Social Penetration Theory Of Communication

Our textbook, A First Look at Communication Theory explores communication through interpersonal communication, group and public communication, mass communication, and cultural context. There are thirty-two theories that fall within these four categories and they each explore communication through objective and interpretive approaches. The theories of social penetration and uncertainty reduction both belong to the socio-psychological tradition of communication and fall within the objective approach of interpersonal communication and are researched through experimental data. These two theories evaluate communication 's influence on relationship development.
The social penetration theory was developed by Irwin Altman and Dalmas Taylor. Their theory examines "the process of developing deeper intimacy with another person through mutual self-disclosure and other forms of vulnerability" (Griffin, E, 97). The theory claims that the personality structure of relationship development can be compared to an onion. The onion represents the "layers of beliefs and feelings about self, others and the world; deeper layers are more vulnerable, protected, and central to self-image" (Griffin, E, 97). In other words, the core of the onion is the part of oneself that is of private domain that we protect out of fear of vulnerability, this layer is comprised of our values, self-concepts, unresolved conflicts, and deeply felt emotions. Our outer layers of the onion are the parts of ourselves that we