Intersubjective communication: from classic approaches to the incorporation of body and emotions for its theoretical and empirical approach

The academic field of communication has primarily studied media communication processes. This article claims the need to investigate the interpersonal and intersubjective aspects of communication. Firstly, three classical theories are presented: Symbolic Interactionism, Phenomenological Sociology, and the Theory of Communicative Action. All are about understanding intersubjective communication and how it is distinguished from interpersonal communication. Secondly, the article argues for the emotional and affective dimension to be incorporated into communication studies. This starts with the articulation between the body, communication, and emotions. The presentation of these elements is based on proposals by Goffman, Bourdieu, Merleau-Ponty, and Collins. This article concludes with some methodological ideas about how to investigate intersubjective communication, and presents some challenges that should be considered in this sub-field of communication studies.