Running Head: INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 1

Influence of Communication in How I Met Your Mother

Joshua W. DeGrasse-Baumann

Carroll University

INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 2

Abstract

This study compares conversations in How I Met Your Mother to existing research on communication and conflict, particularly focused on directness of communication about conflict.

Through a content analysis, 30 episodes of the first eight seasons were sampled and coded for various aspects of communication affecting conflict between the main characters. Though results showed that the sitcom largely differed from extant research, there is some overlap could be worth another look, especially when considering the constraints often faced by television shows. INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 3

Influence of Communication in How I Met Your Mother

Situational comedies act as representation of at least some aspect of our society. As a result, they likely contain representations of how our society communicates. Shows, like How I

Met Your Mother, offer researchers an opportunity to explore not only how we communicate, but also how that communication is perceived by mass media. Though shows are scripted, the content comes from actual human beings and is typically expected to be plausible, which suggests that even television shows follow some communication norms.

Literature Review

Media as Representation

There is a precedent in communication research for using television shows as subjects.

As a form of media, television shows are also a form of communication. However, they also typically include content about communication. The somewhat meta nature of these programs offer interesting research opportunities in the field. As Donald Shields and Virginia Kidd argue in their study of The Poseidon Adventure, media is “the presentation of a total communication event offering visual, auditory, emotional, and intellectual involvement” (1973). It allows for hypothetical situations to play out in a repeatable way. Shields and Kidd found in their study that the film they chose was a suitable outlet for education on small groups, given the films content, suggesting that discussion about popular media could lead to otherwise unasked questions, whether through different interpretations or the accuracies of the portrayals.

Other studies have also used media as a backdrop for a communication study, such as

Jennifer Gray’s 2007 study about the interpersonal illness experiences in Sex and the City. The study concluded that, while not a perfect comparison, the shows treatment of breast cancer has at least some accurate comparisons to a real life scenario, despite focusing more heavily on certain INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 4 aspects (Gray, 2007). While not all shows will have the same levels of accuracy, Neal Norrick and Alice Spitz argued that “[t]he principles, norms and conventions of use which underlie ordinary conversation are the resource that writers use to create dialogue” (Norrick & Spitz,

2010, pg. 84).

Similar studies have argued that, because television has become such a significant part of daily life, viewers will often reflect what they see in their favorite programs. These television shows often create social norms that are followed in society, whether accurate or not. The current study seeks to look at the accuracy of those portrayals. In a study on the portrayal of romantic conflict in adolescent television, for example, researchers argued that if viewers are influenced in their communication by what they see on television, inaccurate portrayals could change communication patterns over time (Sherry & Desouza, 2005). While there are no certainties in communication, television shows that stray from expert opinion may offer further research opportunities about how and why the communication varies.

Even fictional portrayals indicate and influence communication patterns. Shows like

How I Met Your Mother, which focus on small groups of friends, offer interesting research opportunities to explore the various intricacies of communication as they often utilize them at some point during the show’s run. Television as a medium can help demonstrate how communication is affected by various aspects of different levels of communication in ways that might be too complex to study in non-controlled environments.

Conversational Directness

Previous research has given many names to what, for the purposes of this study, will be referred to as conversational directness, or the degree to which a conversation is actually addressing the conflict it is about. A study in 2005, for example, defined the term equivocation INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 5 as “the use of vague, ambiguous, or nonstraightforward communication” (Bello, 2005, pg. 285).

Other topics that are similar-enough in scope include avoidance, defined in one study as

“people’s reluctance to truly engage in a potentially conflict-inducing topic” (Afifi, McManus,

Steuber, & Coho, 2009, pg. 357), and to some degree, self-disclosure, defined in another study as “a general willingness to become vulnerable, to become known to the other person in a positive, unambiguous manner” (Fahs, 1981, pg. 41). The question is whether or not the directness of a conversation has an impact on that conversations influence on the concerned issue.

The study on avoidance found that avoiding conflict often led to dissatisfaction with relationships, which can become a self-fulfilling prophecy, leading to further avoidance (Afifi,

McManus, Steuber, & Coho, 2009). Further studies have suggested similarly, arguing that indirectness in conversations is used as a way to prevent certain negative results, such as harm to self-presentation (Afifi & Guerrero, 1998). That study found that “concern for protecting the self was the only motivating factor that significantly predicted avoidance in all friendship sex combinations” (Afifi & Guerrero, 1998), suggesting that indirectness was used as a means to protect from potential harm more than anything else.

Further indications that indirectness in conversation tends to lead to negative effects was also found in the 1998 study by Afifi and Guerrero. They found that, generally, as two people become closer to each other, they tend to utilize indirect conversations less, suggesting that indirectness can keep people from truly bonding (Afifi & Guerrero, 1998).

Shows like How I Met Your Mother offer the opportunity to examine the directness of conversations between different groups of friends, about a variety of different issues. Television INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 6 can use conversational directness for dramatic effect, and it is that use of those conversations that the present study looks at.

Differences in Relationships

Different levels of communication stem from variety in the types of relationships people have. Relationships between any two people are unique. Different circumstances lead to different kinds of friendships or romances or rivalries. These differences make communication more complex. There are no guarantees that any one method is going to work for any given situation. However, previous research has indicated trends in certain types of relationships that subconsciously help guide people in their everyday lives.

In a 2008 study by Andy Merolla, results indicated that there were subtle differences in the types of forgiveness offered when the recipient changed. Merolla studied three types of forgiveness: direct, indirect, and conditional. His results indicated that romantic partners were more likely to offer conditional forgiveness to each other than to a friend, but also that they were more likely to indirectly forgive friends rather than approach the situation directly. While his results were not statistically significant, Merolla argued that the minor differences implied underlying emphasis in the types of relationships. Whereas romantic couples would want to make sure their relationship is worth ensuring the issue does not arise again, through conditional forgiveness, friends would be more likely to deemphasize the issue as a whole in order to more quickly move past it, thus using indirect forgiveness (Merolla, 2008).

Differences in sex might also create differences in communication, especially when it comes to conflict. Tara Emmers-Sommer’s research on negative relational events looked at how three different kinds of pairings viewed potential conflicts: same-sex friends, opposite-sex friends, and romantic partners. The results indicated that there were significant differences in the INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 7 types of issues the different groups were concerned about (Emmers-Sommer, 1999). Similarly, a

2005 study indicated that there are differences in the level of formality influences the way in which people act. The researchers of that study found that, because of the differences in imagined relationships, respondents varied their responses, specifically their use of equivocation, significantly depending on who they were talking to (Bello, 2005).

Emmers-Sommer’s study further reinforced ideas in the 1998 study by Afifi and Guerrero mentioned previously in that differences in sex may affect conversational directness. The researchers found in that study that, generally, people were more likely to use indirect conversation with males over females. Interestingly, the study’s results suggested that men and women, overall, tended to use similar levels of directness, but varied on the types of things they were direct about. The most notable difference was that men tended to be less direct in conversations about friendship with other men than women did (Afifi & Guerrero, 1998). Afifi

& Guerrero also suggested that opposite-sex friends may disclose less with each other because of potential threats seen to romantic partners, though they did not expand on this much (1998).

Still, there appear to be measurable differences between same-sex friends and opposite-sex friends.

Television shows like How I Met Your Mother examine these different types of relationships through the use of different types of characters, whether its love interests or best friends of varying sexes, providing insight into how the different types of relationships are portrayed on television.

Meta-Communication

This study also briefly looks at the use of meta-communication in How I Met Your

Mother. Though a marital conflict study suggested that the frequency of meta-communication INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 8 does not generally indicate any effects on conflict one way or the other (Gottman, Markman, &

Notarius, 1977), there has been relatively little research done linking meta-communication to conflict. While this study only briefly looks at the topic, results might point towards future research.

The present study’s view of meta-communication is based solely on whether said types of communication are present or not. This is based partially on a description by a description by

Helen Newman, who suggested that there were differences between interpreted and intentional communication, referring to the former as ambiguous and the latter as explicit (Newman, 1981).

The scope of this study does not include interpreted communication, but instead looks at the directness of conversation about meta-communication, if present at all.

Research Questions

The present study examines How I Met Your Mother in order to look at how different levels of communication are represented on the show. The complexities of communication are explored through hypothetical situations as they play out during individual episodes, looking at how they affect conflict between the characters. The study seeks to answer two questions.

RQ1: How does How I Met Your Mother use communication to influence conflict?

RQ2: Does the communication for conflict resolution in How I Met Your Mother

realistically portray previous research done by communication professionals?

Method

Through a content analysis, this study looked at how How I Met Your Mother uses two different levels of communication to affect conflict within the show. The study used a mixed methods approach that relied primarily on quantitative data, but collected some qualitative data as well. Using mixed methods allowed for objective data collection in addition to context based INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 9 analysis, both of which contributed to comparing the fictional uses of communication to their actual applications towards conflict resolution.

Sample Selection

The sample for this study was selected entirely from the first eight seasons of How I Met

Your Mother. The final season was ongoing at the time of the study and was not included. Of the 184 episodes in those seasons, 30 were sampled (roughly 16 percent). Every sixth episode, taken in chronological order, was included in the sample, starting with the sixth episode of the first season and going until 30 episodes had been selected.

Within those 30 episodes, conversations were sampled if they met several criteria.

Conversations had to include at least two of the original main characters and include some form of conflict directly relevant to at least one of the original main characters. Intrapersonal conversations and conversations that did not contain conflict relevant to the original main characters were not sampled. These criteria allowed the study to focus on interpersonal and small group communication as a means of affecting conflict. In total, 276 conversations were included in the sample (about 9 conversations an episode).

Materials

A coding sheet (Appendix A) was developed specifically for this study based on previous research included in the literature review. Qualitative data was collected on situational information related to the conversation’s conflict and other potential factors. Quantitative data was collected on situational information about the characters and their relationships and how the conversation affected the conflict it was about. The coding sheet also collected data on whether or not the conflict was about or included meta-communication.

Procedures INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 10

Data was collected and coded while viewing each sampled episode in chronological order. The episodes were all viewed on DVDs owned by the researcher. The same coding sheet was used for each conversation. All coding was done independently by the researchers while watching the episodes.

For each conversation, coding sheets were filled out by hand and then transferred into

SPSS for analysis. After all the samples had been coded, qualitative answers were grouped into categories, which were then coded for analysis in SPSS.

Results

Types of Conflict

End of Relationship Figure 1: Types of Conflict 8% Occupational 12% Familial 7% Occupational Familial General Relationship Friendship 39% General General Relationship Friendship End of Relationship 34%

Qualitative notes on the conflicts discussed in the sampled conversations suggested five primary types of conflict that How I Met Your Mother was concerned with. Figure 1 shows the breakdown of conversations about each type of issue.

The least frequently discussed conflicts in the show were familial issues. Any issue deemed to be primarily related to a characters’ family was coded for this issue. Some issues included Barney’s childhood home being sold, Barney not knowing who their father is, Marshall INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 11 coming to terms with the death of his father, and Marshall and Lily arguing about how to raise a child. While these issues only surfaced in 20 conversations, they made up 7% of the sample.

There were 34 conversations about occupational issues, which ranged from the group struggling with résumés, several characters losing or quitting their jobs, and even Robin potentially being deported for not having a job. Conflicts were coded for this category if the primary reason for the issue was deemed to be related to a characters occupation or lack thereof.

The second most frequent category was coded as friendship issues. While this category contained a third of the sampled conversations, there were no other significant trends to deem smaller categories. Issues were coded into this category if the primary cause of the conflict was deemed to be a dispute between two friends. Some conversations were about less severe issues, like the group arguing about where to eat dinner or what to do for a night. Other issues, though less frequent, were more severe, including characters feeling left out of the group or Marshall and Lily deciding to move further away than the rest of the group likes.

The final two categories deal with romantic relationship issues. These conflicts were broken into two categories because they were deemed to be distinct enough issues that occurred fairly frequently. On the smaller end, 22 conversations discussed end of relationship issues, generally including characters getting over a breakup or breaking off an engagement. However, some issues were also coded into this category if they were deemed to have happened because of a breakup, such as a Marshall flirting with women in an attempt to get over Lily breaking off their engagement.

The second, larger, category dealt with general relationship issues, which included anything from characters disagreeing on what makes a successful relationship to a Ted’s desire to cheat on his girlfriend with Robin. Conflicts were coded into this category if they were INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 12 deemed to be primarily concerned with a characters romantic life, regardless of whether they were actually dating someone or not. This included conversations that were about hassling a character for their date or characters being frustrated that they cannot find one. This category made up the bulk of the issues, occurring in 108 of the total conversations.

Levels of Communication

This study looked at levels of communication in two regards. The first was to directly group conversations as either interpersonal or small group. Conversations were coded for interpersonal if they only involved two main characters and were coded for small group if they contained three or more characters with at least two main characters. Conversations that didn’t match either criterion were excluded from the sample. In total, 42 percent of the conversations were coded as interpersonal with the remaining 58 percent being coded as small group.

The second way this study looked at levels of communication was by looking at the different types of relationships between characters. While more than half of the conversations were coded as mixed group (including two or more of the types of relationships), there was a standout among the rest of the levels. Of the 276 conversations 69 of them occurred between same-sex friends, almost 18 percent more than opposite-sex friends. Conversations between engaged and married couples combined for 7.6 while dating and formerly dating couples combined for 6.6 percent of the total conversations. Outside of mixed groups, same-sex friends talked about a greater variety of issues, though they had a more chances to do so.

Influence of Conversational Directness

Through scales of five, this study looked at how individual conversations influenced conflict. Conversational directness, for instance, was coded from not direct to very direct, with results suggesting that direct and very direct conversations tended to lead to more positive INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 13 outcomes (63 conversations appeared to positively affect the issue) than indirect and very indirect conversations (only five of which appeared to positively affect the issue). While over 80 percent of the total conversations where either direct or very direct, indirect conversations still managed to make up almost 19 percent of the ones that appeared to have slightly negative or negative effects. In terms of conflict resolution, conversations that were deemed to have resolved the conflict they were about were either direct or very direct almost 87 percent of the time.

Conversations overall, however, tended to have a negative effect on issues, with about 48 percent ending with at least somewhat negative or worse outlooks, compared to only about 30 percent ending with somewhat positive or better outlooks. Regardless of direction, almost half of the conversations sampled appeared to have negative effects on the conflicts they were about.

Table 1: Conversational Directness by Type of Issue

Very Indirect Neutral Direct Very Direct Indirect

Occupational 0 5 0 9 20

Familial 4 2 0 5 9

Friendship 6 4 4 27 51 Issue General Description 8 11 6 37 46 Relationship

End of 1 0 2 9 10 Relationship

This study also looked at how conversational directness was used in relation to the different types of conflict. Table 1 above shows the full breakdown of results. It is notable that INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 14 most of the indirect and very indirect conversations (about 46 percent) occurred in conversations about general relationship issues, while another 25 percent came in conversations about issues between friends.

Meta-Communication

This study also briefly looked at meta-communication in conversation about conflict. 20 percent of all sampled conversations included some aspect of meta-communication, but only 19 conversations seemed to be actually primarily about meta-communication. Conversations that included or were about meta-communication tended to have negative effects on the overall conflict they were about, with over 58 percent of the concerned conversations appearing to have somewhat negative or negative effects on the overall issue. Conversation about meta- communication tended to be fairly direct, however, with over 81 percent being at least somewhat directly about the issue. Of the 19 conversations primarily about meta-communication, about 68 percent were considered very direct.

Conflict Resolutions

Though not the primary focus of this study, data was also collected on whether or not conflicts were resolved in particular conversations and episodes. Results show that only 16 percent of the sampled conversations resolved conflict, with all but six being resolved with direct

(24 percent of the total) or very direct conversations (62 percent of the total). It is also worth noting that about 21 percent of the conversations had their conflicts left unresolved at the end of their respective episodes.

Research Questions

The first research question of this study asked, in general terms, how How I Met Your

Mother used communication to influence conflict. Results suggest that conversations are INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 15 generally used to negatively influence conflict, typically through direct conversation between small mixed groups. However, the show often uses interpersonal communication (about 48 percent of the sampled conversations), and makes at least some use of various levels of conversational directness.

The second research question asked how realistically the show portrayed communication and its affect on conflict. The results are mixed. While indirect conversations tended to have a negative effect on issues, as research suggests, they were heavily outnumbered by direct conversations, which was not supported by previous research. Additionally, meta- communication was infrequent, which was supported, but seemed to have negative effects, which contradicts prior research on the topic. In terms of differences between types of communication and relationships, the show offered a variety of different situations that all tended to have their own particular trends, which was supported by the literature, but, overall, tended to focus a bit more heavily on small group communication between mixed types of relationships, which weighted results.

Discussion

Conversation Drives Conflict

Almost half of the conversations sampled in this study appeared to have a negative influence, with another quarter seeming to have virtually no influence. These results suggest that

How I Met Your Mother’s primary use of conversation is to move conflict forward, regardless of the lack of realism. Such a split was not supported by any of the previous literature, which, on the surface, suggests that the show is unfit for study on communication; however, other studies on media have found similar issues. The Gray study on Sex and the City’s breast cancer storyline, for example, argued that television shows are often forced into unrealistic situations INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 16 because of their nature and time constraints (Gray, 2007). How I Met Your Mother is no exception to those restrictions, and that is demonstrated by the fact that most of the conversations sampled did not resolve conflict. Typically, only the last few conversations in each episode wrapped up the storylines, unless they were part of an on-going arc that continued into episodes that were not sampled.

The show interweaves several plotlines throughout each episode, but needs to cover them all in less than half an hour. Additionally, as a sitcom, the primary purpose of the show is to entertain, rather than inform. Combining these two tasks cannot be easy, and so it seems likely that writers would need to drive conflict in more negative ways in order to establish interesting plots to keep viewers watching.

The show does, however, incorporate some of what previous literature has suggested.

For example, the show’s use of indirect conversations often led to negative influences on issues, which was supported by several previous researchers, like the verbal avoidance study that suggested that avoiding potentially-conflict inducing issues often led to more trouble (Afifi,

McManus, Steuber, & Coho, 2009). The opposite tends to be true as well, with direct conversation in the show leading to more positive outcomes.

Though the show’s use of conversation does appear to be mostly unrealistic, it is important to keep the restrictions of television shows in mind before writing off any benefit to communication research. Instead, there are probably better ways to study programs such as How

I Met Your Mother, which will be explored in the Limitations and Directions for future research sections.

Conversational Directness INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 17

One area that How I Met Your Mother at least somewhat accurately portrayed was with its use of conversational directness. While the frequency with which it used direct and indirect conversation was clearly weighted towards directness, it did often use indirect conversation in ways supported by previous literature. For example, one of the studies on topic avoidance suggested that the primary use of indirect conversations were tied to the desire to protect ones self-image (Afifi & Guerrero, 1998). The show follows this trend with several of its indirect conversations, such as Barney’s attempting to sleep with seven women in seven nights to distract himself from losing his job. The episode concerning that plotline initially centers the conflict on

Barney’s desire to seduce women , but slowly, through several somewhat indirect conversations, shifts to a clearer understanding of what he is really concerned about, despite his not wanting to really talk about it.

The show also uses indirect conversations for different types of issues. General relationship topped the other issue categories in indirect conversations, which is supported by the verbal avoidance study, suggesting that couples would often use indirect conversation to avoid potentially conflict-inducing conversations, even if they led to dissatisfaction (Afifi, McManus,

Steuber, & Coho, 2009). While not all of the indirect conversations about general relationship issues occurred between the two people in a relationship, it is possible to argue that the nature and closeness of the show’s group leads to more caution. Alternatively, it is possible that verbal avoidance can be extrapolated to close friends as well, though the Afifi, McManus, Steuber, &

Coho study focused solely on romantic couples.

Differences in Relationships

While the show offered a fair variety of different types of relational situations, its focus on small, mixed group communication may make it a less suitable source for study on INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 18 interpersonal communication. There were subtle differences in the shows use of different types of relationships, such as which categories of issues were most often discussed and some slight variations in conversational directness, but the more than half of the conversations were between mixed groups of relationships, which complicate social interactions beyond the scope of this study. The remaining conversations were often too infrequent to draw any meaningful conclusions, outside of same-sex friends which made up the next largest amount of conversations. The spike in same-sex conversations is mostly attributable to the show being made up of an ensemble cast with three men, which provided that category with more opportunity for conversations.

Meta-Communication

This study’s brief look at meta-communication demonstrated some variance from the previous literature on that topic. Gottman, Markman, and Notarius suggested that, at least in terms of marital relationships, meta-communication did not tend to influence conflict in any particular way (2007). In How I Met Your Mother, meta-communication, despite being included rather infrequently, tended to have a largely negative effect on the conflict those conversations were about. This was unfounded in the literature, and is perhaps again attributable to the sitcoms need to use conversation to progress the plot forward. This does, however, make the show seem unreliable for its use of meta-communication.

When it did use meta-communication, How I Met Your Mother often used it in conversations that were directly about the issue, though the issue was only occasionally primarily about meta-communication. Typically, meta-communication, when involved, played a part in the conflict but was seldom the main focus. This relates somewhat to previous meta- communication research on interpreted and intentional meta-communication in that there appear INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 19 to be varying levels for which it can be used, though the show does not entirely match that study’s definitions (Newhall, 1981).

Limitations

This study’s limitations stem from the decision to collect data on specific conversations rather than issues overall. While the decision allowed for a more in-depth look at how one conversation can influence the next, the nature of the How I Met Your Mother occasionally made it difficult to track conversations. The show often cuts between multiple conversations or reveal different parts of a conversation at different points. Additionally, tracking the issue overall would likely have developed a better understanding of conflict resolution, rather than how individual conversations affect conflict.

The primary issue with sampling conversations is that it gives an incomplete picture.

Conversations, as mentioned earlier, are tools used by sitcoms to move plot forward. While they may be based on previous experience for the writers, presumably based on natural communication, they are often altered to suit the purpose of driving the show towards more interesting conflicts. By studying issues overall, or perhaps focusing solely on conversations that resolve conflict, researchers could get a more clear idea of how the show represents research done on conflict resolution.

In terms of sampling, the study could also have used some improvement. While the study collected data on 276 conversations, it also only represents a little over 16 percent of the first eight seasons, and does not include any episodes of the final season. A longer study on more of the series could provide even more relevant data, particularly if the coding was altered to track conflicts from one episode to another, as the show often had ongoing conflicts throughout an individual season. INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 20

Directions for Future Research

Though How I Met Your Mother, and likely most television shows, use communication to drive conflict by necessity, they can still offer insight into how communication is represented in media. This study approached the show by looking at individual conversations and how they affected on-going conflicts, but a future study could look at conflicts overall and focus more on the resolution part. This study also looked briefly at how television shows leave conflict unresolved to further story arcs throughout a season, or even the entire series. However, the sampling method and coding technique for this study did not allow for the tracking of those arcs.

A study focusing more on conflict resolution would benefit from choosing a sampling method that allows for better tracking of issues across episodes.

Another interesting topic for future research would be to pursue how media depictions of communication affect viewers. A survey- or experiment-based study might offer insight into how trends in communication are influenced by media portrays, regardless of it they are accurate or not. Popular television shows are watched by millions of viewers of all ages, many of whom might pick up communication skills from what they see in media. There is precedent in previous research for similar studies, but the present study’s focus was not concerned with the influence side of the communication portrayals.

Finally, some further studies could be done on meta-communication in television, but the nature of sitcoms seems to make them unreliable for such research. Different types of television shows, like reality television, might provide more interesting opportunities for that kind of research.

Conclusion INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 21

Television is a major part of daily life for countless people, but it is often written off as simply entertainment. This study asked whether those assumptions are accurate or if there were possibilities to study trends in communication. While the study ultimately found that How I Met

Your Mother strayed considerably from original research in communications, there were some results that suggested that television shows might have something to say about media portrayals of communication. A more focused study might be able to provide a better answer to the research questions posed in the present one, but there do appear to be topics worth studying, even if results suggest only minor similarities.

INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 22

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INFLUENCE OF COMMUNICATION IN HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 24

Appendix A

How I Met Your Mother Coding Sheet

Season: __ Episode: __ Time Stamp: ______

Characters Involved: __ Ted __ Marshall __ Barney __ Robin __ Lily

Relationship between characters: __ Same-sex Friends __ Opposite-sex Friends __ Formerly Dating

__ Dating __ Engaged __ Married

Describe the issue:

What type of communication is being used: __ Interpersonal __ Small Group

Was the communication about meta-communication: __ Yes __ No __ Included, not focus

How direct was the conversation about the issue: 1 2 3 4 5

Not direct Very direct

Did the conversation end with a positive or negative outlook: 1 2 3 4 5

Negative Positive

How did the conversation appear to affect the issue: 1 2 3 4 5

Negatively Positively

Did the conversation resolve the issue? __ Yes __ No

The conversation impacted future interactions about the issue: 1 2 3 4 5

Negatively Positively

Was the issue discussed resolved during this episode: __ Yes __ No

What other factors may have affected this conversation: