Instructor Wrap Up - Wood Chapter 6

Mindful Listening

"One of the best ways to persuade others is with your ears - by listening to them."

Dean Rusk

Key Concepts in this chapter:

ambushing

defensive listening

hearing

listening

listening for information

listening for pleasure

listening to support others

literal listening

mindfulness

minimal encouragers

monopolizing

paraphrasing

prejudgement

preoccupation

pseudolistening

remembering

responding

selective listening

Pg. 147 starts out by explaining The Listening Process.  The process of listening is a mult-sitep process:

Being Mindful

Physically Receiving Messages

Selecting and Organizing Information

Interpreting Communication 

Responding

Remembering

There is quite a bit more to listening than simply 'hearing' something, as the text mentions.  'Hearing' is a physiological process, while 'listening' is an active and complex process that involves our ears, minds, and hearts.

Also on this page the author mentions the idea of mindfulness.  "Mindfulness is being fully present in the moment", or what is called 'wide awakeness'.  Engaging in mindfulness is a choice, plain and simple.  When someone senses that they are being listened to in a mindful way, they tend to elaborate on their ideas and express themselves in more depth.  And isn't that what we want for the folks who we 'listen' to?

Pg. 148 covers the second step in the process:  Physically Receiving Messages.  This section covers ideas of the physiological reaction when receiving a message, listening impairments, and gender and listening.  We will camp in the gender section for a minute or two:  Isn't interesting that women and men tend to differ in their listening habits?  "Men tend to focus their hearing on specific content aspects of communication, whereas women generally are more likely to attend to the whole of communication, noticing details, tangents, and relationship-level meanings".

The third step as outlined by your text is Selecting and Organizing Material.  This discussion starts on page 148 and continues to pg. 149.  Folks have a tendency to selectively attend to some messages and elements in their environment.  This means that there are many factors that go into selective attention:  interests, cognitive structures, expectations and culture.  Once we select what we are going to focus on, we then organize the stimuli.

The fourth step is Interpreting Communication.  Your book says it best on pg. 149:  "The most important principle for effective interpretation is to be person-centered.  To be centered on the particular individual to whom you are listening, you engage in dual perspective so that you interpret others on their terms."

Responding is the next step.  This simply means communicating your attention and interest in what the other person is saying. Signs of responsiveness are: eye contact, nodding, attentive posture, and questions/comments.

The final aspect of the listening process is Remembering.  Remembering is the act of retaining what you have heard.  An interesting statistic on pg. 150:  "...we remember less than half of a message immediately after we hear it.  As time goes by, retention decreases further; we recall only about 35% of a message 8 hours after hearing it."

External and Internal Obstacles to Mindful Listening pg. 151-155
There are a number of both external and internal barriers to mindful listening.  External obstacles are:
Message Overload
Message Complexity
Noise

Internal Obstacles are:
Preoccupation
Prejudgment
Reacting to Emotionally Loaded Language
Lack of Effort
Failure to Adapt Listening Styles

Forms of Nonlistening are covered next starting on pg. 156.  In the previous section we discussed obstacles to mindful listening.  This is vastly different than nonlistening.  Nonlistening means that a person is simply not engaging in real listening.   There are six types:
Pseudolistening
Monopolizing
Selective Listening
Defensive Listening
Ambushing
Literal Listening

How many of these do you engage in?  This section directly relates to one of our discussion questions this week, so I will leave it up to you to discuss.

Adapting Listening to Communication Goals
This section is quite important.  Can you guess why?

There are a number of Communication Goals listed in your book starting on pg. 160:
Listening for Pleasure - Be mindful, control distractions and intereferences
Listening for Information - Be Mindful, Ask Questions, Control Obstacles, Use Aids to Recall, Organize Information
Listening to Support Others - Be Mindful, Be Careful of Expressing Judgments, Understand the Other Person's Perspective, Paraphrasing, Express Support

Do you notice a pattern here?  That's right - Mindful Listening.  Mindful listening is i.n.c.r.e.d.i.b.l.y. important, and is something we should practice quite a bit.  If you did not absorb all of the information in that section, you might want to go back and review it.

Have you ever wondered why in a lot of your communication classes the instructor covers the idea of listening in some respect?  It is because listening is 'the other half of communication'.  It is imperative that we mindfully listen when someone else speaks.  Whether it is a friend, family member, acquaintance, professor, etc...  they are communicating something.  Wouldn't it be great if we all tried active listening a bit more with the folks we come in contact with in our lives?


Thanks folks!
The Blogging Prof.

Grades have been updated in D2L

Hello Fabulous Students,

I have entered grade into D2L for the following items:


Discussion Week of Sept. 10-16

As a reminder, it is your responsibility to check your grades often (at least once a week), and email me if you have any questions.

Have a great day everyone!
:)
The Blogging Prof.

Week of September 24-30

Hello Folks!

Here is what is listed on the Participation Page from D2L for this week.  The schedule for the entire semester, and the discussion questions for the entire semester are listed on the Schedule and Participation Pages, respectively.  In case you do not want to wait for the "Monday Post", you are more than welcome to get started by looking at those two pages on D2L.

Due this week:
*Read Chapter 6 - Mindful Listening
*Participate in the discussion (see questions below)
*Quiz on Chapters 4, 5 & 6.
*Start working on the second course assignment:  Intercultural Interviews (Available for dowbload on D2L)


Discussion Questions:
Answer one question in its entirety in each of your three separate posts, at least 12 hours apart. Please make sure you are creating a NEW POST for each question on your blog. You MUST WAIT at least 12 hours from the first post in order to create a second post. The same is true for the second and third post. I will record dates and time of your posts, so make sure they are at least 12 hours apart. EACH POST MUST BE 150 WORDS OR MORE. Each post is worth a maximum of 5 points.

1). Review the six types of nonlistening discussed in this chapter.  Are any of them common in your communication?  Make a plan to overcome this type of nonlistening you have engaged in.  Describe the type of nonlistenging you engage in, and discuss how you plan to fix is.

2). The International Listening Association (ILA) http://listen.org is a rich resource for learning more about listening and networking with others who recognize its importance in everyday life.  Its website features exercises to test and improve listening, factoids about listening, Internet discussion groups, quotes about the nature and value of listening, and a bibliography for those who want to read more.  Review "Listening is a 10 part skill", and report on what you learned:  http://d1025403.site.myhosting.com/files.listen.org/NicholsTenPartSkill/Mr39Enf4.html

3). Pick one concept from the reading this week and discuss it in detail.

Comments - Remember to post ONE comment ON THREE DIFFERENT BLOGS between 12:01am on Monday and 11:59pm on Sunday. This means that you will log onto MY BLOG at: http://comm10perez.blogspot.com/ to see a list of your colleagues blogs. Click on those blogs, read what was posted for this week and respond. You need to make sure you are responding to only what was discussed THIS WEEK (starting Monday and ending Sunday of the current week). Comments posted to blogs that were NOT within this week will not be counted for points. Each comment must be a minimum of 100 words and is worth a maximum of 3 points.

Note about comments: When you leave a comment on another blog, make sure you are logged into your blogspot account. In other words, you will need to make sure your "Display Name/Alias Name" shows up on the blog you are commenting on. I record the locations, dates and times of your comments. Please keep record of your posts and comments in case questions arise about where comments are located.

Week of Sept. 17 - 23

Hello Folks!

Here is what is listed on the Participation Page from D2L for this week.

NOTE: The schedule for the entire semester, and the discussion questions for the entire semester are listed on the Schedule and Participation Pages, respectively.  In case you do not want to wait for the "Monday Post", you are more than welcome to get started by looking at those two pages on D2L.

Due this week:
*Read Chapter 5  - The World Beyond Words
*There is no discussion this week

*Assignment #1 is due by Sunday, Sept. 23rd @ 11:59pm.  Please email me your paper at the class email address.  Follow the directions on the assignment sheet for submission.  As a reminder, you should thoroughly read through the 'grading sheet' attached to the assignment sheet before you submit your paper. The grading sheet will give you additional information about evaluation for the assignment.

Reminder:  I hold office hours of Tuesday's and Thursday's from 9:30am to 11:30am on Yahoo Messenger.  I can also chat with students over the phone during that time, or at your convenience.  We can always make an appointment to chat over the phone in case you need clarification about something in the class.  And of course, I'm always available through email.

Grades have been updated in D2L

Hello Fabulous Students,

I have entered grade into D2L for the following items:

Discussion Week of Sept3-9

I normally will not email you individually regarding your grades.  It is your responsibility to check your grades often (at least once a week), and email me if you have any questions.

Have a great day everyone!
:)
The Blogging Prof.

Instructor Wrap Up - Wood Chapter 4

The World of Words

"The limits of my language mean the limits of my world." 

Ludwig Wittgenstein

Key Concepts in this chapter:
abstract
ambiguous
arbitrary
communication rules
constitutive rules
hate speech
I-language
Indexing
Linguistic determinism
loaded language
punctuation
regulative rules
speech community
static evaluation
symbols
totalizing
you-language



I. The Symbolic Nature of Language. 

I wish I could say it better than your text, but Julia T. Wood does a great job of explaining words as symbols.  She says, "Words are symbols, which are arbitrary, ambiguous, abstract representations of other phenomena.  For instance, your name is a symbol that represents you.  House is a symbol that stands for a particular kind of building.  Love is a symbol that represents certain intense feelings.  All language is symbolic, not not all symbols are language."

Under this section, it is important to read through the Qulaities of Symbols, as noted in Figure 4.1 in your text (p. 95).

          A. Arbitrariness: there is no natural connection between the symbol and what it represents so at any point in time, the symbol or what it represents could change.

          B. Ambiguity: because we have unique individual experiences; there is a range of meanings on which most members of a culture agree.

          C. Abstraction: we do not touch the symbols we use the same way we may touch the things (e.g., a chair or computer) they represent.



II. Principles of Verbal Communication

A. Because language and culture reflect each other, we learn a set of values, perspectives, and beliefs when we learn to speak or read.

B. The Meaning of Language are Subjective - Because there are no single definitions for symbols, we must interpret them in the context of the present interaction to attach meaning, which is often subjective.

C. Language Use is Rule-Guided - Communication rules help us develop shared understandings of what is happening in a particular interaction and which is appropriate.

     1. Regulative Rules help us manage the when, how, where and with whom we talk about certain things.

     2. Constitutive Rules define what messages mean in a particular situation by specifying how to count or interpret specific kinds of communication.

D. Punctuation creates outer limits for what constitutes the beginning and ending of an interpersonal interaction.

III. Symbolic Abilities

"Our ability to use symbols allows us to live in a world of ideas and meanings.  Instead of just reacting to our concrete environments, we think about them and sometimes transform them.  Philosophers of language have identified five ways that symbolic abilities affect our lives (Cassirer, 1994; Langer, 1953, 1979)."

A. Language shapes perception.  We use symbols to define experiences, people, relationships, feelings, and thoughts.

B. Language evaluates.  Language is value laden and not neutral.

C. Language organizes perceptions. Symbols help us organize information and perceptions into categories so that we do not have to remember every aspect of every person, object, and event we encounter.

D. Language Allows Hypothetical Thought.

E. Language allows self-reflection.



IV. Speech Communities

"A speech community exists when people share norms about how to use talk and what purpose it serves (Labov, 1972)." ......... "Speech communities arise out of social locations - that is, people who share a social location tend to develop shared understandings of communication.  Members of speech communities share perspectives on communication that outsiders do not have.  This is one of the reasons why misunderstandings often arise between members of different social groups."

***Do not think of 'social location' as 'physical location'.  Read through this idea in your text.

A. Gender Speech Communities

1. From a young age, men and women are socialized into specific gender speech communities.

2. Women tend to be more expressive and relationship-focused. Men tend to be more instrumental and competitive.

3. Because of the differences between gender speech communities, there are some common misunderstandings that occur.



V. Guidelines for Improving Verbal Communication

A. Engaging in dual perspective, or recognizing the other’s viewpoint, asks us to create and interpret messages with both our view and the other’s view in mind.

B.  Recognize that starting sentences with “I” instead of “You” leads us to take responsibility for thoughts and feelings as well as describe rather than blame others.

C. Respecting what others say about their thoughts and feelings allows us to confirm rather than disconfirm them as people and helps us engage in dual perspective.

D. Be aware of levels of abstraction because symbols are arbitrary, ambiguous, and abstract, we need to find ways to make our communication more accurate and make it as concrete as is necessary for the situation at hand.



Personal Note:  I understand that I'm giving just a brief overview of this chapter in my "Instructor Wrap-Ups".  However, I must admit, I absolutely LOVE this text.  It is personable, relatable and ultimately, informative.  When choosing this text before the semester began, I immediately connected with the material and the way the author presented information.  It is an incredibly easy read, and very easy to understand.  Please do not replace reading the text with my "Instructor Wrap-Ups".  Make sure you thoroughly read through the text in order to get the most out of this class.

 

Week of September 10-16

Hello Folks!

Here is what is listed on the Participation Page from D2L for this week.  The schedule for the entire semester, and the discussion questions for the entire semester are listed on the Schedule and Participation Pages, respectively.  In case you do not want to wait for the "Monday Post", you are more than welcome to get started by looking at those two pages on D2L.

Due this week:
*Read Chapter 4 - The World of Words
*Participate in the discussion (see questions below)
*Continue working on your first course essay:  "Self, Society & Media" paper.  You can find it on D2L by logging in, then clicking on the class (Comm 10).  After you have accessed the class, click on "Content", and it should be listed under "Course Assignments".  This assignment is due by Sunday, Sept 23rd @ 11:59pm.


Discussion Questions:
Answer one question in its entirety in each of your three separate posts, at least 12 hours apart. Please make sure you are creating a NEW POST for each question on your blog. You MUST WAIT at least 12 hours from the first post in order to create a second post. The same is true for the second and third post. I will record dates and time of your posts, so make sure they are at least 12 hours apart. EACH POST MUST BE 150 WORDS OR MORE. Each post is worth a maximum of 5 points.

1). Think about different metaphors for American society.  For many years, the country was described as a melting pot, which suggests that differences between citizens are supposed to melt down and blend into one unified character.  Recently, some have criticized this melting pot metaphor because it emphasizes wiping out differences, not respecting them.  The Reverend Jesse Jackson refers to the United States as both a rainbow and a family quilt.  Both of Jackson's metaphors emphasize recognizing and appreciating differences.  What metaphor would you propose?

2). Visit the Free Speech Museum's Hate Speech Page.  What did you learn about how hate speech is defined, who engages in it, and efforts to regulate hate speech on the Web?  What should be done about hate speech on the Web and off it?  Should we censor it?  Would doing so violate our constitutional right to freedom of speech?  Are there other, perhaps less formal, ways to reduce hate speech?   http://www.spectacle.org/freespch/musm/hate.html

3). Pick one concept from the reading this week and discuss it in detail.

Comments - Remember to post ONE comment ON THREE DIFFERENT BLOGS between 12:01am on Monday and 11:59pm on Sunday. This means that you will log onto MY BLOG at: http://comm10perez.blogspot.com/ to see a list of your colleagues blogs. Click on those blogs, read what was posted for this week and respond. You need to make sure you are responding to only what was discussed THIS WEEK (starting Monday and ending Sunday of the current week). Comments posted to blogs that were NOT within this week will not be counted for points. Each comment must be a minimum of 100 words and is worth a maximum of 3 points.

Note about comments: When you leave a comment on another blog, make sure you are logged into your blogspot account. In other words, you will need to make sure your "Display Name/Alias Name" shows up on the blog you are commenting on. I record the locations, dates and times of your comments. Please keep record of your posts and comments in case questions arise about where comments are located.

Grades have been updated in D2L

Hello Fabulous Students,

I have entered grade into D2L for the following items:

Created Blog - this means that you created and sent me your information by the due date.  If you have received no credit for this item it is because you did not send me your information by the deadline.

Discussion Week of Aug 27 - Sept. 2 - This will be entered by tomorrow night at the latest.  Check back for an update.

I normally will not email you individually regarding your grades.  It is your responsibility to check your grades often (at least once a week), and email me if you have any questions.

Have a great day everyone!
:)
The Blogging Prof.

Instructor Wrap Up - Wood Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Communication and Personal Identity

"To venture causes anxiety, but not to venture is to lose one's self."  

Soren Kierkegaard

Key Concepts in this chapter:

anxious-resistance attachment style

attachment styles

direct definition

dismissive attachment style

downers

ego boundaries

fearful attachment style

generalized other

identity scripts

Johari Window

perspective of the generalized other

Particular others

reflected appraisal

secure attachment style

self

self-disclosure

self-fulfilling prophecy

self-sabotage

significant others

social comparison

uppers

vultures

Chapter 2 starts out by discussing the 'Self'.  What is the Self?
*According to your text, the self is a complicated, multidimensional process.  The Self arises in communication with others. We develop notions of who we are and aren’t because of our interactions with others from the time we are born until the time we die.

* We need to choose settings and people who will help us achieve our goals.
     -Uppers
     -Downers
     -Vultures
     -Self-Fulfilling Prophesy 


*Parents or primary care givers communicate who we are by how they interact with us, or their attachment styles.
     -Secure attachment style
     -Fearful attachment style
     -Dismissive attachment style
     -Anxious/Ambivalent attachment style (also known as Preoccupied)

*The generalized other reflects the views that others in society generally hold.

*The Self is Multi-Dimensional: There are many different ways we view our selves, including physical, emotional, social, and moral selves. Because it involves a process, the self develops over the course of time.



*Page 56 then goes on to explain some Guidelines for Improving Self-Concept. Within this section, "self-disclosure" is discussed, as it something called the Johari Window (Figure 2.3, pg. 57).

The Johari Window is what drew me into the field of communication in the first place.  Kinda geeky, huh?  ;)


But honestly, how cool is the Johari Window?  There are 4 quadrants (taken directly from your text):
1). Open, or public, information is know both to us and to others.  Your name, height, major, and tastes in music probably are open information that you share easily with others.
2). The blind area contains information that others know about us but we don't know about ourselves.  For example, others may see that we are insecure even though we think we've hidden that well.  Others may also recognize needs or feelings that we haven't acknowledged to ourselves.
3). Hidden information is what we know about ourselves but choose not to reveal to most others.  You might not tell many people about your vulnerabilities or about traumas in your past because you consider this private information.  
4). The unknown area is made up of information about ourselves that neither we nor others know.  This consists of your untapped resources, your untried talents, and your reactions to experiences you've never had.  You don't know how you will manage a crisis until you've been in one, and you can't tell what kind of parent you would be unless you've had a child.


There are many many websites dedicated to the Johari Window.  I would encourage you to do a simple google search about this concept, and see what interesting things you can find.


REMINDER:  Check out the "Helpful Links" page at the top to see a list of helpful links to each chapter.  As of today, Chapters 1 and 2 have been updated. 

Week of September 3 - 9

Hello Folks!

Here is what is listed on the Participation Page from D2L for this week.  The schedule for the entire semester, and the discussion questions for the entire semester are listed on the Schedule and Participation Pages, respectively.  In case you do not want to wait for the "Monday Post", you are more than welcome to get started by looking at those two pages on D2L.

Due this week:
*Read Chapter 2 - Communication and Personal Identity
*Participate in the discussion (see questions below)
*QUIZ on Chapters 1&2 in D2L
*Continue working on your first course essay:  "Self, Society & Media" paper.  You can find it on D2L by logging in, then clicking on the class (Comm 10).  After you have accessed the class, click on "Content", and it should be listed under "Course Assignments".  This assignment is due by Sunday, Sept 23rd @ 11:59pm.


Discussion Questions:
Answer one question in its entirety in each of your three separate posts, at least 12 hours apart. Please make sure you are creating a NEW POST for each question on your blog. You MUST WAIT at least 12 hours from the first post in order to create a second post. The same is true for the second and third post. I will record dates and time of your posts, so make sure they are at least 12 hours apart. EACH POST MUST BE 150 WORDS OR MORE. Each post is worth a maximum of 5 points.

1). Talk with one man and one woman who are 20 years older than you.  Talk with one woman and one man who are 40 years older than you.  In each conversation, ask them to explain how men and women were expected to be when they were 20 years old.  As them to explain what behaviors, goals, and attitudes were considered inappropriate for woman and men when they were 20 years old.  Compare their responses with view held by 20-year-olds today.  Discuss your findings in a blog post.

2). You may want to reread the section on race and identity in this chapter.  What is race?  Is race a useful way to classify people?  Why or why not?  Do you think the Census Bureau should allow people to check multiple races to define themselves?

3). Pick one concept from the reading this week and discuss it in detail.

Comments - Remember to post ONE comment ON THREE DIFFERENT BLOGS between 12:01am on Monday and 11:59pm on Sunday. This means that you will log onto MY BLOG at: http://comm10perez.blogspot.com/ to see a list of your colleagues blogs. Click on those blogs, read what was posted for this week and respond. You need to make sure you are responding to only what was discussed THIS WEEK (starting Monday and ending Sunday of the current week). Comments posted to blogs that were NOT within this week will not be counted for points. Each comment must be a minimum of 100 words and is worth a maximum of 3 points.

Note about comments: When you leave a comment on another blog, make sure you are logged into your blogspot account. In other words, you will need to make sure your "Display Name/Alias Name" shows up on the blog you are commenting on. I record the locations, dates and times of your comments. Please keep record of your posts and comments in case questions arise about where comments are located.

Trouble Commenting?

Hello Folks,

IMPORTANT NOTE:  If you comment on a blog post, you should always reload the webpage (or return later) to see if you can see your comments published.  If you cannot see your comments published on the other students blog post I cannot see your comments to give you points for them.   You should always keep track of your posts and comments by using the "Track Posts and Comments" sheet that is uploaded to D2L under "Getting Started".  However, it is your responsibility to make sure that your posts are published correctly.  99 times out of 100, comments that are not posted correctly is user error.

If you have trouble commenting on posts, please follow these directions:

1). Make sure you are using Firefox as your web-browser (download HERE)
2). Open up Firefox as your web-browser and log into your blog.
3). Open a new tab in the web-browser and link to my blog, and start reading other students blogs (student blog tab is at the top).  Once you have found a blog you want to comment on, click "comment" below the post.
4). Type in your comment and then click on the drop down menu where it says "Comment As".
5). Choose "Google Account"
6). Since you are already logged into your blog in one of the open tabs, you should have no problem seeing your comment.

You can certainly experiment by leaving a message on one of my blog posts if you'd like.
:)
The Blogging Prof.

P.S. The "Monday" post is below this one.  Scroll down.  :)