Who Am I As A Communicator

This week we were asked to evaluate ourselves on how we communicate with others. The assignment also asked us to have other people evaluate us as well.  Below I have created a chart to show the results of the communication results. I found it very interesting that my husband rated me as significant in the verbal aggressiveness category. My co-worker and I had the same rating which was in the moderate range. I believe the results show that our communication style differs based on the intended audience. I think there is a certain level of control that you have to have in professional situations which is why my co-worker rated me in the moderate range. The other difference that I noticed in the results was in the communication anxiety category. My husband rated me in the mild range in in the anxiety category. I think that it's easier to communicate with those that we know and so we wouldn't appear to be anxious around those who know us well. On more than one occasion I have shared with my co-woker that I don't enjoy public speaking. When I'm in front of my co-workers, I know that I get nervous and this shows in my body language as well.

 

Communication Assessments Results

How I see myself	B. Lewis (Husband)	D. Greene (Co-Worker)
Communication Anxiety Score: 53 Moderate You score indicates that you feel somewhat concerned about a number of communication contexts , but probably not all. This mid-point level of communication anxiety is what we call, “situational”.	Communication Anxiety Score: 43 Mild You report that you feel a bit uneasy in some communication situations and somewhat more confident in other contexts. Communication does not seem to be something you worry a great deal about.	Communication Anxiety Score: 55 Moderate You score indicates that you feel somewhat concerned about a number of communication contexts , but probably not all. This mid-point level of communication anxiety is what we call, “situational”.
Verbal Aggressiveness Score: 67 Moderate You maintain a good balance between respect and consideration for others’ viewpoints and the ability to argue fairly by attacking the facts of a position rather than the person holding the position.	Verbal Aggressiveness Score: 69 Significant With little provocation, you might cross the line from ”arguementativeness”, which attacks a person’s position or statements, and verbal aggression, which involves personal attacks and can be hurtful to the listener.	Verbal Aggressiveness Score: 55 Moderate You maintain a good balance between respect and consideration for others’ viewpoints and the ability to argue fairly by attacking the facts of a position rather than the person holding the position.
Listening Style Group: 1 People Oriented You are empathetic and concerned with the emotions of others. This listening style helps  you build relationships, but it can interfere with proper judgement because you tend to be very trusting to others.	Listening Style Group: 1 People Oriented You are empathetic and concerned with the emotions of others. This listening style helps  you build relationships, but it can interfere with proper judgement because you tend to be very trusting to others.	Listening Style Group: 1 People Oriented You are empathetic and concerned with the emotions of others. This listening style helps  you build relationships, but it can interfere with proper judgement because you tend to be very trusting to others.

Reference

Rubin, R. B., Rubin, A. M., Graham, E. E., Perse, E. M., & Seibold, D. R. (Eds.) (2009). Communication research measures II: A sourcebook. New York: Routledge

Communication and Culture

This week we were asked if we communicate differently with people from different groups and cultures. After giving it some thought, I think that I am very comfortable talking with people in my own race and others outside of my race. I particularly feel comfortable speaking with other women. There is a comfortable sense of sisterhood that I share with my friends that makes it easy for me to communicate with them.

As I was doing this assignment I can remember my husband sharing with me that he noticed when I am with my family from Bermuda, we all tend to have the same type of accent when we speak. I don’t notice it at all but he says that when we talk in a group I also have the same accent as my family. When I was growing up I spent many summers there and as soon as I would open my mouth, people would say, “You’re from the states, aren’t you”. I didn’t think I sounded any different than anyone else but they could tell by my southern accent that I wasn’t from the island. By the time I went home, I felt like I blended in with everyone else and it felt comfortable. I think when I’m around my family it feels comfortable to use some of the same words that they use when speaking and there is a sense of camaraderie that we share. As a child being told that I sounded different made me feel uncomfortable when I was there so I did what I could to “fit in” and sound like my cousins and their friends. They don’t speak in another language but there are many British phrases that they use that we don’t use as Americans.

 

Week 2 EDUC 6165 Communications

This week we were asked to watch an episode of a television show in silence and then watch the show with the sound on and the sound off.  This week I decided to watch on episode of the show The Talk. The Talk is a daytime show where five celebrity women discuss current issues in the news. At times they even have other celebrities on to discuss issues with them. This week when I watched they had Don Rickles and Regis Philbin on the show.

From what I observed the ladies on the show seemed to enjoy talking with one another. The body language of the group was positive. I didn’t observe any eye-rolling or any folded arms that suggested any kind of animosity.  When I played the recording back and then listened to the show it seemed that their body language match what was actually taking place. Before watching with sound from the body language and the facial expression I observed I assumed that the relationships were positive and they were genuinely happy to be with one another and enjoyed talking to each other. They also seemed to have positive interaction with the celebrity guests that were on the show.