Communication Theory as a Field (original) (raw)

"Communication Theory as a Field" is a 1999 article by Robert T. Craig, attempting to unify the academic field of communication theory. Craig argues that communication theorists can become unified in dialogue by charting what he calls the "dialogical dialectical tension", or the similarities and differences in their understanding of "communication" and demonstrating how those elements create tension within the field. Craig mapped these similarities and differences into seven suggested traditions of communication theory and showed how each of these traditions understand communication, as well as how each tradition's understanding creates tension with the other traditions.