Com 206 - Communication Concepts in Pop Culture

Communication Concepts in Pop Culture

Com 206

"I can't do this all on my own, I'm no superman!" begins every

episode of Scrubs. J.D.'s first day as an emergency room doctor

begins on a rough note, he is tired from lack of sleep due to his'

nerves the night before. Starting a new job, for even a well

educated person, brings on the jitters. J.D. is certainly suffering from

uncertainty avoidance. Uncertainty avoidance is the degree to which

people find novel, unfamiliar situations problematic. (Floyd, 52) As

a doctor J.D. must learn to face these fears and administer I.V.s,

drain stomach fluid and a variety of new medically necessary

procedures. Instead of facing his' fears head on he allows the nurses

to perform the procedures. Once J.D. actually performs a chest tube

and the outcome is good, his' fears diminish and he feels like a real

doctor. J.D. is not the only one experiencing fear on his' first day.

J.D.'s best friend is Turk. Turk and J.D. went to high school

together, shared a dorm room in college and were hired on at the

same hospital. Turk experiences the new Dr jitters. Turk admits he

is happy they have to wear surgical masks to hide his emotions. We

all know the face gives away our emotions. Turk knows this and uses

his' surgical mask as a defense. J.D. and Turk have a lot in common.

As they progress in their medical careers they will learn to be less

dependent on the nurses and more dependent on their true skills,

facing them straight on. J.D. and Turk through experience and

friendship create quite a bond.

The bond between J.D. and Turk can be seen as a co-culture.

A co-culture is a group of people who share values, customs, and

norms related to mutual interest or characteristics. (Floyd, 45)

J.D. may be from Jewish descent and Turk from African-American

descent but together they have their own medical co-culture. Many

people may not completely understand their medical co-culture

but we sure can find their antics and experiences entertaining. Elliot

is another friend we often see in J.D. and Turk's circle.

Elliott