Metaphor in theory and practice: the influence of metaphors on expectations

The use of metaphors is pervasive in all forms of discourse. This paper is concerned with providing a brief review of the development of metaphor theory, illustrated with some examples of supportive empirical research. These include a canonical study of the way concepts of instruction and education are influenced, a study into the effects of human-computer interface metaphors on computer systems users, and a study designed to assess the impacts of metaphor use on attitudes to internet commerce, particularly on attitudes to the roles played by information technology (IT). The paper provides some contextual background to assist consideration of the effects of metaphors on attitudes and beliefs. In practice, metaphor use may be intentional, unconscious, or a mixture of both, but in any case metaphors can be shown to play powerful roles in the social construction of human reality.