Uncertainty, Information Management, and Disclosure Decisions

This volume integrates scholarly work on disclosure and uncertainty with the most up-to-date, cutting edge research, theories, and applications. Uncertainty is an ever-present part of human relationships, and the ways in which people reduce and/or manage uncertainty involves regulating their communication with others through revealing and concealing information. This collection is devoted to collating knowledge in these areas, advancing theory and presenting work that is socially meaningful. This work includes contributions from renowned scholars in interpersonal uncertainty and information regulation, focusing on processes that bridge boundaries within and across disciplines, while maintaining emphasis on interpersonal contexts. Disciplines represented here include interpersonal, family, and health communication, as well as relational and social psychology. Key features of the volume include: - comprehensive coverage integrating the latest research on disclosure, information seeking, and uncertainty - a highly theoretical content, socially meaningful in nature (applied to real-world contexts) - an interdisciplinary approach that crosses sub-fields within communication. This volume is a unique and timely resource for advanced study in interpersonal, health, or family communication. With its emphasis on theory, the book is an excellent resource for graduate courses addressing theory and/or theory construction, and it will also appeal to scholars interested in applied research.

Tamara D. Afifi (Ph.D., University of Nebraska-Lincoln) is an Associate Professor in the Department of Communication at the University of California, Santa Barbara. She has published over fifty articles and chapters in numerous national and international outlets, and she was the recipient of the Young Scholar Award from the International Communication Association in 2006. Walid A. Afifi (Ph.D., University of Arizona) is an Associate Professor in the Department of Communication at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He is an author of more than 50 articles and chapters, has served as Associate Editor for both the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships and Personal Relationships, and has been active as a member of several editorial boards.

Foreword by Charles Berger (comm., UC Davis)* Introduction Tammy & Walid Afifi (comm; UC Santa Barbara) PART I: UNCERTAINTY Approaches to Interpersonal Uncertainty Uncertainty Management Theory Dale Brashers (comm; Univ. of Illinois)* Theory of Motivated Info. Management Walid Afifi (comm; UC Santa Barbara)* Problematic Integration Theory Austin Babrow (comm; Purdue)* Risk Perception Attitude Framework (Health) Rajiv Rimal (comm; Johns Hopkins)* & Monique Mitchell (comm; Univ. of Maryland)* Personality Differences in Need for Closure Arie Kruglanski (psych; Univ. of Maryland)* Uncertainty, Personality, & Illness Suzanne Miller (psych; Fox Chase Cancer Center)* Information Seeking Model David Johnson (comm; Unv. of Kentucky)* Contexts of Uncertainty Culture, Couple's Coping, & Illness Daena Goldsmith (comm; Lewis & Clark) (tentative yes) Relational Uncertainty Leanne Knobloch (comm; Univ. of Illinois)* Uncertainty & Computer Mediated Communication Art Ramirez (comm; Ohio State Univ.)* & Joe Walther (comm; Michigan State)*    PART II: INFORMATION REGULATION Processes Involved with Information Regulation: Avoidance & Secrets Secrets in Interpersonal Relationships & Families Anita Vangelisti (comm; Texas-Austin)* & John Caughlin (comm; Univ. of Illinois)* Reasons for Secret Keeping & Functions * Catrin Finkenauer (psych; Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam)* Conflict Avoidance Michael Roloff (comm; Northwestern)* Avoidance in Interpersonal Relationships & Families Tamara Afifi (comm; UC Santa Barbara)* Challenges to Disclosure New Approach to Viewing Uncertainty & Info Reg Dawn Braithwaite (comm; Nebraska-Lincoln)* & Leslie Baxter (comm; Iowa)* Privacy & Health Sandra Petronio (comm; IUPUI)* Revisit Ideology of Openness