Expectancy Violation Theory

The day after Christmas is a popular day for Americans to shop, especially at the mall. Working at Deb on December 26, I went to speak to a manager in the front half of the store when she started to speak to me about elbow room. The mass of people passing through the rows of clothes and crowding around the area my manager was working, made her feel uncomfortable and claustrophobic. She expected that any customer than came that close to her, had a question. This lead to a negative attribute with an uneasy feeling.

Burgoon's "Expectancy Violation Theory" breaks down to how someone expects how another should act in the situation, the context of the conversation, as well as the relationship the individuals share. If an incident breaks the boundaries of expectations, there will either be a positive or negative attribution or rewards or punishments.

My manager expected customers to act one way and there was a different reality leading to a negative attribution following the "Expectancy Violation Theory"

References:
Griffin, E. (2006). A first look at communication theory (6th ed.). Boston: McGraw Hill.