Areas of Study

students at table

Areas of Study

The graduate program in the Department of Communication Studies at the University of Texas at Austin is divided into three primary areas of study. Read more about the areas below.

Interpersonal Communication

Interpersonal Communication involves the study of both the processes and effects of social interaction, usually in face-to-face situations. Both verbal and nonverbal behaviors are studied in laboratory and naturalistic contexts. Cognitions, emotions, and discourse patterns occurring during conflict, lying, and persuasion are some of the factors commonly studied. Communication in health-related contexts as well as personal and family relationships are two important contexts in which theories are applied.

Interpersonal Faculty

 

Interpersonal Graduate Coursework

Interpersonal Communication Theory
Dark Side of Interpersonal Communication
Nonverbal Communication
Advocacy
Stress and Coping
Managing Health Information
Conflict and Communication
Discourse Analysis
Communication and Ethnography
Language, Communication & Cultural/Social Conflict
Language, Persuasion/Social Influence
Communication, Cognition & Emotion
Family Communication
Communication in Relationships
Quantitative Research Methods
Qualitative Research Methods

Organizational Communication and Technology

Organizational Communication is the study of human interaction within complex organizations, and the management of organizational behavior. Course work in organizational communication offers both qualitative approaches to data analysis (category development and descriptive observation techniques) and quantitative approaches (measurement, psychological categories, and behavioral science research designs). The faculty views these approaches as complementary; many students attempt to achieve mastery in both modes.

Organizational Communication and Technology Faculty

 

Graduate Courses

Organizational Communication Theory
Dialogue
Groups, Teams and Communities
Communication Technology in Organizations
Communication, Power and Inequality 
Time Matters
Work and Technology  
Grant Writing
Practice Theory
Qualitative Research Methods
Measurement


Rhetoric, Language, & Political Communication