Last Post of the Semester

Yup, today is the last day for us to update our blog.

Guys, final exam is just around the corner

All the BEST!! The FIVE GOSSIP GIRLS!!!! 

Chapter 13: interpersonal/ group/ workplace conflict

CONFLICT
Interpersonal conflict occurs when one person has or does an impact on the other person.
• Online conflict: through email/ online massage like spamming or sending junk mails can cause conflict.

• Verbal conflict: in workplace and formal group conflicts cause by disagreement in the workplace group by a specific issue

PRINCIPLE OF CONFLICT

Conflict can center on content and relationship issue
• Content conflict centers on object/ events that may be caused by commons issue that we face daily.

• Relationship conflict: conflict that are not concerned with external object and it is due to the relationship between individuals ( issue like who is in charge) 

CONFLICT MAY BE NEGATIVE IR POSITIVE
• NEGATIVE ASPECTS: conflict may lead to increase in negative regard of the opponent. It is often focus on hurting the other people and may lead  to closing yourself from the opponent.

• POSITIVE Aspects: may increase relationship positively if both you and your opponent se productive conflict strategies. This may bring less resentment to yourself and increase personal needs being known.

CONFLICT TAKES PLACE IN CONTEXT
• Physical: different place may influence the way the conflict goes 

• Temporal: conflict will rise again if remain unsolved

• Sociopsychological: conflict may defer by relation the persons has with the opponent.

CONFLICT STYLES HAVE CONSEQUENCES: 
1. Competing style: I win you lose_ involves great concern for yourself and less for others.

2. Avoiding style: I lose you lose_ unconcern of their own or their opponent needs and desire.

3. Accommodating: I lose you win_ sacrifice your own need for opponents needs. the goal is to maintain peace and harmony.

4. Collaborating: I win, you win_ concern with your own and others needs. Help maintain peace and also satisfy the opponent needs and desire.

5. Compromising: I win I lose, you win you lose also known as the give and take strategy where there is some not all concern for your own need and others needs.


STAGES OF CONFLICT MANAGEMENT

1. DEFINE THE CONFLICT
2. ESTABLISH CRITERIA
3. IDENTIFY THE POSSIBLE SOLUTION
4. EVALUATE SOLUTION 
5. SELECT THE BEST SOLUTION
6. TEST AND EXECUTE SOLUTION

CONFLICT MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES

i. WIN-LOSE AND WIN-WIN STRATEGIES: has a choice in choosing between winning or losing. The person may look for solution where either oe side win or solution where both side wins.

ii. Avoidance and active fighting: A NONPRODUCTIVE STRATEGY. May cause actual physical fighting. Avoidance may be cause by demands that is not accepted.

iii. FORCE AND TALK: force may be emotional or physical where a person prefer not to dealt with the issue and rather force their position on the other person.

iv. Blame and empathy: blaming method is unproductive but it is often used in fighting strategies. Empathy is a alternative to blame where one person tries to feel what the other person feel.

v. Gunny sacking and present focus: a large bag made up of burlap. It is an unproductive conflict strategies and it is the practice of storing up grievances to unload them another time. The gunny may bring up past conflict rather than now problem.

vi. Manipulating and Spontaneity: avoidance of open conflict. The manipulative individual tries to divert conflict by putting the other individual into a receptive frame of mind and then proceeds to present his/ her demands to the weakened opponent

Chapter 12: Organization Communication

The importance of organizational communication

1. Employment: a significant part of one life is spent in their work       place
2. Complexity: understanding how work place works is important on order to function effectively within an organization
3. Influence: organization influence greatly over public policy

ORGANIZATION= a group of people who work together to achieve compatible goals
Characteristic
~RULES AND REGULATION: often written down in company policy like the company’s health benefit/ vacation leave/ etc..

~DEVISION OF LABOUR:  most organization especially large one have a clear division for their workers to divide them in their specific field in order for workers to be responsible in limited areas.

~SYSTEM OF REWARD AND CONSEQUENSES: workers are rewarded with bonuses if they do well in their jobs and punished if they did badly.

~ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE: each organization have their own culture and it must be applied at all times.


Organizational communication
Upward communication: massage sent from lower level employees to lower lever employees . ( falculty members to dean)

Downward communication: massage sent from higher level employees to lower level employees. ( managers to workers )

Lateral communication: massage sent to the same level employees. ( managers to managers)

INFORMAL COMMUNICATION:  THE GRAPEVINE / PIPELINE

Massage that  don’t follow any formal hierarchical lines of communication/ action

Contain  job related massage that is discuss in a more interpersonal setting

Often contain massage that is unproven and sensitive like rumors
Communication channels and networks:

• CIRCLE: all members is communicating with one another and there is no specific leader  in the group.
• WHEEL: all massage must go through the central position/ leader. Members do  nut communicate directly to each other.
• Y:  massage pass mainly to the third person. Massage is split in one or more area in the communication chain.
• Chain: massage may be sent  only to the person next to you.it is also known as ‘pass along’ communication
• All channel/ Star pattern; all members are free to talk to everyone. There is no leader  in this group.

IMPORTANCE OF REMAINING ETHICAL AND MAINTAIN:
1. INFIRMATION: information overload is a condition where worker has to deal with an excessive amount of information.

2. GENDER AND BIAS ISSUE: GENDER BIASED MAY BE USED IN AN ORGANIZATION WHERE  ONLY A SPECIFIC GENDER IS ALLOWED TO DO A CERTAIN WORK.

3. Bullying: abusive act committed either by one person or a group of people against another.

4. NETWORK: a broad process of enlisting the aid of other people to help you solve a problem.

CHAPTER 11 MEMBERS AND LEADERS

CHAPTER 11 MEMBERS AND LEADERS

In this chapter we will explore these 3 major topics: -

·         Members in Small Group Communication

·         Leaders in Small Group Communication

·         Membership, Leadership, and Culture

Members in Small Group Communication

A structure for understand the functional roles of group members. They classified members’ roles into THREE general types: -

1. Group Task Roles
2. Group Building and Maintenance Roles
3. Individuals Roles

Group Task Roles

·         Roles performed by group members to make sure that the tasks of the group are accomplished.

For example:

If one group member tends to take notes in meeting, then the group might give that person the role of recorder. Discuss who is doing what and group member’s expectations for what they should do help the group identify any ignored tasks.

Two researchers (Benne &Sheats) identified 12different task roles include the following: -

1.       Initiator – Contributor

   o   Providing new ideas to the group

   o   May help the group brainstorm new and innovative ways to go about understanding at a problem.

2.       Information seeker

o   Focus on ensuring that the group has accurate and relevant information about problem solving.

 3.       Opinion seeker

 o   This is not concerned with the accuracy of information, but it is more interesting in understanding the group’s value.

4.       Information giver

o   Someone within a group that has some authoritative that can help inform a group’s decision making process.

o   This person can use their knowledge/ personal experience to help group member making decision.

 5.       Opinion giver

 o   Like opinion seeker, is concerned less with surrounding a specific problems, but is more concerned with ensuring to group values.

 6.       Elaborator

 o   Takes the ideas from other people and tries to elaborate the ideas in a different way.

 7.       Coordinator

 o   Find the common links between the various ideas from group member and combine it and tries to organize the various activities.

 8.       Orienter

 o   To showing the position of group by summarizing progress made, and the group will point out when the group completed their task and will be refocus the group back to the decision at hand.

 9.       Evaluator – critic

 o   Evaluates the group’s accomplishments to some criterion. This may include questioning the practically, logic, or procedure of a suggestion.

 10.   Energizer

o   Stimulating the group action or a decision and trying to increase the level or quality of activity.

 11.   Procedural technician

 o   Helping group movement by doing things for the group.

 12.   Recorder

 o   Writing down suggestion, recording group decisions. The recorder fills the role of “group memory”.

Group Building and Maintenance Roles

·         Roles performed by group members to maintain good relations within the group.

There are 7specific group building and maintenance roles: -

1.       Encourager

·         Praises, agrees with, and accepts the support of the others.

For example:

I like that idea, Sally’s suggestion is attractive to me. Could we discuss it further?

2.       Harmonizer

·         Mediating the differences among the other members, trying to settle disagreements and conflict.

For example:

Good hearted jokes and a soothing attitude can releases conflict situations.

3.       Compromiser

·         Operating from within a conflict in someone idea is involved, uses self – discipline to admit errors to maintain group harmony.

For example:

Mary, Sandy and Candy have offered many great solution. Why don’t we integrate them?

4.       Gatekeeper – expediter

·         Enables participation from everyone in group.

For example:

We haven’t heard any comment from Samuel yet.

5.       Standard setter

·         To make sure the group decision making meet a certain level.

For example:

How do we want to operate as a group?

6.       Group observer and commentator

·         Evaluates group progress.

For example:

I think we have learned a lot so far. Sarah and Joanna gave us many great information.

7.       Follower

·         Accepts ideas of others in group.

For example:

Joseph had a great idea. Let’s follow his plan.

Individual Roles

 

·         Roles performed by group members that are not productive for keeping the group on task.

There are 8 types of individual roles: -

1.       Aggressor

·         Someone who act unfriendly to their group member and their ideas with expressing disapproval values, act, feeling and showing envy toward to another.

For example:

Playing desert survival is the dumbest idea I’ve ever heard.

2.       Blocker

·         Someone who rejects to cooperate with other’s ideas.

For example:

I won’t join the Desert Survival.

3.       Recognition seeker

·         Someone who showing how themselves are such as an important person in group by boasting about their successful.

For example:

Sam was get the champion in the football competition, it is because of me who help him in training.

4.       Self - confessor

·         Expresses his/ her own feelings, ideology, and value.  Someone who no problem self-disclosing to group members.

For example:

I really like coffee. Yesterday I went to Starbucks. Their coffee is better than what you get elsewhere.

5.       Playboy/playgirl

·         Someone who lack of involve in the group processes.

For example:

Why don’t we just go have drinks instead of finishing this project?

6.       Dominator

·         Someone who try to control the group discussion and decision making processes.

For example:

I’m going to tell you the six reasons why this is a bad idea

7.       Help seeker

·         People who act helpless to avoid work.

For example:

I don’t think I can put together a magazine. Can you do it for me?”

8.       Special interest pleader

·         Someone who presents their own idea and needs.

For example:

I cannot attend the class tomorrow, because I want to sleep late.

 Interaction Process Analysis

 

It was a method used to classify and observe social interaction among the members of small face – to – face groups. In this system classify four general categories: -

·         Social – emotional positive contributions

·         Social – emotional negative contributions

·         Attempted answers

·         Questions

Member Participation

Guidelines for effective participation in a small group communication: -

Be group or Team Oriented

·         Your participation value = group’s goals and member satisfaction

·         Your talents, knowledge can lead to better solution.

·         Your individuality is not discarded, don’t give up the personal values.

Center Conflict on Issues

·         Conflict in small group situations leads to miscommunication.

·         If everything is thinking similar, then everybody is thinking.

 Be Open - minded

·         Share, hear and see before you conclude/decide.

·         Be willing to go through your suggestion during the discussion.

·         Receive the comments from the members in effective way.

·         Evaluate before you accept/reject any suggestion.

·         Support your comments with reasons and objectives.

Ensure Understanding

Make sure all participants get what you are trying to say.

Eyes contact

Everything is clear?

|

Any questions

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If there is anything you can’t understand, please ask me.

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As I understand, you want to teach us how to ask questions during discussion, right?

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What about if I do this essay, is that correct?

Beware of Groupthink

The method of thinking that group members engage in when agreement becomes all important. The following symptoms should help you recognize groupthink: -

·         Illusion of invulnerability

·         Avoidance

·         Assumption of morality

·         Intolerance of differences of opinion

·         Self – censorship

·         Assumption of unanimity

·         Gatekeeping

·         Peer pressure

Leaders in Small Group Communication

 

One person in the group taking responsibility for trying tasks and maintaining good relationships.

·         The ownership of certain traits that society sees as leadership traits.

·         It was once believed that people were born with these certain traits.

·         Focuses on the leaders and not the followers.

·         Emphasizes that having a leader with a certain set of traits is important to having effective leadership.

For example:

Functions and Skills of Leadership

A leader must be able to: -

1.       Be Ready

2.       Activate the Group Agenda

3.       Promote Group Interaction

4.       Maintain Effective Interaction

5.       Empower Group Members

6.       Keep Members on Track

7.       Ensure Member Satisfaction

8.       Encourage Ongoing Evaluation

9.       Manage Conflict

10.   Follow up

Membership, Leadership, and Culture

Individual and Collectivism

A truly talented leader can be able to lead in individual society and leader must be aim to be collectivist.

Cultural beliefs

Japanese executives use variety strengthening – creation of uncertainly and analysis of many alternatives regarding future action.

US executives tend to use variety reduction – limiting of uncertainly and the focusing of action on a limited number of alternatives.