Expectancy Violation Theory

What comes to mind when you hear the word violate? By definition, the term violate means to treat (something sacred) with irreverence or disrespect, to fail to respect (someone's peace, privacy, or rights) and to break or fail to comply with (a rule or formal agreement). Violation is a term that often carries a negative connotation. However, what most people do not account for is a positive violation. Another way Expectancy Violations Theory is flawed is that it often does not assume that a violation is positive. A huge fault in the theory is that it assumes that most violations are negative. Typically when you hear someone say “I feel violated” one would automatically assume that it was a negative violation. Contrary to a widespread belief …show more content…
It shows how individuals respond to unanticipated violations of social norms, or in other words, expectations. Of all the communication theories, this communication theory offers us the best understanding of our need for other people and our own personal space. Burgoon performed her series of test and observations only on western culture. “The content of the expectations and the consequences of violations may vary across groups and cultures but that the existence of expectations, the valencing of interactants along a reward continuum, the dual interpretation-evaluation appraisal process, the reaction to violations, and the potential for positive violations should be universal” (Burgoon, J. K. (2009). By concentrating her studies and tests to western culture, Burgoon failed to account for eastern cultures and the certain types of social norms that are present in Eastern cultures. Eastern cultures have social norms that are far different from that of western cultures.
In both Chinese and American culture, baseball is a huge sport. However, both American and Chinese cultures differ on many levels. Many faults of Expectancy Violations theory can be seen in the realm of baseball due to the international scope of the game. These faults are …show more content…
He posed the question “Will an individual reciprocate or match someone's unexpected behavior, or will that individual compensate or counteract by doing the opposite of that person's behavior?” (Gutenberg, P.). Due to Expectancy violations not accounting for other cultures, the coach and player were not aware of how to approach the situation. In the situation of the American coach and the Chinese Player, the player was unaware of how to respond to his coach. According to Gutenbergs study, the player should either reciprocate the language back to his coach, or counteract by doing the opposite of that person’s behavior. Due to the fact that Expectancy Violations does not cross cultural borders, the player froze and was unable to react in any way which the theory does not account for. If Expectancy violations theory was true for all cultures then the player would have known how to handle the