Ernest G. Bormann was Professor Emeritus in the Department of Speech-Communication at the University of Minnesota

University of Minnesota

The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...

. He received his B.A. from the University of South Dakota in 1949 and earned his M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Iowa in 1953. He originated the Symbolic Convergence Theory

Symbolic Convergence Theory

Symbolic convergence theory is a general communication theory that offers an explanation for the appearance of a group consciousness, consisting of shared emotions, motives, and meanings . SCT explains that meanings, emotions, values, and the motives for action are in the rhetoric co-created by...

 of human communication

Communication

Communication is the activity of conveying meaningful information. Communication requires a sender, a message, and an intended recipient, although the receiver need not be present or aware of the sender's intent to communicate at the time of communication; thus communication can occur across vast...

, which emphasizes the sharing of group "fantasies

Fantasy (psychology)

Fantasy in a psychological sense is broadly used to cover two different senses, conscious and unconscious. In the unconscious sense, it is sometimes spelled "phantasy".-Conscious fantasy:...

" (creative

Creativity

Creativity refers to the phenomenon whereby a person creates something new that has some kind of value. What counts as "new" may be in reference to the individual creator, or to the society or domain within which the novelty occurs...

interpretations) as a method of developing shared meaning. He is the author of numerous books and articles.

Publications

• Bormann, E. G. (1972). Fantacy and rhetorical vision: The rhetorical criticism of social reality. Quarterly Journal of Speech, 58(4), 396-407.
• Bormann, E. G. (1980). Communication theory. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.
• Bormann, E. G. (1980). The paradox and promise of small group communication revisited. Central States Speech Journal, 31(3), 214-220.
• Bormann, E. G. (1982). Fantacy and rhetorical vision: Ten years later. Quarterly Journal of Speech, 68(3), 288-305.
• Bormann, E. G. (1985). The force of fantasy: Restoring the American dream. Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois University Press.
• Bormann, E. G. (1985). Symbolic convergence theory: A communication formulation. Journal of Communication, 35(4), 128-138.
• Bormann, E. G. (1990). Small group communication: Theory and practice (3rd ed.). New York: Harper & Row.

External links

• In Memoriam Ernest G. Bormann, 1925-2008: http://comm.umn.edu/bormann.html
• Official Homepage: http://www.vayne.com/bormann.us