Routledge Handbook of Descriptive Rhetorical Studies and World Languages offers a useful collection of papers that present rhetorical analysis of the discoursal practice in different cultural settings. Covering issues from America to Europe and Asia, and topics from politics to media, education to science, agriculture to literature and so on, the handbook offers something to everyone interested in knowing how language works to guide listeners' interpretations, alter their perceptions and shape their worldviews. The outcome will be a huge number of publications describing the rhetorical conventions and innovations in many walks of life in the global setting. Eventually, a body of knowledge and theory about rhetoric will be formed as a result of increasingly pervasive descriptive rhetorical studies around the globe. The end result is a knowledge database, a solid foundation for rhetorical studies to become an essential discipline in arts and humanities from which to develop formidable theory and applications in areas such as linguistics, literature, history, cultural studies, political science, and sociology. This handbook will be crucial for students and researchers in areas such as literature and linguistics, communication studies, political science, and arts and humanities in general. This book will also be useful to social science, educational, business, law, science and engineering departments, due to its coverage of rhetoric in a multidisciplinary and multilingual context.

This report describes the results of a study that employed a symbolic interactionist perspective to compare and contrast conflict resolution communication approaches used by a countercultural food cooperative and a Greek lettered social organization. As such the food cooperative is recognized as being representative of countercultural perspectives and the Greek lettered social organization is recognized as being representative of dominant culture perspectives. Other normative variables, in relation to the food cooperative and Greek lettered social organization, are also described. Recognition of these normative variables is beneficial in that they provide context for the conflict resolution communication findings and they also reveal behavioral trends within each organization.

Organizations are unique in that they serve as mirrors and molders of the people who compose them. This book examines organizational communication in various types of social contexts: university settings, visionary settings and applied settings. This allows for the reader to appreciate how organizational communication processes can vary within different types of organizational constructs but can also perpetuate recognizable consistencies regardless of the organizational context. The study of communication processes within organizations reveals relevant insights for the reader that can encourage reflection regarding the impact we, as individuals, have on the organizations we affiliate with and the impact such organizations have on us. It is through such awareness that we can adjust our behavior to promote shared understanding and positive outcomes. Thus, the larger social order benefits and a lasting legacy can be left for future generations.

This book presents a history of a spiritual consciousness raising church camp and addresses the role of interpersonal communication in such settings. The lead part of the title "Kum Ba Yah, A Song in the Air" is conveyed to represent two meanings. "Kum Ba Yah" is an African spiritual song, sung at many church camp settings, in that it calls to God with the request that he "come by here" so that the camp participants can feel his presence. "A Song in the Air" is stressed, with this particular group, in that the group meets one week each year but, otherwise, there is little tangible evidence that the group exists. The group comes together once a year, has a meaningful camp program for one week and then dissipates. Camp participants depart and the camp ceases to exist for 51 weeks until they meet again the following year. Participants perceive intense and varied types of camp experiences but, for the most part, the camp has very little impact beyond those that have attended the camp

This book is divided into three sections: 1) Global Impressions; 2) Cross-Cultural Journeys Within the U.S. Culture; and 3) Unique Cross-Cultural Considerations. Global Impressions presents observations from Schnell's visits to the six humanly inhabited continents. The observations are dated and offer insights to the functioning of each culture at a given point in time. Cross-Cultural Journeys Within the U.S. Culture shares his observations of varied locations in the United States that involved unique cultural constructs: a hippie commune, social fraternity, church camp, small college and religion based retreat community. Unique Cross-Cultural Considerations discusses phenomena the cross-cultural traveler can encounter: culture shock, the "open road" as cultural place, and the role of new communication technologies on the evolving cultural context.

This book presents a collection of chapters that describe how mass media has been a social force in various contexts. Section One addresses political contexts that have involved visual images, music and international venues. Section Two focuses on propaganda illustrations where well defined messages have been conveyed to various types of audiences. Section Three emphasizes military scenarios to exemplify how mass media influences impact a single arena of global relations. Section Four describes how the interplay of mass media and diversity has played out in U.S. culture. Section Five highlights how much of the phenomena from the aforementioned sections, and related variables, can have relevance in classroom settings. Section Six offers theoretical speculations regarding future implications of past and present mass media developments.

The crucial role of communication processes in the day-to-day functioning of Air Force personnel is abundantly evidenced via the myriad of interactions that, taken together, result in mission effectiveness and vision for future endeavors. Such processes occur on the interpersonal, group, organizational and mass levels. From the staff sergeant who is interacting with fellow airman about the best way to approach a task to the Air Force Chief of Staff conveying his/her vision regarding future directions for the Air Force, communication processes are the foundation for meanings to be conveyed and for shared understanding to occur. This book is intended to be a guide, at all levels of the Air Force, for the improvement and enhanced understanding of these communication processes so that we (as individuals, groups, organizations & a military branches) can benefit from interacting effectively in Air Force environments.

This book examines communication processes that occur among people, groups, organizations and societies when they interact with culturally different entities. It conveys basic principles in a "foundations" section, applied variables in an "applications" section and possible developments in a "speculations" section. A unique feature of this book is that it focuses on cross-cultural communication as a phenomena with relevance in domestic and international settings. Interaction among people from varied world cultures is recognized as having parallels with interaction among people from varied subcultures (representative of the aforementioned world cultures) within the United States. The author's work with various cross-cultural ventures have taken him outside of the United States on over 55 trips to all the continents except Antarctica. Most notable in that regard has been his work with the U.S. Air Force in China, in Cambodia as a Fulbright Scholar and at the East-West Center in Hawaii as a visiting scholar.

Colonel Jim Schnell (USAF, retired) reveals an inside view of how military attaches function in foreign countries based on his experiences as a military attach in China over a 14 year period. The book is divided into six primary sections. Section One addresses attach work by describing topics the attach can consider during the performance of duties. Section Two works through a variety of areas that illustrate aspects of Chinese culture. Section Three deals with his overall foundation in Asia that includes his work as a Fulbright Scholar. Section Four looks at primary fieldwork considerations that have application in China and other countries. Section Five overviews various angles of U.S. military functioning and how this impacts the work of the attach. Section Six primarily describes Schnell's work as a military contractor after he retired from the Air Force.