Extending the theory of the Coordinated Management of Meaning (CMM) through a community dialogue process

CMM is a communication theory that has most often been used as an interpret ive heuristic in interpersonal communication contexts. Within the past 5 ye ars, however, CMM has guided the work of the Public Dialogue Consortium, a not-for-profit organization involved in a multiyear, citywide collaborative community action project. This project has extended CMM from an interpreti ve to a practical theory and from interpersonal to public contexts. This es say describes the coevolution of the theory and practices that occurred in that project, strongly confirming the utility of treating communication as the primary social process-CMM's central thesis. Six other CMM concepts, in cluding coordination, forms of communication, episode, logical force, perso n position, and contextual reconstruction, were also significantly elaborat ed. Appropriately for a practical theory (Cronen, 1995a, p. 231), the exten sions of CMM include both new forms of practice and additions and refinemen ts to its grammar for discursive and conversational practices. Copyright (C ) 2000 International Communication Association.