My Communication and Listening Skills

During week four, we were asked to answer three assessments as well as having others perform the same assessments about us. The assessments were; Communication Anxiety Inventory, Verbal Aggressiveness Scale, and Listening Styles Profile. From taking these assessments, I learned a lot about myself and how I communicate and listen which is something we cannot judge on a normal basis.

My communication Anxiety shows that i'm in the middle of feeling concerned about some communication situations but not all of them. Verbal Aggressiveness showed that I can be argumentative and at times I can attack another person's character. The Listening Profile showed that I am very concerned about other's feelings and at times it can work against me because I put too much trust in others.

For the most part my other evaluators hit right on with the verbal and listening styles profile, and slightly off for the communication. They said they noticed me as uneasy in some communication situations but definitely not in all. I definitely agree with the Listening Styles Profile. I can tend to be very argumentative if I feel that my character or knowledge is being challenged. I know in the long run that it needs to be turned down a bit, but I just can't allow people to misrepresent me especially if I am present at a meeting.

Communication

• Do you find yourself communicating differently with people from different groups and cultures?
• If yes, in what ways do you communicate differently?

-It all depends on what group of people I am speaking too. If I am at work and speaking to my supervisor or parents, then I'm speaking professional and making sure that all my sentences are grammatically correct. I also make sure that I'm making eye contact and not speaking the whole time with my hands.

On the other hand, if I'm speaking to other colleagues and or family and friends then I am a little more relaxed with my speaking habits. I may use my hands to describe something, I may not always remember to allow the other person to go back and forth in the conversation. Speaking with this group of people is more relaxed than it is when speaking to parents and or supervisors.

Based on what you have learned this week, share at least three strategies you could use to help you communicate more effectively with the people or groups you have identified.
- The first strategy is to get to know and become familiar with the people or groups that I am speaking too. "Try to withhold judgment long enough to gain a deeper understanding than first impression allows" (Gonzalez, Mena- J. 2010).
- The second strategy is to determine or identify what the communication is going to be about. "Men are more likely to report; while women are more likely to establish rapport" (BeeBee, S.A & BeeBee, S.J & Redmond, M.V 2010)
- The third strategy is to "designate rules that are associated with social rules until they are broken" (Vockovic, A. 2008).



Resources

Gonzalez, Mena- J. (2010). 50 Strategies to communicating and working with diverse families. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.

BeeBee, S.A & BeeBee, S.J & Redmond, M.V (2010). Interpersonal communication: Relating to others (6th ed.) Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon

Vockovic, A. (2008) Multicultural Education and Technology Journal, 2(1), 47-59
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The Six Little McGhees

The show that I decided to watch was The 6 little McGhees on the OWN Network.

No Sound:

What do you think the characters' relationships are based on the ways in which they are communicating?

What are they feeling and expressing based on the nonverbal behavior you are observing?

-  The mom and dad were in the kitchen having a conversation. Both of them were displaying very unique facial expressions, so to me it looks like they were having a very intense conversation. The next clip was the family went to a store to try on bathing suits and swims shoes. The dad could be seen pointing to each child and pointing to the ground as in he was telling each one of them to sit down. The lady from the back brought out a stack of shoes, in which the children got up and started running, crying, and i'm assuming yelling.


With Sound:

What assumptions did you make about the characters and plot based on the ways in which you interpreted the communication you observed?

        Would your assumptions have been more correct if you had been watching a show you know well?

- The mom and dad were in the kitchen having a conversation about getting their children swim lessons. The mom had went and registered the children at the YMCA, and was relaying the information to her husband that she had received from the aquatics director. In regards to 2year olds receiving swim lessons, they must participate in the "mommy/daddy and me class; which means that each child must be in the water with an adult. Well being that they have 6 children and only them 2, they became frustrated about who could they call on to help them out each sunday, when most of their friends are in church.  When the family went to the store, the dad was having the kids feet measured while the mom was in another area of the store picking out swim suits. The children became reckless and began running around the store and becoming little terrors as they tour the store into pieces. I think my assumptions would have been more clear and in full detail had I known what the facial expressions and the conversation was about.

Effective Communication Behaviors

For your blog this week, think of someone (e.g., family member, celebrity, politician, friend, or professor) who demonstrates competent communication within a particular context. What behaviors does this person exhibit that make him or her effective? Would you want to model some of your own communication behaviors after this person? Why or why not?

The one person who demonstrates competent communication is my father. I selected him outta array of other individuals because I deem him to be the most effective helpful person. Some behaviors that my father exhibits; are great listener, sympathetic, knowledgeable on many subjects, always willing to help, and has great advice.

For example during my first year of college, my father "told" me that when I begin getting my refund checks from my student loans, that I would send them back immediately. Being a first year college student I didn't understand why I had to give this money back right away; in the same manner that I saw all my other friends going across the street to the mall and going shopping. He explained to me, that in the long run when it comes time to having to pay my loans back that I will already have a head start and will not have fell behind. Trying it his way, I then noticed when the statements came, I was actually ahead of my payments. Had I not had my father to guide me in submitting what was right and not being careless, I would have been behind and possibly messed up my credit.

I would like to model some of my own communication behaviors after my father, with listening because some people just need somebody to listen to them and not provide any comments or criticisms. I also would like to be more sympathetic, because even if I can't be successful in helping, I can at least try.