conclusion
4. Discursive Struggles of Relational History, Otherness, and Normative Evaluation
The Proximal Already-Spoken: Discursive Struggles of Relational History
The Proximal Not-Yet-Spoken: Discursive Struggles of Otherness
The Distal Not-Yet-Spoken: Discursive Struggles of Normative Evaluation
Conclusion
5. Centripetal-Centrifugal Struggle
Foregrounding Power in Centripetal-Centrifugal Struggle
The Interplay of Discourses
Communication Genres of Discursive Struggle
Conclusion
6. Doing Contrapuntal Analysis
Selecting Texts in Contrapuntal Analysis
Identifying Competing Discourses
Identifying the Interplay of Competing Discourses
A Sample Contrapuntal Analysis: A “Dear Birth Mother” Letter
Conclusion
References
Index
About the Author
About the author
Leslie A. Baxter is F. Wendell Miller Distinguished Professor of Communication Studies at the University of Iowa, where she has taught for 15 years. She has published over 130 books, book chapters, and articles on interpersonal and family communication. She is the recipient of many awards, including, from the National Communication Association, the Distinguished Scholar Award, the Bernard Brommel Family Communication Award, the Charles Woolbert Research Award, the Franklin Knower Article Award, and the Gerald Miller Book Award; the Berscheid-Hatfield Award from the International Association for Relationship Research (formerly INPR); and the inaugural WSCA Scholar Award from the Western States Communication Association.
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