UNCERTAINTY REDUCTION THEORY

Uncertainty Reduction Theory’s aim is to understand and see how people act and react to each other during the first encounter. Uncertainty often occurs when two strangers first meet because it is normal for people to be uncomfortable at first. When this happens, they try to increase predictability. However, when they both interact with each other, the discomfort usually decreases as communication continues. Over time, as the relationship develops, and intimacy increases, the uncertainty decreases (Griffin, 2012).

For example :

I am taking one of my favorite movies as an example ; Guess Who starred by Ashton Kutcher as Simon Green, his girlfriend, Zoe Saldana as Theresa and Theresa’s father, Bernie Mac as Percy Jones.

Percy Jones, an African-American, is very protective of his daughter and her future, Theresa. 

So one day, Theresa decided to introduce her boyfriend, Simon Green to her parents. Percy Jones know that his daughter is dating someone who has a promising future; great job, good investments but little did he know, Simon Green is white.

When Theresa brought Simon home to meet her parents, her father was surprised to know that Simon is white. Percy Jones did not approve his daughter dating Simon because he is white. He interrogated Simon to make him feel that he is not good enough for his daughter. There is never a steady interaction between Percy Jones and Simon because of the uncertainty they both feel which makes them to feel uncomfortable with each other.

During the dinner, it started awkwardly but eventually the family started to like Simon because they think his jokes are funny. In this case, Simon tried to impress Theresa’s family by making jokes. So in this case, the uncertainty decreases until he unconsciously made an offensive black joke because he gets so nervous. The family was so angry that they kicked him out of the house and suggested him to stay at the hotel. But it is unfortunate for the family the hotel was full and Simon had to sleep in the basement with Percy Jones. They never got over their differences until the family members got fed up with their attitudes and decided to get out of the house and stay at their relatives.

During this phase, both Percy Jones and Simon Green, they talked over their differences and worked things out. In this case, their uncertainty level started to increase and they started to feel comfortable with each other.

However, Uncertainty Reduction Theory did state that when two strangers meet, the first thing they seek is to reduce uncertainty (The Glaring Facts, 2011). In this example, it does not exemplify the stated theory because although Simon Green wanted to be approachable and acted nicely, Percy Jones, did not even try to communicate; to reduce certainty when he met Simon Green for the first time.

Griffin, E. (2012) A First Look At Communication Theory. Wheaton : McGraw Hill. 

The Glaring Facts (2011). Uncertainty Reduction Theory. Accessed on 14th April 2012 from http://www.theglaringfacts.com/communications/comm-theories/uncertainty-reduction-theory/