UWEC Communications Exam: 2

Lesson 1A: Areas of Communication

Three Areas of Communication

1.) Verbal (Language): What you say 7%

2.) Non-Verbal (Non-Vocal): What you do 55%

3.) Paralanguage (Vocal): How you say it 38%

Purposes of Communication

  1. To accent the message (non-verbal and verbal)
  2. To complement the emotion
  3. To contradict
  4. To regulate the conversation
  5. To repeat

When you meet the purposes of communication? When all three areas of communication work together

Which area is the most honest? Paralanguage

Which is more honest verbal or non-verbal? Non-verbal

Try to use at least two of the three areas together for clarity

Every word has two types on meanings: Meanings are in people not in words

  1. Connotative: Emotional subjective meaning
  2. Denotative: Dictionary/objective meaning

As long as there’s a shared connotation, the denotative version can change

Three Rules of Language

  1. Phonological Rules: sound/pronunciation
  2. Semantic Rules: words and their meanings
  3. Syntactical Rules: Phrases and sentences

Lesson 1B: Barriers to Verbal Communication

Seven Barriers to Verbal Communication

1.) Polarization: When you describe the world in terms of extremes

2 A.) Intensional orientation: When you look at the label instead of the person

2 B.) Extensional Orientation: Look at the label last

3.) Bypassing: Missing each other’s meaning due to semantics

4.) Allness Statements: Misevaluation of looking at the part and calling it the whole (Always/Never/Every)

5.) Fact-Inference Confusion:

  • Fact: verifiable observation
  • Inference: assumption based on past experiences

6.) Static Evaluation: Retain evaluation without changing although the world around you change

7.) Indiscrimination: We don’t look at the individual but instead look at the characteristics on an entire group

  • AKA: Stereotyping

Fact: a verifiable observation

Lesson 2: Nonverbal Communication

The Statistics:

93% of all communication is: nonverbal

Only 7% of communication is: verbal communication

Nonverbal Communication: Physical aspect of communication

7 Areas of “Icks Terms”

1.) Kinesics: they study of body language

The most obvious types of body language: Gestures/Gestural Communication

4 types of Gestural Communication

  • Emblem: a gesture used in place for words
  • Illustrators: a gesture that accompanies words
  • Regulator: a gesture that regulates the flow of the conversation
  • Adaptors: gestures that’s a nervous habit
  • Master Gesture: The gesture one uses over and over again
    • Women gesture up
    • Men gesture down

2.) Facial Expression AKA Affect displays

  • Micro-expression: brief, involuntary expression shown when one is trying to conceal an emotion

    Four Functions of Facial Communication

  • Intensifying: exaggerating an emotion

  • De-intensifying: downplay an emotion

  • Neutralizing: when you show no emotion

  • Masking: replacing an emotion

3.) Eye Communication

2 Types of Eye Communication

  • Emotional Display: the eyes give away the truth
  • Eye Contact
    • Civil Inattention: Looking away with the purpose to give privacy

4.) Haptics: The Study of Touch Communication

5 Reasons Why we Touch Each Other

  • Positive Emotion
  • Playfulness
  • Control
  • Ritualistic
  • Task-Related

5.) Proximity: The Study of Space

Two types of space we control nonverbally

  • Territory: the space around us

    Three types of territory we control

    • Primary space: What you own
    • Secondary Space: You own it temporary
    • Public Space: Space you physically occupy

    Three ways we mark territory

    • Central Marker: A physical object
    • Ear Marker: A object that’s personalized
    • Boundaries: A physical or imaginary line

  • Distance: the space between people

    4 Types of distances:

    • Intimate: 0 -18 inches
    • Personal: 18 inches - 4ft
    • Social: 4ft - 12ft
    • Public: 12ft - 25ft
    • Over 25 ft is out of distance

6.) Objectics: Study of Artifacts and objects

7.) Chronemics: the study of time

  • How you view time

Lesson 3a: Paralanguage

Vocalic: the study of paralanguage

This is just as important as the other two areas of communication

Paralanguage includes:

  • Rate: how fast you speak
  • Pitch: how high/low you speak
  • Volume: how loud or soft you speak
  • Inflection: emphasis on words
  • Enunciation: sounds pronounced in words
    • Men under enunciate
    • Women over enunciate
  • Vocal Dysfluencies: Cracking, stuttering, slurring speech, fumbling for words
  • Pauses: length of silence between words

The Sound of Silence

Functions of Silence

  • To provide thinking time
  • To hurt people
  • Isolate yourself
  • To prevent communication
  • To communicate feelings
  • To show nothing

Lesson 3b: Conversation

Conversation 5 step process

  1. Opening

  2. Feedforward

  3. Business

    Types of Business

    • To learn
    • To relate
    • To influence
    • To play
    • To help

  4. Feedback

  5. Closing

3 Ways to Manage a Conversation

Whoever starts the conversation needs to end and manage it

1.) Inciting Conversation

  • Self Reference: saying who you are
  • Other Reference: How you know them though someone AKA: So and so’s mom
  • Relationship Reference: Something that tells who you are AKA: mom
  • Context Reference: Someone you know from a place/experience/time AKA: So and So from Choir

2.) Maintaining Conversation

  1. Quality
  2. Quantity
  3. Relevance
  4. Manner

3.) Closing the Conversation

2 Ways to Help a Conversation

1.) Disclaimers (before statement)

2.) Excuses (after statement)

Lesson 4: Emotions

Emotional Intelligence: The ability to understand and manage one’s own emotions and to be sensitive to other’s feelings

Four Elements to Emotions

  1. Self-Awareness
  2. Social Awareness
  3. Self-Management
  4. Relationship Managment

Components to Emotions

1.) Physiological Changes

  • When we experience emotional bodily changes occur
    • Ex: When you fell a pit in your stomach

2.) Nonverbal Behavior

  • Emotions are often apparent from observable physiological changes

3.) Cognitive Interpretation

  • The mind is an important role in determining how we feel

4.) Verbal Expression

  • Putting emotions into words can help you manage them more effectively

5.) Emotional Contagion

  • Emotions can spread from one person to another
  • This process can take place online as well as in person

6.) Managing Emotions

  • Facilitative Emotions: Emotions that contribute to effective functioning
  • Debilitative Emotions: Emotions which hinder effective performance
  • Intensity is the difference

How to Minimize Debilitative Emotions

Rational Emotions Approach: The key to changing feeling is to change unproductive cognitive interpretation

Situation One

  • One: Event - I Love you
  • Two: Thought - Genuine Statement
  • Three: Emotion - Delight

Situation Two

  • One: Event - I Love you
  • Two: Thought - Manipulative
  • Three: Emotion - Anger

Fallacies that Lead to Debilitative Emotions

1.) Fallacy of Perfection: You believe communication should be able to handle every situation with complete confidence and skill

2.) Fallacy of Appeal: You believe you have to get everyone’s approval at all costs

3.) Fallacy of Helplessness: Forces beyond our control determine satisfaction in life (victims)

4.) Fallacy of Overgeneralization: Using absolute statement based on beliefs with limited amount of experience

5.) Fallacy of Causation: Assuming one person can cause another’s emotions

5 Steps to Minimize Debilitative Emotions

1.) Monitor intensity and duration

2.) Note the activating event (Identify triggers)

3.) Record your self talk (journal)

4.) Dispute your irrational Beliefs (reappraisal)

5.) Change your self talk (can/can’t)