1.How well do the qualities and language Deborah Tannen attributes to men and women equip each sex for the following roles: managers, parents, lawyers, physicians, teachers, friends? Specifically, is one sex better prepared for certain roles than the other sex? If so, is this a problem to be solved or a reality to be lived with?
2.Assess your standpoint. What social group memberships influence it? Which are most influential? How would Sandra Harding and Julia Wood measure your degree of strong objectivity? Do you agree or disagree with their assessment?
3.For many scientists, “objectivity” is an absolute and binary term—in other words, someone is either objective or not. Discuss, then, what Wood and Harding mean when they speak of “strong objectivity” and “weak objectivity.”
4.Some students react strongly to Cheris Kramarae’s criticism of men. In your essay, address the thorny question: Do men mean to mute women? How would Tannen, Wood, and Kramarae answer that question similarly or differently than you do? Whose explanation, if any, do you find most accurate?
5.Write a fictional dialogue putting Cheris Kramarae into conversation with Deborah Tannen. In the dialogue, explore both differences and common ground in the thinking of each theorist.
6.Reflect on your own self-construal. Do you think of yourself in a more individualistic or collectivistic fashion? Does this match the culture in which you were raised or not? Why?
7.Make a list of the three conflict management strategies you most prefer. Then, make a list of the three that you most dislike. Why do you have these preferences? Connect your answer to your cultural background and self-construal.
8.CAT claims that, as a general rule, people respond positively to convergence and negatively to divergence. Can you think of exceptions to this general rule? When might convergence produce negative outcomes? When might divergence produce positive outcomes?
9.Explain the differences among the terms accommodation, divergence, convergence, and maintenance. Provide examples of each behavior.
10.Howard Giles sees CAT as a theory about group identity. Identify three groups to which you belong. How does your membership in these groups influence your communication behavior? When you encounter them, what outside groups are especially likely to encourage you to communicate in ways that support your group identity?
11.Based on your knowledge of CAT, what suggestions would you offer to a person going on a job interview? What should the person do? What should they avoid doing?
12.Co-cultural theory serves as an interesting point of comparison with several other theories, including standpoint theory, muted group theory, communication accommodation theory, and face-negotiation theory. Pick two of these and compare/contrast with co-cultural theory. Where do these theories find common ground with co-cultural theory? Where do they differ?
13.Mark Orbe takes great care not to exalt or ridicule any preferred outcome, but he acknowledges that preferred outcomes have strengths and weaknesses. Analyze each preferred outcome, seeking to identify common benefits and costs associated with each. How might the context of an interaction influence which outcome a co-cultural group member might prefer?
14.Field of experience is a provocative term in co-cultural theory. What is your field of experience as a co-cultural group member, a dominant group member, or perhaps both at different times? Based on this field of experience, what communicative practices are you comfortable enacting? Which would be uncomfortable for you?