A definition of the situation identifies what participants understand to be happening and which actions make sense within it. Definitions may be compatible or contested, so behavior that looks irrational from one standpoint can become intelligible once the participants’ own definition of the situation is reconstructed.
- Entry typeKey concept
- Category of its source unitParadigms, Traditions & Metatheories
- DomainMeaning & Clarity
What these mean
Editorial orientation · Entry type
Key concept
Key concepts are the working vocabulary of the field: the terms that the models and tools rely on and that a decision about communication has to use precisely. Each entry defines the term and sends you to the brief or the self-guided audit where it is put to work.
Editorial orientation · Category
Paradigms, Traditions & Metatheories
Provides a broad intellectual perspective within which multiple concepts, theories or investigations are developed. Traditions carry histories and commitments; metatheories examine how theories themselves are organized or related.