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Communication Goal Theories

A goal is some desired end or state of affairs that an individual desires to attain or maintain. Desires become interaction goals when communication and coordination with another are required for goal achievement. The majority of our communication with others is goal directed. We pursue goals as we seek to form relationships, convince others of our position, or work to accomplish a task. Goals are a cognitive phenomenon; merely thinking about a goal is not enough to achieve a desired end. The achievement of a goal requires some sort of action designed for attainment. Planning consists of producing one or more mental models detailing how a goal might be achieved through interaction. The products of goals and plans are the overt behaviors produced in service of a goal. Goals affect all levels of behavior ranging from the content and structure of verbal messages to nonverbal behaviors. This entry explores theoretical explanations of goals and plans and the ways these cognitive processes inform communication.

Forming Goals

Theories of goal-driven behavior locate goals within a goals-plans-action (GPA) sequence initiated by the activation of goal-related concepts from memory. Greene's action assembly theory and Wilson's cognitive rules model assume that goal-relevant information, including knowledge about goals and situational features relevant to each goal, is stored as nodes within an associative network in long-term memory. The network of goal-relevant information includes concepts such as people, traits, relational qualities, and desired outcomes.

In a given communication situation, relevant concepts are activated in memory. For example, when one is with a romantic partner, concepts related to relationships, romance, and anything relevant to the specific partner may be activated. If one wanted to convince a partner to go to dinner at a certain restaurant, concepts related to persuading the other would be activated as well. Activation is a necessary but not sufficient condition for goal formation. Concepts have an activation threshold, whereby a goal is not formed unless a certain level of activation is received. The probability of particular goal-relevant information being activated is based on three criteria: fit, strength, and recency. For fit, there need to be a large number of goal-related concepts that are relevant to the current situation. The strength of the activation is determined by how frequently the concepts have been activated in the past; information that has been triggered frequently in the past possesses a stronger activation level than does content that has not been activated as much. Finally, recency is defined by when the concepts were last activated, with more recently activated concepts being more accessible in memory than those that have not been activated as recently. Goals are a cognitive product of this activated information, such that what constitutes a goal is assumed to be reflective of the most situationally relevant and appropriate information.

Types and Properties of Goals

There are three general types of goals that people seek to achieve through interpersonal communication. Self-presentation or identity goals reflect concerns about the image of who we are and how we want to be perceived by others. Relationalgoals include desires to develop, maintain, or neglect particular relationships. Instrumental concerns involve obtaining some sort of tangible resource, getting others to do us a favor, or accomplishing some sort of task. These goals often co-occur or shift between one another. Communication is often framed by an instrumental goal such as problem solving or gaining compliance from another, yet identity or relational concerns often become more salient throughout a discussion. For example, a common problem among roommates concerns keeping their apartment clean. One roommate may confront another with the instrumental goal of figuring out a way to solve the problem of cleaning the apartment. However, consider if the other roommate replies, “You are such a slob; it's like we live in a barn!” In response, the roommate may consider it more important to pursue a self-identity-related goal to reestablish that he or she is a neat and good person instead of the initial instrumental concern. This shift in goals during a conversation reflects a shift in goals from proactive (i.e., goals that guide a discussion) to reactive (i.e., goals in response to another).

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