Understanding Interpersonal Communication, CH 7

Characteristics of interpersonal Communcation

Interpersonal Communication: Two-way interaction between people who are part of a close and irreplaceable relationship in which they treat each other as unique individuals.

Cyber Relationship: An affiliation between people who know each other only in the virtual world.

How we choose relation partners

Phubbing: A mixture of the words phone and snubbing, used to describe episodes in which people pay more attention to their devices than they do to the people around them.

Cultural Idiom

On the other hand: From the opposite point of view

Social Exchange Theory: The idea that we seek out people who can give us rewards that are greater than or equal to the cost we encounter in dealing with them.

Types of Interpersonal Relationships

Family: A collection of people who share affection and resources and who think of themselves and presents themselves as a family.

Intimacy: A state of closeness between two (or sometimes more) people. Intimacy can be manifested in several ways: physically, intellectually, emotionally, and via shard activities.

Developmental Models: (of relational maintenance) Theoretical frameworks based on the idea that communication patterns are different in various stages of interpersonal relationships.

Cultural Idioms

Small talk: Idle, trivial conversation

On the wall: Clear evidence of future problems

Communication Patterns in Relationships

Content Message: A message that communicates information about the subject being discussed.

Relational message: A message that expresses the social relationship between two or more individuals.

Affinity: The degree to which people like or appreciate one another. As with all relational messages, affinity is usually expressed nonverbally.

Respect: The degree to which we hold others in esteem.

Immediacy: The degree of interest and attraction we feel toward and communicate to others. As with all relational messages, immediacy is usually expressed nonverbally.

Control: The social need to influence others.

Metacommunication: Messages (usually relational) that refer to other messages; communication about communication.

Self-Disclosure: The process of deliberately revealing information about one-self that is significant and that would not normally be known by others.

Social Penetration Model: A theory that describes how intimacy can be achieved via the breadth and depth of self-disclosure.

Breadth (of Self-disclosure): The range of topics about which an individual discloses.

Depth (of Self-disclosure): The level of personal information a person reveals on a particular topic.

Johari Window: A model that describes the relationship between self-disclosure and self-awareness.

Cultural Idiom

Within earshot: Close enough to be easily overheard

Standoffish: Aloof, unfriendly

Open Up: Disclose about personal, private subjects

Dialectical Model: The perspective that people in virtually all interpersonal relationships must deal with equally important, simultaneous, and opposing forces such as connection and autonomy, predictability an novelty, and openness versus privacy.

Altruistic lies: deception intended to be unmalicious, or even helpful, to the person to whom it is told.

Pick up on: Recognize

To me, interpersonal communication is something we do everyday in order to get a more personal connection to someone that you want or are getting from. When we communicate to a certain unique individuals that you want to talk to.

I have experienced a lot of what you will call phubbing when I was in high school talking to people about getting school work done. Yet, they would always be on there phone or texting and just ignoring the messages that I am sending them.

The types of interpersonal relationships is what sets up who were we are as individuals form my experience and form others that I know personally. Through there stories of family life and intimacy of others as well, have given me a good insight in me and of others.

In my experience communication patterns in relationships do make a huge difference when it comes down to how one is looked upon by others and one own self worth. I noticed this a lot in how my peers would act in high school social situations with one another.

Question 1 Answer: What surprised me was how many communication patterns they are, and how they are mostly used is what surprised me the most in this chapter overall.

Question 2 Answer: What bothered me was that there wasn't more examples for types of interpersonal relationships as I thought there would be.

Question 3 Answer: I would like to find out more about how much phubbing effects day to day communication in todays environment with most people in my generation glued to there phones non stop.