Download Communication

Interpersonal Relations
Instructional Materials Service
IMS #8000D
Objectives
• Work cooperatively with others and contribute
to the group with ideas, suggestions, and effort.
• Help others learn.
• Work and communicate with clients/customers
to satisfy their expectations.
Objectives
• Communicate thoughts, feelings, facts, and ideas
to justify a position, encourage, persuade,
convince, or otherwise motivate individuals and
groups including responsibly challenging existing
procedures, policies, and authority.
• Negotiate an agreement that may involve
exchanging specific resources or resolving
divergent interests.
Objectives
• Recognize concepts related to cultural
diversity, and work well with others regardless
of their age and ethnic, social, or educational
backgrounds.
Interpersonal Relations
• Defined as relations among people.
• Refers to the feelings and emotions
people have toward each other.
Interpersonal Relations
• Determines how a person feels about himself
or herself, how others feel about the
individual, and how the individual feels about
others.
• May involve how people view themselves as
part of a group.
Interpersonal Relations
• Success of interpersonal relationships is largely
determined by character traits and
communication.
• Interpersonal relationships go on to impact
communication and many facets of group
dynamics.
Traits Impacting
Interpersonal Relations
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Consideration
Courtesy
Kindness
Caring
Pleasantness
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Respectfulness
Patience
Honesty
Promptness
Keeping On Task
Communication
• The sharing of information, ideas, beliefs, and opinions.
• A two way process of exchanging information between
senders and receivers that results in a high degree of
understanding by both parties.
Communication Model
Source
• Communication is
initiated by the
source, or sender.
Message
• Sender prepares the
message into a form
for sending using a
code.
– This code may be
written letters that
form a word, or
drawings, sounds or
gestures.
Channel
• The channel is the
linkage between the
sender and receiver.
• Channel selected
depends on the coding
system chosen.
– The channel could be a
note, phone call, gesture,
email, etc.
Receiver
• The receiver is the
individual for whom
the message is
intended.
• The encoded message
is decoded by the
receiver.
– Decoding involves
drawing meaning from
the symbols used by
the sender.
Feedback
• Feedback is the return
channel from the receiver
to the sender.
• It generally involves
asking questions to clarify
the message’s meaning.
• Feedback continues until
both the sender and
receiver agree on an
understanding of the
message’s meaning.
Channels of Communication
• Verbal
– Involves using words to express ideas.
– Words may be spoken or written.
• Nonverbal
– Involves exchanging information without the use
of words.
Oral Communication
• Verbal communication using spoken words.
– Formal communication would be presentations,
meetings, and interviews.
– Informal communication would include casual
conversations and phone calls.
Written Communication
• Occurs when words are presented in a written
format.
– Formal written communication includes business
letters, memos, and reports.
– Email and notes are examples of informal written
communication.
Written Communication
• Documents produced should be concise, clear,
and well written.
• Preparer should proofread the document for
spelling, grammatical, and typographical
errors.
Nonverbal Communication
• Involves exchanging information without the
use of words.
Examples of
Nonverbal Communication
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Body Language
Facial Expressions
Eye Contact
Gestures
Tone of Voice
Posture
• Distance Between
Oneself and Others
• Charts
• Diagrams
• Pictures
Listening
• Listening is an important part of communication.
• Listener is the receiver of the message.
• Listener has the responsibility of decoding the
message, initiating feedback, and engaging in
feedback until the intended message is
understood.
Tips for Good Listening
• Get ready to listen.
– Stop talking.
– Cease engagement in other tasks.
– Remove distractions.
Tips for Good Listening
• Listen to understand.
– Don’t interrupt the speaker or complete his/her
sentences.
– Don’t worry about what will be said next.
– Ask questions.
– Repeat the message.
Tips for Good Listening
• Be mentally flexible.
– Weigh the evidence.
– Interpret the meaning.
– Relate the message to similar experiences.
Tips for Good Listening
• Control emotions.
– Be patient.
– Hold your temper.
– Avoid argument and criticism.
Effective Listening Skills
Communication Barriers
• Poor Listening Skills
• Distractions
• Distortions
Distractions
• Anything that interferes with the sender creating
or delivering the message, or the receiver getting
or interpreting the message.
• Examples include:
– ringing phones
– loud noises
– others talking
Distortions
• How people consciously or unconsciously
change messages.
• May be caused by information left out or
someone purposely altering the message for
the purpose of self-enhancement or selfpreservation.
Communication Networks
• The pattern through which members of a
group communicate.
• Typically classified as:
– Formal
– Informal
Formal
Communication Networks
• Composed of different levels of management
with information flowing vertically and
horizontally throughout the organization in a
prescribed manner.
Vertical Communication
• Flows up and down through the
organization.
Vertical Communication
• Upward involves oral and written reports from
lower level to upper level managers.
• Downward involves memos, reports, manuals, and
information presented at meetings.
Horizontal Communication
• Flows laterally across the organization.
• Involves sharing information within and across
departments or committees.
Open Communication
Cultures
• Organizations that experience significant
vertical and lateral communication may also be
classified as having an open communication
culture.
– Culture encourages creativity, problem solving,
and feedback at all levels.
– Communication and information sharing is also
encouraged.
Closed Communication Cultures
• Characterized by primarily downward
communication.
• Rely on top-down decision making, adherence
to numerous rules, and strict disciplining for
violations of established procedure.
• Creativity, decision making, and feedback are
discouraged.
Informal
Communication Networks
• Consist of unofficial ways of sharing
information.
• Includes:
– Small Informal Groups
– Grapevine
Small Informal Groups
• Usually consist of friends or colleagues that get
along well together.
• Group shares information about the
organization, solves problems together, and
looks out for each other.
Grapevine
• An informal communication system that develops
among workers.
• Information travels quickly through it and can
easily be distorted and is sometimes rumor.
• Information presented can also be accurate and
even more expansive than information divulged
through formal communication networks.
Interpersonal Relations
Within Groups
• A group is two or more people working
together to accomplish a goal.
– In the workplace, a group could be the entire
business, a department, a small team, or an
informal group of colleagues.
– Outside of the work environment, groups may
involve a club or organization, team, family, class,
school, or group of friends.
Contributing to the Organization
or Team
• When an individual becomes part of an
organization or team, he/she develops a
psychological contract.
– A psychological contract is the overall set of
expectations held by an individual with respect to
what he or she will contribute to the organization
and what the organization will provide in return.
Contributions to the Group or
Team
• Effort
• Skills
• Ability
• Time
• Loyalty
• Competencies
Inducements
• In return for their contributions, the individual
expects inducements.
– Inducements are what the organization provides
the individual.
Inducements
• Pay
• Job Security
• Benefits
• Career Opportunities
• Status
• Promotion Opportunities
Tips for Contributing Ideas,
Suggestions, and Effort
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Prepare for the discussion.
Speak freely.
Listen thoughtfully.
Think straight.
Speak up.
Tips for Contributing Ideas,
Suggestions, and Effort
• Support your position with facts, examples, or
authorities’ opinions.
• Don’t argue over idea ownership because
once it has been presented it becomes group
property.
Tips for Contributing Ideas,
Suggestions, and Effort
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Keep up.
Stay focused.
Be an attentive speaker.
Be pleasant.
Characteristics of Groups
• Unity
• Relationships
• Ability to Work Together
Unity
• A feeling of connection between members of a
group or team.
• Establishing goals and having a plan are
important for developing unity.
Relationships
• Positive relationships are evident in successful
teams.
• Group members should feel comfortable and free
to contribute to and learn from the group.
• Communication is an important part of
establishing positive relationships.
Ability to Work Together
• Successful groups are able to work together to
achieve a goal and put individual differences
aside for the good of the group.
• Communication plays a part in a group’s
ability to work together.
Techniques for Increasing the
Effectiveness of Groups
• Team Building
• Conflict Resolution
• Development of a Shared Vision
• Motivation
• Appreciation of Diversity
• Mentoring
Team-Building
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Involves a three-phase process.
1. Forming
2. Norming
3. Performing
Forming
• Individuals are brought together and made into
a cohesive unit.
• Focuses on taking individuals used to acting on
their own and making them into a cohesive
unit that can progress and develop into an
entity able to solve problems.
Forming
• Includes development of a mission or what the
group wants to accomplish.
– Mission is basis for having goals and outcomes
that are measurable.
 Mission is also important because different beliefs
and values of individuals are coming together to
create a common mission.
Forming
• Trust building should be the primary focus of the
forming phase.
– Trust develops from members sharing information
and believing they can influence decisions and
exercise a degree of control over goal achievement.
– Trust results in members being open to learning
from one another.
Norming
• Members take necessary steps to develop
team cohesion.
• Successful completion of this phase leads to a
highly productive team.
Norming
• Focuses on developing ground rules or a way of
doing things.
– Having guidelines and a code of conduct helps a
team prevent misunderstandings and disagreements
and avoids wasting time resolving procedural issues.
– The more team members that share in the
development of the team’s norms, the greater the
chance of success.
Performing
• Team business is conducted and goals are
accomplished during this phase.
• By now, teams should have a close attachment
and be highly productive.
Conflict
• A situation that develops when one person
interferes with the achievement of another
person’s goals.
• Usually occurs between two people, but may
occur between an individual and a group or
between groups.
Conflict
• Small amount of conflict can be beneficial
because it may challenge people and stimulate
new ideas.
• Too much conflict is bad.
• Undesirable conflict results when the actions of
any person or group interfere with the goals of
the organization.
Conflict Resolution
• Avoidance Strategy
• Compromise Strategy
• Win/Lose Strategy
Avoidance Strategy
• Involves taking a neutral position or agreeing
with another person even though it differs
from personal belief.
• This is the best approach when the issue
causing conflict is relatively unimportant.
Compromise Strategy
• Involves everyone involved in the conflict
agreeing to a mutually acceptable solution.
• The compromise often grows out of discussion
of the goals and the best way to achieve them.
Compromise Strategy
• Preferable approach because it usually leads to
a workable solution and allows everyone to
contribute to the decision, thus generating
more support because of their involvement.
Steps in Compromise
Strategy
1.
2.
3.
4.
Define the problem from both perspectives.
Reverse perspectives.
Propose solutions.
Implement a solution.
Defining the Problem
O
• Uses the OTFD
model.
– Open The Front
Door
Open Observation
T
The
Thinking
F
Front
Feeling
D
Door
Desire
Open The Front Door Model
• Observation
– Involves describing what happened in an
objective, observable way to get both parties
started at the same point.
• Thinking
– Involves sharing your thought or opinion.
Open The Front Door Model
• Feeling
– Personal feelings or emotions are shared.
• Desire
– Involves stating personal intentions or desired
results.
Defining the Problem
• Once the individual initiating the conversation
has finished steps, the other person or people
go through the same steps and share their
position.
• Goal of this step is to define the problem from
both perspectives and establish a starting
point.
Reversing Perspectives
• Both people rephrase or summarize what they
have heard.
• Goal is to make distinctions between the two
opposing viewpoints.
Proposing Solutions
• Solutions are proposed.
• Possible types of solutions include:
– Expanding the Pie
– Package Deals
– Trade-Offs
– Bridging the Initial Positions
Possible Solutions
• Expanding the Pie
– Involves finding ways to increase available resources
to accommodate the needs and wants of all persons
involved.
• Package Deals
– Several related issues are put together rather than
dealing with one at a time.
Possible Solutions
• Trade-Offs
– Involve exchanging two things of comparable
value.
• Bridging the Initial Positions
– Involves creating a new option that is totally
different but satisfies both parties’ interests.
Implementing a Solution
• Questions should be asked to evaluate and choose
the “best solution”.
– Does the solution meet the needs of all participants,
and is it fair to everyone?
– Can we justify this solution based on objective criteria?
– Will the agreement and the process we went through
strengthen our ability to work together effectively?
– Will this agreement positively affect our future efforts
to resolve conflict constructively?
Win/Lose Strategy
• Involves one person “winning” or getting
his/her way, and the other “losing”.
• Doesn’t involve any sort of compromise.
• Solution will never be acceptable to everyone.
Win/Lose Strategy
• Most dangerous approach to conflict
resolution.
• Strategy interferes with the achievement of
goals, increases anger, and causes resentment.
Development of a Shared Vision
• A shared vision is a group’s mental picture of
the future.
• It should be developed with input from every
member of the group.
– Gets everyone involved and creates a sense of
ownership.
– Inspires people to take action and work toward
achieving the vision or mission.
Motivation
• Involves inspiring one to act.
• May be classified as:
– Extrinsic
– Intrinsic
Extrinsic Motivation
• Motivation that results from the desire to
obtain an external reward.
• The reward may be tangible or intangible.
– Tangible reward would be money or an award.
– Intangible reward would be praise.
Intrinsic Motivation
• Motivation that results from the inherent desire a
person has to feel competent and self-fulfilled.
• Fundamentals of intrinsic motivation are:
– Everyone has the need to succeed and to develop a
positive self-concept.
– Everyone has a desire to be competent and have
control over his or her environment.
Motivation
• Motivation is tied to people’s needs.
• A. H. Maslow developed a theory classifying
human motivation based on five levels of needs.
• Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs illustrates how
humans are motivated by basic needs, and once
met, the next level of needs become motivation.
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
Biological and Physiological
• Involves the most
basic of needs
such as:
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food;
shelter;
air; and
sleep.
Safety and Security
• Involves needs such
as:
– freedom from fear;
– stability; and
– knowing one’s job
duties.
Belongingness
• Involves needs such
as:
– being accepted as an
individual;
– friendship; and
– love.
Esteem
• Involves needs such
as:
– being respected by
others;
– a need to feel
important;
– recognition; and
– status.
Self-Actualization
• These people are
concerned with reaching
their potential,
achievement, challenge,
and self-development.
• These people provide
service because they feel it
is important and
worthwhile, rather than
for recognition.
Motivation Tools
• Recognition
• Participation
• Communication
• Concern
• Reinforcement
Recognition
• Recognizing members for their contributions
has been shown to increase motivation.
– Formal recognition could include awards,
plaques, and certificates.
– Informal recognition most commonly involves
praise.
Participation
• People who have the opportunity to
participate in decision-making usually show
more motivation.
• Participation allows people to take ownership
of the decisions and gives them a vested
interest in carrying out the decision.
Communication
• When people understand a concept or plan,
they are more anxious to invest their energy in
accomplishing it.
Concern
• People who have a need for belonging, may be
motivated by concern.
• Showing a genuine concern for members and
their achievement often provides motivation
and may also result in those members being
more concerned about their leader.
Reinforcement
• Reinforcement involves the strengthening of
responses people give.
• Reinforcement may be classified as either
positive or negative.
Positive Reinforcement
• An act that helps people feel good about what
they have done so they will repeat the
behavior in the future.
• Recognition and praise are both examples of
positive reinforcement.
Negative Reinforcement
• Used to get people to change their behavior by
associating what they have done with
unpleasant events.
• May also be referred to as punishment.
Appreciating Diversity
• Diversity exists when members of a group
differ from one another along one or more
important dimensions.
Primary
Dimensions of Diversity
• Age
• Gender
• Ethnicity
Secondary
Dimensions of Diversity
• Education
• Household Income
• Marital Status
• Parental Status
Appreciating Diversity
• These aspects of a person’s background shape
their beliefs, attitudes, skills, work habits, and
approach to tasks.
• Diversity presents both challenges and benefits
to a group.
Benefits of Diversity
• Broader range of ideas and ways of looking at
things.
• Reduction in conflicts between workers.
• Greater sense of morale among employees.
• Greater commitment to company goals.
Benefits of Diversity
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Better understanding of a diverse marketplace.
Increased productivity and efficiency.
Lower turnover rates.
Fewer legal costs due to employee grievances.
Impact of Diversity
in the Workplace
• Success in groups and the workplace largely
depends on how well one works with and for
people who are different from themselves.
Impact of Diversity
in the Workplace
• The United States is becoming more ethnically
diverse.
– Hispanics and Asians are the fastest growing
groups in the country.
– In both Texas and California, Hispanics are no
longer classified as a minority.
– In the last few years, 85% of those entering the
workforce were women and minorities.
•
Impact of Diversity
in the
The population is getting older
andWorkplace
living longer.
– Baby boomers, or those born between 1946 and
1964, control $2.6 trillion and have about 51% of
the country’s wealth.
– Older people are working longer, while some people
are entering the workforce at an even younger age.
Discrimination
• Excluding someone based on their age, gender,
or ethnicity, particularly in the workplace, is
called discrimination and is often illegal.
• Numerous laws have been enacted to protect
individuals from discrimination.
Laws Against Discrimination
• Age Discrimination in Employment Act
– Protects older workers from being fired or denied
jobs based on their age.
• Equal Employment Opportunity Act
– Protects workers from being discriminated
against on the basis of gender, ethnicity, or other
aspects of identity.
Laws Against Discrimination
• Americans with Disabilities Act
– Requires businesses to provide facilities such as
wheelchair ramps, thus making working at such
businesses a possibility.
Appreciating Diversity
• Dealing with diversity doesn’t mean ignoring
differences, but understanding and
appreciating them.
• Perception and stereotyping often hinder this
understanding and appreciation.
Perception
• The set of processes by which an individual
becomes aware of and interprets information
about the environment.
• Impacts how a person sees others and how
he/she treats them.
– In turn, the manner in which a person treats others
determines how people respond.
Selective Perception
• The process of screening out information
that we are uncomfortable with or
contradicts our beliefs.
Examples of
Selective Perception
• Manager sees an employee that he/she is very
fond of goofing off and quickly forgets what
he/she observed.
• Manager quickly forgets the good performance
of a worker that he/she perceives negatively.
Stereotyping
• The process of categorizing or labeling people
on the basis of a single attribute.
• Often creates biases that are incorrect.
Example of Stereotyping
• Manager might form stereotypes about
women performing only certain types of tasks.
– This may cause manager to fail to capitalize on
abilities of women and create animosity in the
workplace.
Mentoring
• A relationship in which someone with considerable
experience serves as a role model and helps
someone with less experience.
• People such as teachers and employers often serve
as mentors.
• Mentor may also be a peer with more extensive
knowledge or experience.
• Mentors influence another person and guide them in
the right direction.
Relationships with
Customers and Clients
• Keys to successful relationships with clients
and customers are generally the same as
relationships with other individuals.
Relationships with
Customers and Clients
• In particular, customers:
– expect courtesy;
– expect sensitivity to their wants and needs;
– want to feel good about who they do business
with; and
– want to feel important and valued.
Showing Courtesy to Customers
and Clients
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Greet the individual.
Be friendly and helpful.
Call the individual by name.
Look the person in the eye.
Ask the individual if he/she needs any help.
Showing Courtesy to Customers
and Clients
• Ask the individual if he/she found everything
he/she was looking for.
• Ask him/her to come back again.
• Provide prompt service.
• Be patient.
• Use good manners.
Sensitivity to Wants and
Needs
• Listen carefully to a customer’s needs and
desires.
• Provide suggestions on products and services
that will fit his/her specific needs.
• Provide accurate information and outline the
benefits of the purchase.
Feeling Good About the Business
• Courtesy and sensitivity go a long way in
making customers feel good about who they
are doing business with.
• Customers want to know that the business and
its employees have sound ethics and integrity.
• Businesses should follow through on what they
say they are going to do.
Feeling Important and
Valued
• Businesses should be interested in customer
satisfaction before, during, and after the sale.
• Questions, concerns, or problems, should be
addressed immediately.
• Most businesses adhere to “the customer is
always right” policy.
“Customer is Always Right”
• This policy involves making every effort to:
– rectify the situation;
– ensure that the problem will never happen again;
and
– providing compensation or restitution.
Summary
• Interpersonal relations are the key to success
in the workplace and life.
• At the heart of successful relationships is
consideration for others and effective
communication.
Summary
• Groups rely heavily on interpersonal relations
and communication to run effectively and
accomplish their goals.
• To foster positive relationships, group
members should show consideration and make
efforts to contribute their ideas, suggestions,
and effort.
Summary
• To build a stronger team, groups can utilize
techniques such as:
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team building;
conflict resolution;
development of a shared vision;
motivation;
appreciation of diversity; and
mentoring.
Summary
• When working with customers, keep in mind the
keys to successful relationships with any
individual.
• Remember that customers:
– expect courtesy;
– expect sensitivity to their wants and needs;
– want to feel good about who they do business with;
and
– want to feel important and valued.