Two Levels of Dyscommunication: An Analysis by Boolean Role Model

Abstract

This paper, based on the Boolean role model originally proposed by Misumi (1998), analyzes conditions for dyscommunication between actors. We postulate that an actor constructs a role image X based on the finite set of role elements G. After we formulate X as Boolean equations, focusing on the coincidence between the performer’s X’ and the observer’s X”, we introduce judgment rules for dyscommunication. The first level dyscommunication is caused by the discrepancies in G between groups. Based on the simplest two-element model, we prove three theorems about the conditions for it. The second level dyscommunication is the dyscommunication that occurs even when the common G is shared by the groups. It is caused by the diversity of the role image. In the extended three-element model, we investigate some “weighting principles” that extract relatively large specific sets of images, and we find that the “tolerant principle” is effective to avoid inter-group dyscommunication. After the general effectiveness of the principle is proved, the theoretical and practical implications are discussed. The real situation implied in this study is, especially, one of international marriages which have increased recently in rural areas of Japan.