Uncertainty Reduction Theory

• Proponents

  Charles Berger and Richard Calabrese
• Year proposed

  1975
• Different term for Uncertainty Reduction Theory

  Initial Interaction Theory
• Uncertainty Reduction Theory

  Communication is used to reduce uncertainties between strangers engaging in their first conversation together.
• Uncertainty Reduction Theory is based on?

  Information Theory
• According to information theory

  Uncertainty exists whenever the number of possible alternatives in a given situation is high and the likelihood of their occurrence is relatively equal.
• Uncertainty Reduction Theory


  There is a need to reduce uncertainty about others by retrieving information to predict behaviors and actions of each other
• Goal of URT

  When two people meet for the first time, they are primarily concerned with reducing uncertainty and increasing predictability
• Types of Uncertainty

  Cognitive Uncertainty and Behavioral Uncertainty
• Cognitive Uncertainty


  Degree of uncertainty associated with beliefs and attitudes
• Behavioral Uncertainty


  Associated with the difficulty predicting how the other person will react in various situations
• Processes of Uncertainty Reduction

  Proactive Uncertainty Reduction and Retroactive Uncertainty Reduction
• Proactive Uncertainty Reduction


  When a person thinks of ways to communicate before the actual engagement with someone
• Retroactive Uncertainty Reduction 


  When a person tries to explain the behavior of the other person after the encounter
• Nature of Uncertainty Reduction Theory

  URT assumes the dynamic flow of interpersonal relationships in their initial stages. It places communication as the fundamental key to human behavior
• Uncertainty is an aversive state

  It takes a lot of energy to remain and feel uncertain causing cognitive stress
• Information seeking


  It is important to gain predictability and make more engagement. It can be done unconsciously or consciously
• Three stages in initial interactions

  Entry phase is the beginning stage, Personal phase is when interactants communicate more personally and spontaneously, and Exit phase is when interactants decide whether or not to continue interacting with one another
• Examples of challenges in the flow of conversation

  Sensory disabilities
• Challenges in the flow of conversation may affect the host of pre-conditions that interpersonal communication requires like (1) listening skills, (2) nonverbal response cues, (3) and shared language
• According to URT, human behavior is governed by generalizable principles that function in a lawlike manner. People behave in accordance with laws
• Applications of URT in real life

  Workplaces particularly in job transfers, classroom behavior (teacher-student relationships and student-student relationships), social media profiles
• Flaws of the Assumptions of URT

  URT is an axiomatic theory. The theory started with a collection of axioms that are only drawn from past researches and common sense that are just universally accepted
• Critique of URT

  Seeking information about someone is not out of our need to reduce certainty but out of a human’s desire to gain knowledge
• Flaw of URT: People may be uncertain about someone but ut does not mean that we are interested enough to ask them information-seeking questions. Reducing uncertainty is not an individual’s main concern in first encounters but rather, it is the maximization of relational outcomes.
• According to critiques, URT should be reframed and should take into account the importance of PREDICTED OUTCOME VALUE.
• Objective of the study

  Sought to connect the theories between uncertainty reduction theory and mobile interpersonal relationships
• Results of the study

  Online dating is a prime example of mobile interpersonal communication. Uncertainty is reduced through digital information seeking. This way, primary tension is lessened and intimacy can flourish between two individuals