Personal Space

I am a person who whole-heartedly believes in having my own personal space. When someone I don't know is approaching my way to have a conversation, I always make sure the appropriate distances is kept. There is a defined balance between the need for affection and the need for privacy.

According to the Com 320 textbook, there are four different levels of space divided into zones. These zones are called the intimate zone, personal zone, social zone, and public zone. Each has defined limits and different communication reactions. The public zone is 12 feet and beyond. Public speakers generally keep this amount of distance between them and their audience. Social space used for group interaction and business professionals is kept between 4 and 12 feet. The personal zone is meant for conversations with friends and families. Groups also use this zone but sometimes 1 and a half to four feet is too close for group interaction. Finally, the intimate zone is between zero and 1 and a half feet. This zone is reserved for the most personal conversations and contacts. It is unlikely a group with use this zone for communication.

It is important to understand these four zones and their limits. When our groups goes to Lafayette Urban Ministry we need to know our boundaries for proper communication with the younger children. We will most likely stay within the social zone for group activity.

Audrie 3

Conflict Types

As a group 4 guys & a girl we have weekly meeting on every tuesday. I'm proud to say that as a group we haven't ran across any of the three conflicts that were covered in ch.7 Pg 159 Pseudo, Simple and Ego Conflict. Pseudo Conflict is the individuals misunderstanding each other's perceptions of a problem. Simple Conflict is a disagreement over a course of action, idea, policy, or procedure. Ego Conflict is the defense of ego: individual believes he or she is being attacked personally.

Lamon Lacey

Negotiations

Our discussion in class on Monday on Negotiation reminded me of a trip I made to China in the summer of 2008. I was in China for over two weeks, and of course, I did plenty of shopping for myself and friends. Shopping there is much different than here in the United States. In the markets in China, prices are negotiable. One would be unwise to not do so. I spent hours in the market negotiating a price for all my items. It was very different than what I was used to. The sales people are very aggressive. Sometimes they will even grab your arm as you walk away from a sale. I thought I was pretty decent at negotiating, but then saw some of my friends' technique of double teaming. One guy would go in and start negotiating and then a couple minutes later the other would walk up and tell him that it wasn't a good deal. They would both walk away, but the sales person would still try to sell to them. Eventually, the sales person caved in and my friends got a real deal. I was used to whatever negotiating in the US that took place where I meet the other person in the middle. There, however, to get the best deal, you have to stick to your price and not give in to anything higher. You had to be just as aggressive as they were, which takes some getting used to. You can get a glimpse into one of the markets I visited with this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBSsbWVZzto&feature=fvw

-Marcus

Nonverbal cues

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbGV2_8Yqg4 After watching this video, I noticed a lot of nonverbal cues. I noticed sexual postures, movements and gestures. I watched seductive eye contact and facial expressions as well. And I also noticed the singer's personal appearance, as far as her clothing and BODY SHAPE. This video is a great example of how nonverbal cues are used, besides the fact of her signing.

LaMon Lacey

I am impressed with the work done by all of my group members on our community service project for the Lafayette Urban Ministry. I have had the opportunity to experience the characteristics of a decision-making group (ch.1).Everyone has had useful suggestions in which we used to put ideas together into a cohesive and workable proposal. It was interesting to see how each group member shared past knowledge and experiences and collaborated them all together to aid our group’s decision-making process. Today our group had to "make a certain choices from among several alternatives. The group discussed what the possible choices were, realized the consequences of the choices, and then selected the best alternative that best met the goal" for our community service project. Our group has done a good job with dealing and fading away from false consensuses. Everyone tends to agree on ideas proposed and choose to share with the other members of the group without keeping suggestions to themeselves. Of course there are disagreements, however, we are good at weighing out the best possible decsions. The advantage of our style of decision making is that it leads to a high degree of buy-in and commitment to the decision by all members of the group. 4 Guys and A Girl have been actively involved in the decision making process and all of our interests are addressed.

--Julian L. Stevens--

Group Confilict

I saw some extreme examples this weekend on the History Channel with motorcycle gangs throughout the United States. Conflict is rampant between groups and even within. A gang member of one group was caught hugging a gang member of another group at a funeral. An order went out from one of the gangs to beat up any of the other gang in sight because of a simple gesture. They described on the History Channel of a father kicked out of a gang because he defended his own son in the same gang because the son gotten in an argument with an older member of the gang. Fights even break out within a gang.

This television show reminded me of what was talked about in class: group conflict. They handle conflict very different from me. I avoid it at all costs. The gangs face it head on, usually with fists, knives, and guns. They handle it really "well" according to their style. They know how to resolve an issue though most of the time it is void of all morals. They make a plan and get it done right away. Here is a video from the History Channel on the Sons of Silence.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vA-eclejDs&feature=PlayList&p=52D76DF06D304CE5&index=58

-Marcus

A GUIDE TO ACTIVE LISTENING

Although I am an Ag communications major, I am not always the best listener. Sometimes I have too short of an attention span, and I now understand why. "Most people speak at a rate of about 100 to 125 words per minute, but they have the capacity to think or listen at a rate of 400 or more words per minute!" (pg. 126 of Communicating in Small Groups). With such a difference in rates, no wonder I have such a hard time paying attention.

~There are a few things that I can work on to become a better listener. According to the textbook, I should stop, look, listen, ask appropriate questions, paraphrase content, and paraphrase feelings. Most of these skills, I already have. I think I just need to work on keeping focused during conversations and trying my hardest not to let my mind wonder. This fact will be especially helpful during our group meetings.

~At our past meeting, I found myself working harder to pay attention to everything my group was saying. Although I did not agree with everything that was talked about, I was proud of myself for being attentive. In the future, if I keep my mind focused I know I can be a better active listener.

Audrie Koester-post 2