Context refers to the setting in which communication takes place.  The context helps establish meaning and can influence what is said and how it is said.  There are at least four aspects in regards to this idea: physical, cultural, social-psychological, and temporal (DeVito, 2005). 

Physical Context

The physical context refers to the concrete environment.  It can be a sporting event, place of worship, or restaurant.  Each atmosphere has its own set of rules for how to communicate (i.e. you would not talk in the same manner at a basketball game as you would at a church). 


Cultural Context

The cultural context refers to the values, beliefs, lifestyles, and behaviors of a group of people.  Such instances will influence whether something is considered right or wrong by the people involved.  For example, an American may be put off by a French speaker invading his/her space.  This difficultly arises from the very different American and French cultures in terms of proxemics, for Americans tend to be less comfortable when they are not given personal space.    


Social-psychological

The social-psychological context involves the norms of the group in a particular situation, including the intimacy level among speakers and the formality of the exchange.  Again, there are certain rules set regarding how to communicate, for a conversation held between boyfriend and girlfriend would not be handled in the same manner as a conversation between boss and worker. 


Temporal Context

The temporal context is the positioning of a message within a sequence of conversational events.  It governs the mood of the conversation and how topics are to be addressed and related thereafter.  For example, the conversation is carried differently when someone admits they were laid off from a job or when a couple announces the birth of their first child.