A Semantic Network Analysis of the International Communication Association

This article examines the structure of the International Communication Association (ICA) through semantic network analysis. Semantic network analysis examines the relationships among a system's components based on the shared meanings of symbols. Galileo analysis and Quadratic Analysis Procedure revealed that the semantic network for ICA based on paper titles presented to its divisions and interest groups at its 1991 conference had a high degree of correspondence with the affiliation structure reported by Barnett and Danowski. Both networks differentiated the humanistic divisions from the scientific, the mediated from the interpersonal, and the theoretical from the applied. The results are taken to be an indication of the validity of the procedures employed for determining semantic networks. Finally, results are interpreted in regard to Human Communication Research's relationship to its parent organization, ICA.