The use of imaginative literature for communication theory construction: Some precautions

1 May 1985

journal article
research article
Published by Taylor & Francis in Quarterly Journal of Speech

Vol. 71 (2) , 218-226
https://doi.org/10.1080/00335638509383730

Abstract

This essay argues against an easy logic that views imaginative literature as empirical data for the construction, proof, or refutation of communication theories. In support of this position, the essay examines the theoretical justification underlying “Soliloquy as Self‐Disclosure” by Lawrence W. Hugenberg, Sr. and Mark J. Schaefermeyer, analyzes the methodological problems of reversibility and verisimilitude, considers the theoretical problem of abstraction from aesthetic structures, and offers four position statements prescribing the use of literature in empirical communication research.

Keywords

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