Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Intercultural Communication
I want each of you to go the Journal of Intercultural Communication read one article from any of the issues. After you have read the article post a summary of the article here.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Semantic Noise
Often students have trouble understanding the concept of semantic noise and how it differs from internal noise. Here is a good example by David Madden.
As your comment to this entry I want each of you to find an example of semantic noise and post it.
As your comment to this entry I want each of you to find an example of semantic noise and post it.
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Blog entry about public speaking
Public speaking can be fun and it can be a pain even for people who are used to doing it. Here is an experienced speaker talking about how her experiences have varied. Just keep in mind as you go through this course that you will make it through this experience and come out the other side better for having done it.
The Pros and Cons of Public Speaking
The Pros and Cons of Public Speaking
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Origins of Non-verbal communication
I had not intended to post anything of substance at this point in the semester but I found this article in the New York Times and the content fits nicely with Chapter 4 in the text.
A World of Eloquence in an Upturned Palm
Welcome To Communication 100 at Volunteer State
You can read over the old entries in the blog to see what we were doing last spring almost all of it is still relevant to what will happen in class this fall. Take a few minutes to post a comment as a way of becoming comfortable with this interface. I know we introduced ourselves in class but tell us something about yourself as a reminder and as a way we can get to know each other better. USE YOUR REAL NAME in all postings here.
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Presentations
This web site about how to do great presentations.
Go there. Read it. Learn from it.
Presentation Zen.
Be sure and check out: Top Ten Slide Tips.
Go there. Read it. Learn from it.
Presentation Zen.
Be sure and check out: Top Ten Slide Tips.
Tuesday, February 6, 2007
You mean I need to listen?
How much time do you spend listening everyday? Why is it that you can tell me exactly what happened on Desperate Housewives last week but can't remember what I said in the lecture last week?
Listening is an active process not just a matter of shutting up and paying attention. Carl Rogers, the psychologist, developed the concept of active listening. We all need to pay more attention, slow down, think less and hear people out.
Our biases often get the way of accurate listening just as with our perceptions. We hear what we want to hear or what we expect to hear. While being a good listener can be difficult at time much of the time it is simply a matter of avoid bad habits. The Free Management Library has some suggestions for good listening.
We can learn to be good listeners from sharing our mistakes in listening. Don't embarrass yourself too much but tell us about times when what you thought you heard wasn't what was intended.
Listening is an active process not just a matter of shutting up and paying attention. Carl Rogers, the psychologist, developed the concept of active listening. We all need to pay more attention, slow down, think less and hear people out.
Our biases often get the way of accurate listening just as with our perceptions. We hear what we want to hear or what we expect to hear. While being a good listener can be difficult at time much of the time it is simply a matter of avoid bad habits. The Free Management Library has some suggestions for good listening.
We can learn to be good listeners from sharing our mistakes in listening. Don't embarrass yourself too much but tell us about times when what you thought you heard wasn't what was intended.
The rules for conversations
How do we know what to say and when to say it? If I could answer that question and give you a simple formula wouldn't the world be an easier place to live? We all make mistakes in interactions all the time. However, we all also do a reasonably good job of making it through each day being understood and not upsetting too many people.
The rules of interaction are not very formal and have as many variations as there are people and situations. Some people are easy to engage in conversation and some are very difficult. We have days when it seems that everyone understands just what we say and days we may as well be talking to a brick wall.
Efforts have been made to state rules of conversation such as Paul Grice's work with the Cooperative Principle. I think much of what we know about good communication we learn from bad communicators or those who model what we should NOT do.
Think about those people with whom you try to avoid conversing. Tell me about those people and their habits which make them so annoying.
The rules of interaction are not very formal and have as many variations as there are people and situations. Some people are easy to engage in conversation and some are very difficult. We have days when it seems that everyone understands just what we say and days we may as well be talking to a brick wall.
Efforts have been made to state rules of conversation such as Paul Grice's work with the Cooperative Principle. I think much of what we know about good communication we learn from bad communicators or those who model what we should NOT do.
Think about those people with whom you try to avoid conversing. Tell me about those people and their habits which make them so annoying.
Nonverbal communication
The meaning of some nonverbal communication is easy to interpret and for some the interpretation is very subtle and difficult. Emblems like the OK sign made with your fingers is just like a word and fairly exact but when someone has a "hurt" look on their face we much less such of the meaning.
At least in English context is much more important for nonverbal cues than it is for the use of language. While we language we have all kinds of rules of grammar and syntax the rules for nonverbal are less obviously and certainly not as formal. Pay attention to nonverbal cues use them to help you understand what is being said but don't over interpret. Don't assign more meaning than may have been intended.
Much of the early study of nonverbal communication came from anthropologist who noted the differences in nonverbal communication between cultures. Ray L. Birdwhistell a student of Margaret Mead's wrote about kinesics. Proxemics was the concern of Edward T. Hall.
For someone wanting to study nonverbal communication deeper, I recommend the book, Nonverbal Communication in Human Interaction by Mark Knapp and Judith Hall.
I imagine that all of us have stories that are at least funny and perhaps embarrassing in which we misinterpreted nonverbal cues.
At least in English context is much more important for nonverbal cues than it is for the use of language. While we language we have all kinds of rules of grammar and syntax the rules for nonverbal are less obviously and certainly not as formal. Pay attention to nonverbal cues use them to help you understand what is being said but don't over interpret. Don't assign more meaning than may have been intended.
Much of the early study of nonverbal communication came from anthropologist who noted the differences in nonverbal communication between cultures. Ray L. Birdwhistell a student of Margaret Mead's wrote about kinesics. Proxemics was the concern of Edward T. Hall.
For someone wanting to study nonverbal communication deeper, I recommend the book, Nonverbal Communication in Human Interaction by Mark Knapp and Judith Hall.
I imagine that all of us have stories that are at least funny and perhaps embarrassing in which we misinterpreted nonverbal cues.
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Verbal Communication - Meaning
Moving from perception to meaning isn't as big a jump as it may seem. Our meaning for words or our connotations are very much shaped by our way of seeing the world. In most intro communication text the section on verbal communication is really a mishmash of concepts drawn from many areas but in most cases the basis for these concepts is symbolic interactionism. Symbolic interactionism draws from the work of the sociologist George Herbert Mead and was articulated by Herbert Blummer. In your readings you may note that in communication we draw heavily from sociology and psychology.
Meaning is studied in many disciplines but perhaps the area most associated with the study of meaning is semantics. Semanticists can be found in philosophy, linguistics and other areas of study. The philosophy of language is another area of study that is concerned with meaning. Some of the most famous work with how we determine meaning is the work in transformational/generative grammar done by Noam Chomsky. While each of these areas is worth considerable study a more accessible look at how we determine meaning was developed by two communication scholars, Pearce and Cronen. Their concept of the Coordinated Mangement of Meaning pulls together parts of other approaches into a rules based formulation.
In communicating the speaker (source) needs to keep in mind that others don't always share our meaning for words. The meaning of words change over time and vary by context. Don't get stuck in an egocentric view of the world.
Meaning is studied in many disciplines but perhaps the area most associated with the study of meaning is semantics. Semanticists can be found in philosophy, linguistics and other areas of study. The philosophy of language is another area of study that is concerned with meaning. Some of the most famous work with how we determine meaning is the work in transformational/generative grammar done by Noam Chomsky. While each of these areas is worth considerable study a more accessible look at how we determine meaning was developed by two communication scholars, Pearce and Cronen. Their concept of the Coordinated Mangement of Meaning pulls together parts of other approaches into a rules based formulation.
In communicating the speaker (source) needs to keep in mind that others don't always share our meaning for words. The meaning of words change over time and vary by context. Don't get stuck in an egocentric view of the world.
Friday, January 26, 2007
Accuracy of perception
Most communication textbooks (including Verderber) include a chapter on perception. For effective communication accuracy of perception is very important. One of the hardest things for many of us to do is to question our perception of the world. I do a simple exercise in class in which I ask students what do they mean by "plenty of gas". The replies range from a full tank to the red light hasn't come on yet. I also have them stand up and ask who is tall and who is short. Both of these demonstrations point out that perception is based upon our view of the world rather than some objective reality.
Our perceptions shape our world and affect how we communicate with others. What we think we see is what we report to others. The awareness that others don't always see the same world that we do is an essential step to effective communication.
One source of information on accuracy of perception is the study of eyewitnesses in court cases. Below are listed some articles that may make you question your own perceptions.
Our perceptions shape our world and affect how we communicate with others. What we think we see is what we report to others. The awareness that others don't always see the same world that we do is an essential step to effective communication.
One source of information on accuracy of perception is the study of eyewitnesses in court cases. Below are listed some articles that may make you question your own perceptions.
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Self-esteem
In the study of perception and especially self-perception the concept of self-esteem always comes up. Going to any bookstore will turn up untold numbers of self-help books that promise to improve self-esteem. High self-esteem has often been paired with the idea of self-fulfilling prophecy and therefore linked to high performance. The message these self-help books are selling is that all it takes to do better is too like yourself better.
Does this idea they are selling make sense? Is this idea supported by research? Here are some articles that provide some insight into those questions. Does High Self-esteem Cause Better Performance, Interpersonal Success, Happiness or Healthier Lifestyles? by Roy F. Baumeister, et al, The Self-esteem Fraud by Nina H. Shokraii and The Trouble with Self-esteem by Dr. Michael R. Edelstein.
Does this idea they are selling make sense? Is this idea supported by research? Here are some articles that provide some insight into those questions. Does High Self-esteem Cause Better Performance, Interpersonal Success, Happiness or Healthier Lifestyles? by Roy F. Baumeister, et al, The Self-esteem Fraud by Nina H. Shokraii and The Trouble with Self-esteem by Dr. Michael R. Edelstein.
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
Pragmatics of Human Communication
Perhaps my favorite all time communication text book was one that I was introduced to my freshman year at MSU. The book was not used in the class that I took but in a section of Com 100 taken by several of my friends. The class was taught by Ed Wotring and Ed Millar two graduate students in communication. Ed Wotring ended up being my major professor at Florida State when I was in graduate school.
The book was Pragmatics of Human Communication by Watzlawick, Beavin, and Jackson. This book is still in print. I highly recommend it to anyone studying communication. Except for some of the information on schizophrenia which could stand some updating based upon more recent advances in medical science, the text stands up extremely well. The Verderber book which we use in class comments on some of the Axioms of Communication from pragmatics in the first chapter. I don't completely agree with the way that Verderber interprets Watzlawick, et al.
Here is an interesting site related to the book: Pragmatics of Human Communication.
The book was Pragmatics of Human Communication by Watzlawick, Beavin, and Jackson. This book is still in print. I highly recommend it to anyone studying communication. Except for some of the information on schizophrenia which could stand some updating based upon more recent advances in medical science, the text stands up extremely well. The Verderber book which we use in class comments on some of the Axioms of Communication from pragmatics in the first chapter. I don't completely agree with the way that Verderber interprets Watzlawick, et al.
Here is an interesting site related to the book: Pragmatics of Human Communication.
Welcome to Berfunkle
This blog is to accompany the course I teach in Fundamentals of Speech Communication (Com 100) at Volunteer State Community College. The blog is titled Berfunkle after short film that I saw in the Communication 100 class I had as an undergraduate at Michigan State University. That class contained no public speaking and as the primary text we used David K. Berlo's book The Process of Communication. Berlo's book is no longer being published but can be found used. One of the many highlights of the book is the SMCR model of communication.
The film Berfunkle was about a character who went around saying nothing but the word "berfunkle" and the problems in communication created by that behavior. (if my memory serves me correctly). The film is really about the concept of creating shared meaning and the idea that words mean whatever we decide they mean.
The film Berfunkle was about a character who went around saying nothing but the word "berfunkle" and the problems in communication created by that behavior. (if my memory serves me correctly). The film is really about the concept of creating shared meaning and the idea that words mean whatever we decide they mean.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
