Expectancy Violations Theory
1. What proxemic advice would you give to communicators who believe they
are seen as unrewarding?
2. Except for ritual handshakes, touch is often unexpected in casual relationships.
If you don’t know someone well, what is the violation valence you ascribe to a
light touch on the arm, a brief touch on the cheek, or a shoulder hug?
3. EVT suggests that communicator reward valence is especially important when
the violation valence is equivocal. What verbal or nonverbal expectancy violations
would be confusing to you even when experienced in context?
4. EVT and coordinated management of meaning (see Chapter 6) hold diver-
gent assumptions about the nature of knowledge, reality, and communication
research. Can you draw the distinctions?
