978-1319103323 Chapter 1 Part 1

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Chapter 1: Introducing Interpersonal Communication

Instructor Resources

OBJECTIVES

• Define communication.

• Compare and contrast three different models of communication (linear, interactive,

transactional).

• Identify the important needs and goals that interpersonal communication fulfills.

• Understand the importance of interpersonal communication competence, and identify tools

for improving competence.

• Describe major issues and key elements related to the study of interpersonal

communication.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. How would you have defined communication prior to reading the chapter? How has your

definition changed since reading it?

2. What is the significance of defining communication as a process?

3. One of the characteristics of communication is its use of modalities. What types of online

modalities—e-mail, text messaging, instant messaging, and social networking sites—do

you use to communicate regularly? How effective are these for communicating? Do you

change the online communication forms you use, depending on the message you are

sending?

3. Consider the four principles of interpersonal communication. Develop a brief piece of

advice for effective communication based on each of the four principles.

4. Given the three criteria of interpersonal competence, which do you find the most difficult

to fulfill in your current relationship with a parent? With a romantic partner? Roommate?

Work colleague?

5. Provide an example of a self-presentation goal, an instrumental goal, and a relational goal.

6. What are some challenges related to communicating competently online?

7. Give an example that illustrates how gender differs from biological sex.

JOURNAL PROMPTS

1. Which communication media (e.g., e-mail, cell phone, text message, social media) do

you use the most to communicate with members of your household? Compare and

contrast the kind of communication that happens with this media versus face-to-face

interactions.

2. Identify a recent misunderstanding you had with another person. Which of the three

models is most useful in helping you understand what happened? Use the terms of the

model to explain what happened.

3. Think of experiences you have had in which there is inconsistency between what is

conveyed at the relational level and what is said at the content level. Explain the situation

and how you handled it.

4. Interpersonal communication is irreversible, and we have all experienced “foot–in-the-

mouth” moments. Identify a recent situation that you wish you could undo. What would

you say or do differently?

5. Consider a time when you unintentionally communicated a message to someone through

your behavior. How did this person interpret your behavior? What were the

consequences? What steps did you take to correct the misinterpretation?

6. How would you evaluate your ability to communicate online? Do you see yourself as

effective, appropriate, and ethical in your online communications? What are examples of

times when it is challenging to meet all three criteria?

7. Consider a time when you sent an e-mail or text-messaged someone you were angry with,

then regretted your action. What was the result? Did you try to repair the situation

through further e-mails or text messages or did you employ alternate media? What did

you learn from the experience?

8. Complete the Self-Quiz in LaunchPad titled Test Your Self-Monitoring. Do you agree with

the results? What do you think are the advantages and disadvantages of being a high self–

monitor? What are the advantages and disadvantages of being a low self-monitor?

9. Complete the Self-Quiz in LaunchPad titled The Dark Side of Interpersonal Relationships.

Which of the relationship challenges in this self-quiz would you like to improve? Choose

one and discuss what actions you could take to overcome this challenge.

EXPERIENTIAL ACTIVITIES

Exercise: Communication Domains

Objective: To create an icebreaker and to have students experience and respond to different

communication domains.

Directions: Instruct the students that there are four timed stages in this activity and that they

will need materials to jot down a few notes.

Stage 1

1. Break the class into random dyads. (If there is an odd number, make one a triad.)

3. The students in each dyad must learn each other’s first name and generate a list of as

many things as possible they have in common with one another.

Stage 2

4. Randomly match dyads to create groups of four. (If necessary, one group of six is fine.)

6. Each group must: (1) learn one another’s first names; (2) find two things all members of

the group have in common; and (3) generate a list of more than three communication

difficulties that many people seem to manifest. (They will likely come up with ideas such

as shyness, poor listening, lack of eye contact, strong accents, etc.)

Stage 3

7. After five minutes, announce to the students that they must assign each member of their

group a letter so that each group has a person designated as “A,” “B,” “C,” etc.

8. Explain that in a moment, everyone in the class who is a letter “A” will have to stand up

9. The “B” members then will stand and tell everyone in the class the two things their group

10. The “C” members then stand and tell the class two difficulties they listed, attempting not

11. The “D” members stand and are asked to report on something unexpected—such as two

things the instructor mentioned in the class lecture, something that was explained about

Stage 4

12. Explain that the activity is designed to break the ice in a new class, but also to

demonstrate the differences among communication domains.

13. Ask for responses to the following questions:

• Did it feel different to you to speak in a group of four to six students than it was to

communicate to another person in a dyad?

• Would a shy person likely feel happier communicating in a dyad or a small group?

• When you were asked to stand and tell the class something, and to remain standing,

you entered the domain of public speaking. What feels different about communicating

in that domain?

• In which domain are you more comfortable, and why?

• How is public speaking different from communication over radio, television, or the

Internet?

14. Conclude the exercise by explaining that the course they are about to study is in the

domain of the dyad, or interpersonal communication.

Exercise: The Pros and Cons of Social Media

Objective: To have students think critically about the pros and cons of using social media.

Directions: Instruct the class that they will debate the pros and cons of using social media.

Divide the class into two groups. One group will examine the benefits of using social media,

while the other will examine the disadvantages of using social media. Allow approximately

20 to 25 minutes for each group to brainstorm ideas and 20 to 25 minutes for debate.

For the “pro” group, provide the following instructions: Consider the many types of

social media (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, Tumblr, Google+, etc.). What are

some advantages of using social media in your personal relationships (friends, family,

romantic partners), as well as your professional relationships (fellow students, teachers,

workplace colleagues)? Compile a list of all the positive ways in which social media

contribute to your life and your relationships.

Some possible benefits of using social media include: connecting with friends and

family; reconnecting with people from your past; finding job assistance; providing a forum

for self-expression; sharing useful information, such as recipes, do-it-yourself tutorials, and

recommendations for books, movies, music, and TV shows; sharing inspiring or funny

quotations and photographs; enlisting community support; and finding news articles and

offbeat stories.

For the “con” group, provide the following instructions: Consider the many types of

social media (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, Tumblr, Google+, etc.). What are

some disadvantages of using them in your personal relationships (friends, family, romantic

partners), as well as your professional relationships (fellow students, teachers, workplace

colleagues)? For example, what concerns might your employer have about you use of social

media? Are there any legal risks to using social media?

Some possible drawbacks to using social media include falling victim to identity theft

and exposing oneself to those who use social media as a weapon to hurt or bully others.

Employers may be concerned about loss of productivity, or that using social media promotes

inappropriate conduct like disparaging the company online or disclosing confidential

information. Legal risks related to social media include cyberbullying, defamation, copyright

infringement, and distribution of offensive material.

Exercise: Communication Channels and Tools

Objective: To utilize the Communication Channels and Tools Worksheet.

Directions: Follow these steps.

a. Have students complete the Communication Channels and Tools Worksheet.

b. Provide 15 to 20 minutes to discuss results in groups of four to five students.

c. Debrief by considering the following questions:

1. What channels or tools seem to be most preferred? Which are least preferred? Why?

2. How does the nature of the message change your ideas about the appropriateness of the

channels and tools?

3. What other factors affect your preferences?

Communication Channels and Tools Worksheet*

Instructions: Consider various situations in which you must initiate communication with a romantic

partner. Rank each approach on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being the best way to relate this

communication and 5 being the worst way.

a. You need to apologize for a fight that you started the last time you were together.

___ Have a face-to-face conversation

___ Talk by telephone

___ Leave a voice-mail message