Intro to Speech Comm - Exam 2
Types of Nonverbal Communication
-Body Movement: Facial Expressions, Eye Contact, Gestures, Body Postures -Voice: Tone, Pitch, Loudness, Speech Rate -Touch (Haptics): The meaning of such physical contact with others depends on the duration, part of the body being touched, strength of contact, and surrounding context -Personal Space: Intimate space (0-18 inches), Personal space (18 inches - 4 feet), Social space (4-12 feet), Public space (12 feet +) -Appearance: The way you look speaks volumes about who you are because people use your physical appearance—visible attributes such as hair, clothing, body type, and other features—to make judgments about you -Beliefs about Time -Environmental Features
Defining Conflict
A conflict is a communication process between people who perceive incompatible goals or interference in achieving their objectives. Almost all conflicts you'll experience follow this definition: they begin with perception, involve clashes between goals or actions (or both), and are processes that unfold over time.
Defining small groups
A small group is three or more interdependent people who share a common identity and who communicate to achieve common goals Characteristics of Small Groups: -made up of interdependent persons -small groups have at least three people -members of a small group share a common identity—they see themselves as a group -members in a small group communicate to achieve common goals Types of Groups: Primary Groups = individuals who meet your basic life, psychological, and social needs Secondary Groups= consist of people with whom you want to achieve specific goals or perform tasks Development of Small Groups: -forming phase: during which members become acquainted with one another and seek to understand the task -storming phase: when members express different ideas about how to approach the task and who will take on leadership roles -norming phase: during which members agree about the plans for working toward the goal and the various responsibilities -performing phase: when members actually make the required contributions for completing the task -adjourning phase: in which it disbands. Members take this time to evaluate and reflect on how well they accomplished the task and the quality of their relationships
Selecting an Approach
Avoidance: you approach a conflict by not managing it. You ignore or avoid talking about the conflict, or you communicate about it in indirect ways Accommodation: you manage conflict by abandoning your own goals or actions and giving in to others' desires Competition: confronting others and pursuing your own goals to the exclusion of theirs Collaboration: treating conflict as a mutual problem-solving challenge
How small groups communicate
Balancing group roles: Formal vs. Group: Formal roles are assigned positions that members take on by appointment or election Group roles (also known as informal roles)—specific patterns of behavior and communication that members develop from interacting over time Task: When you're exchanging information about duties or goals important to your group Maintenance: group members communicate to build trusting and appreciative interpersonal relationships Egocentric: Successful groups also watch for and address the emergence
Relationship Stages
Coming Together: Initiating, Experimenting, Intensifying, Integrating, Boding Coming Apart: Differentiating, Circumscribing, Stagnating, Avoiding, Terminating
Self's influence on small group communication
Communication traits: You possess certain enduring traits that affect your communication no matter what the situation -Communication Apprehensiveness: The fear or anxiety associated with real or anticipated communication with others. -Argumentativeness: Argumentativeness is the willingness to take a stance on controversial issues and verbally refute others who disagree with you Gender: Popular stereotypes suggest there are big differences in how men and women communicate Culture: Your culture affects all your communication -whether you see your individual needs as more or less important than the group's needs -power distance: the degree to which people expect inequality between persons of low and high power -uncertainty avoidance: or how much tolerance people have for risk
Functions of Nonverbal Communication
Conveying Meanings Expressing Emotion Presenting Self Managing Interactions Defining Relationships
Characteristics of Nonverbal Communication
Nonverbal communication is the transmission of meaning through an individual's non spoken physical and behavioral cues Nonverbal communication conveys information through multiple channels, including auditory, visual, and tactile. -Uses multiple channels -Conveys more meaning than verbal comm -Blends with verbal comm -Influenced by gender -Influenced by culture
Managing relationship tensions
Openness vs. Protection: Communication Privacy Management Theory: The idea that individuals create informational boundaries by choosing carefully the kind of private information they reveal and the people with whom they share it. Communication Rules: conditions governing what they can (and can't) talk about, how they can discuss such topics, and who else should have access to this information Autonomy vs. Connection: People form close relationships mostly out of a desire to bond with other human beings. Yet if you come to feel so connected to your partners that your own identity seems to dissolve, you may choose to pull back and reclaim some of your autonomy, or independence. Novelty vs. Predictability: We all like the security that comes with knowing how our lovers, family members, friends, and coworkers will behave, how we'll behave, and how our relationships will unfold. For example, romances are more successful when partners act in predictable ways that reduce uncertainty
Why form relationships?
Proximity: You're more likely to pursue relationships with people with whom you have frequent contact, whether face-to-face or online. This phenomenon is known as the mere exposure effect Resources: the valued qualities people possess Similarity: people seek romantic partnerships, close family involvements, friendships, and coworker relationships with those whom they see as similar to themselves Reciprocal liking: If someone you're interested in makes it clear that he or she is also interested in you Physical attractiveness: you're more likely to get involved with people you perceive as physically attractive
Relational Maintenance
Relational maintenance refers to the use of communication behaviors to keep a relationship strong and to ensure that each party continues to draw satisfaction from the relationship. --Positivity: Arguably the most powerful maintenance tactic in sustaining healthy relationships is positivity—communicating in a cheerful and optimistic fashion, doing unsolicited favors, and giving unexpected gifts --Assurances: Another powerful maintenance tactic in boosting relationship satisfaction is the use of assurances—messages that emphasize how much your relationship partners mean to you --Self-Disclosure: self-disclosure is the revealing of private information about yourself to others in interpersonal communication. Self-disclosure can foster intimacy with another person—for example, when you share increasingly personal information with a new friend as you get closer to him or her.
Self-disclosure in relationships
Revealing private information about your self to others Relationship development: Social Penetration Theory: the self is an "onion-skin structure" consisting of three sets of layers. The outermost (or peripheral) layers of your self are demographic characteristics, such as your birthplace, age, gender, and ethnicity (see Figure 10.1). When you meet someone for the first time, you typically focus the conversation on these characteristics: What's your name? What's your major? Where are you from? The intermediate layers contain your attitudes and opinions about things like music, politics, food, and entertainment. Deep within the onion are the central layers of your self—core characteristics such as self-awareness, self-concept, self-esteem, personal values, fears, and distinctive personality traits Intimacy: feelings of closeness between you and others Self-disclosure skills: -Know your thoughts and feelings -Know your audience -Don't make assumptions about gender -Be sensitive to cultural differences -Don't force others to self-disclose -When others disclose to you, actively listen and express empathy.
Types of Relationships
Romantic relationships: are interpersonal involvements in which the participants perceive the bond as romantic. As this definition suggests, romantic relationships are rooted in perception --Liking vs. Loving: Liking is a feeling of affection and respect that we often have for our friends, extended family members, and coworkers. Loving is a more intense emotional connection, consisting of intimacy, caring, and attachment --Passionate love and Companionate Love: Passionate love, a state of intense emotional and physical longing for union with another. Passionate love is experienced across cultures, genders, and ages. Companionate love is an intense form of liking defined by emotional investment and the close intertwining of two people's lives. Many long-term romantic relationships begin as passionate love and then slowly evolve into companionate love Family Relatioships: A family is a network of people who share their lives over long periods of time and are bound by marriage, blood, or commitment; who consider themselves a family; and who share a significant history and an anticipated future of functioning in a family relationship -- shared identity - how a family communicates, genetic material, and a common history -- multiple roles - family members constantly juggle multiple roles. When you're a lover, a friend, or a coworker, you're just that: -- emotional complexity - It is commonly thought that people should feel only positive emotions toward their family members Friendships: Friendships are voluntary interpersonal relationships characterized by intimacy and liking --Liking: People feel affection and respect for their friends; in other words, friends are people whom you like --Choice: You have more freedom in choosing your friendships than you do in any other relationship category --Shared Interests: Similarity in interests is the primary force that draws you to your friends Workplace Relationships: Affiliations you have with professional peers, supervisors, subordinates, or mentors are workplace relationships. These involvements vary along three dimensions: status, intimacy, and choice
Conflict Endings
Separation - some conflicts end when one or more of the people involved terminate communication contact. Could be technological, physical, or communicative. Separation ends conflict encounters but doesn't solve them Domination - When one person or group of people gets others to abandon their own goals and instead do what the person or group wants. Conflicts that end with domination are often called win-lose solutions. The people who get their way "win," while the ones who accommodate "lose." The strongest predictor of domination is the power balance between the people involved. Domination isn't always destructive Compromise - Conflicts end in compromise when the parties involved change their goals and actions to make them compatible. This typically results from people using a collaborative approach and is most effective in situations in which people have relatively equal power and the clashing goals aren't especially important.In cases in which everyone considers their goals important, however, compromise tends to foster resentment and regret Integrative agreements - When people in conflict forge integrative agreements, they generate creative solutions that enable all sides to keep and reach their original goals. Such agreements are commonly called win-win solutions. To create integrative agreements, the parties remain committed to their individual goals but are flexible in how they achieve them Structural improvements - Sometimes conflicts end with structural improvements: the parties involved change their relationship rules to prevent further disputes. In structural improvement cases, the conflict itself becomes a vehicle for reshaping relationships in positive ways—clarifying rules
Virtual Groups and Teams
Social media and videoconferencing help virtual groups organize their work and communicate. However, as with all online interactions, remember that the three Ps of mediated communication—powerful, public, and permanent—from Chapter 3 still apply. Your self-presentation matters just as much (if not more) when you're working in virtual small groups as it does when you're communicating online with close friends and family. a virtual small group is any team of three or more individuals who work together to achieve a common goal and who communicate primarily through technology instead of face-to-face encounters. Challenges: -physical distance separating members restricts their nonverbal communication -hard to build cohesion in a virtual team -difficult to communicate complex information and to make decisions during online meetings -team members may vary greatly in their ability to use the group's chosen communication technology Improving: 1. Determine the best communication method 2. Provide specific directions before meetings 3. Involve all group members 4. Use the cooperative principle 5. Attend to the group's social needs
Sustaining your relationships
Supportive Communication: Sharing messages that express emotional support and that offer personal assistance, such as telling a person of your sympathy or listening to someone without judging. When you provide supportive communication, you express emotional support and offer personal assistance to lovers, family members, friends, or coworkers who need it
What is interpersonal communication?
Transactional: both parties contribute to the meaning created during the communication Dynamic: constantly changing Relational: because it builds bonds with others—easing the distance that naturally arises from differences between people Impactful: impacts the thoughts, emotions, behavior, and relationships of the people taking part in it
Barriers to Constructive Conflict
attributional errors: This frequently leads to errors in your attributions: the explanations you create for why things are happening the way they are. destructive messages: =sniping—communicating in a negative way and then leaving the encounter =sudden-death statements can occur: spontaneous declarations that the relationship is over, even though the people involved did not consider termination a possibility before the conflict =dirty secrets—messages that are honest in content but have been kept hidden to protect someone's feelings. cultural differences: People from individualistic and collectivistic cultures perceive and approach conflicts in radically different ways. Specifically, people raised in collectivistic cultures often view direct discussion of the causes behind a conflict as personal attacks and see such discussion as disruptive to the "harmony" of encounters