Communication Usually Fails, Except by Accident

Wiio's law, essentially a result of long observation, is given some theoretical underpinning by the present framework.

At the level of the single communicative event, much can go wrong. If we add to this, that communication is often made subservient to something else, it would be amazing if it didn't go wrong.

The matrix-table below summarizes the elemental errors and special difficulties according to Level. The errors cumulate as you rise up the hierarchy to what seems most important.

This Matrix summarizes propositions about each elemental Level. Note that the functions for the Sender and Recipient are shown combined.

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L	Process &  Structure	Function	Errors S= Sender R = Recipient	Special Difficulties
7	To be Open & Openness	To activate an experiential state that maintains the potential for sending &/or receiving meaningful messages.	S & R: Not recognizing one's own limitations. +  all lower level errors.	Lack of curiosity; personal inhibition; socio-cultural repression.
6	To Mean & Meaning	To embed a sense of something in the content of a communicative event: the sender generates and the recipient attributes within a specific context.	S & R: Assuming others are identical to oneself (i.e. lack of a shared language). + all lower level errors.	Indirect styles of expression; use of idiosyncratic or outdated expressions.
5	To Name & Term (syn. label)	To use something to make specific reference to an object of experience—outer, inner, virtual or imaginary—for use in a social context; or regard it as so doing.	S & R: Lack of discrimination (i.e. sloppy use of terms). +  all lower level errors.	Inability or unwillingness to make useful discriminations; lack of vocabulary.
4	To Symbolize & Symbol	To use something to represent and evoke ideas from a different domain of discourse; or regard it as so doing.	S: Assuming a non-informed recipient understands. R: Insensitivity or literal-mindedness + all lower level errors.	Degeneration of the symbol; poor cultural awareness; lack of conversational experience; schizophrenia.
3	To Signify & Sign (syn. signifier)	To use something to indicate or suggest something else within a single domain of discourse; or regard it as so doing.	S: Assuming a non-informed recipient understands. R: Mistake (e.g. misattribution) + all lower level errors.	Lack of knowledge of the relevant domain &/or social context.
2	To Signal & Signal	To use a specific stimulus or pattern of stimuli to convey a specific content or message; or regard it as so doing.	S: Not expecting people to depend on it. R: Ignorance + Inattention (L1).	Entering a social environment and not knowing essential rules.
1	To Stimulate & Stimuli	To use the elemental biological means for sending or receiving any message.	S: Insufficient or inappropriate stimulation. R: Inattention.	Biological damage e.g. blindness, deafness. Autism.

The sheer number of potential errors in any communicative event combined with the numerous events in a complex communication make Wiio's law unsurprising.

If you cannot communicate successfully, you can at least increase the odds of accidental success. Formulations of Communication Frameworks within THEE seek to provide some useful insights to this end.

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Other Review Options ►

• For the diligent: another check for hierarchy.
• Focus on the communicative event and the role of critical factors, like context and the reference group.
• How precision and ambiguity reveal that communication is often made subservient to other demands.
• how elements of experience fit with elements of communication
• Focus on words and how they fit within communicative events.
• More focus on receptivity..

Originally posted 27-May-2011; Last updated 25-Jul-2011.