Uncertainty reduction theory (Berger & Calabrese, 1975) was formulated to explain relationships between the frequency of communication behaviors, level of uncertainty, and level of relational qualities. In this essay, I advocate attention to an alternative set of research questions addressed to the meanings and evaluations of uncertainty and communicative responses to uncertainty. This normative approach entails a shift in focus from measuring level of uncertainty to examining multiple and potentially conflicting meanings of uncertainty, a shift from measuring communication behaviors to evaluating communication practices, and a shift from predicting what people will do to predicting and explaining the effectiveness and appropriateness of what they do in response to uncertainty. Four case studies from various sociocultural contexts illustrate phenomena that are explained by a normative approach to uncertainty and communication. Since its formulation in 1975, uncertainty reduction theory has produced a steady stream of literature examining the experience of uncertainty, the ways in which individuals respond to uncertainty, and the outcomes associated with uncertainty. The theory began as an explanation of initial interaction between strangers, but interest has expanded far beyond these boundary conditions to include examination of uncertainty in ongoing personal relationships, organizational settings, health care interactions, and interactions among individuals from different sociocultural backgrounds. This steady interest in uncertainty reduction theory has occurred despite the original theory’s rather mixed track record of predictions (for reviews, see Sunnafrank, 1986, 1989). Clearly, one of the greatest contributions of uncertainty reduction theory has been its heuristic value in directing our attention to the role of uncertainty in various communication situations and to practical concerns with how individuals manage uncertainty in problematic situations. Uncertainty reduction theory was intended as a covering law theory (cf. Berger, 1977), designed to predict and explain the frequency with which various communicative behaviors would occur, the relationship between frequency of behaviors and amounts or degrees of uncertainty, and ways in which this might