Week 16, Question 3

One of my favorite concepts that we went over this past semester was active listening. Listening seems like one of the easiest things we do, but after I learned more about this concept I realized that there have been numerous times in my life where I have not been an active listener. Active listening is more than just sitting and listening to someone talk. When you are an active listener you are actually listening to what the speaker has to has and you are letting them know you are paying attention verbally and nonverbally. Anyone can sit in front of a speaker and look like they are listening when they are really off in their own little world. It takes a lot more effort it show someone that you are really listening to what they have to say. I know I have a hard time actively listening when I am in a class and I'm stressed and have a lot of other things going on in my life. That is when my mind tends to wander and I don't listen like I should be. When I catch myself listening I have to refocus and pay attention to what is going on.

Week 16, Question 2

I have learned many valuable things throughout this semester that I will use for the rest of my life. Small group communication is something that I know I am going to be involved in in my professional life and my personal life and I have learned many skills to improve the skills I had before I took this class. My favorite thing about this class was the blog we had to keep. I thought it was an interesting way for the class to interact. We could have easily done our discussions on desire2learn like the majority of the other online classes, but the blog was a creative way to conduct the class. Although I really liked the blog, my least favorite part about the class was the time restrictions. I know the time restrictions were set to keep us on top of our work, but sometimes it was hard to make sure I got it done because I would get really with other schoolwork. That is the only thing that I disliked. I really don’t have any suggestions to improve the class because I thought it was run very well and I really enjoyed it.

Week 16, Question 1

I really liked the group observation project. I thought it was a really good way for us to actually get a chance to apply what we learned to a real life situation. Especially since this is an online class and we didn’t get the chance to interact with our classmates face to face. I thought that the exercise was very useful to me personally. I was able to look at my small group from a completely different perspective. I have observed this group before, but this time it was different. I picked up on things that I hadn’t before. I feel that I picked up on more detail than I would have if I didn’t learn the various course concepts. One thing that I thought was very good about this project was that it got us out there and had us practice our skills before we get out there in “the real world” I don’t have any suggestions for improvement for this project. I thought it was good just the way it was.

Week 14, Question 3

The one concept that I choose to discuss this week is reward-punishment power. I thought this concept was very interesting. Reward-punishment power is held by an individual who can effectively reward or punish other members of the group. Essentially we all hold this reward-punishment power if we can effectively praise or humiliate your fellow group members. We don't always think of it this way though. We usually think of it as "the ability to materially affect another's well-being in terms of financial rewards or punishments that we consider particularly meaningful." (Harris & Sherblom) We all have experiences with people like this and in some cases it can be ourselves. You may experience it at work with your boss or at home with your parents. Many people try to avoid disagreeing with the person who holds the reward-punishment power in fear of being punished. Unfortunately when group participation is based on regard for reward and punishment power, effective group process may be sacrificed.

Week 14, Question 2

Looking back on the past group work I have done during my time at San Jose State There are many examples I could think of where I have experienced a collaborative conflict. Collaborative conflict is a style that seeks to maximize the gain for all participants. Collaborative conflicts value the relationship between group members and the task. I have had many group experiences where we all worked together to get along and complete the task in a timely manner and do a good job. Competition conflict is the style dedicated to winning. This style can become destructive to a group because it can mean winning at any cost. Competition conflict is low on the relationship and high on the task. I have never personally been involved in competition conflict. I have been very lucky and I've gotten good group members who participate and do their work. Yes there have been some problems, but none where the relationship between me and my group members was compromised. Since I have never been involved in a competition conflict I would have to say that a collaborative conflict resolution is more satisfying to me. It is better for everyone in the long run because it doesn't compromise relationships and it gets your tasks done.

week 14, Question 1

A forum panel, colloquium, and symposium are all composed of some of the same elements, but the way they are performed and delivered is different. For example in a forum the audience gets very involved with the speakers. It's more of a public discussion. A group delivers a speech on a topic or problem and the audience then participates by commenting. The audience members can say if they agreed or disagreed with what was said or they can even offer suggestions or argue the main point. The forum format is often seen in town meetings and public hearings. A panel is different than a forum. In a panel a small group of four to eight experts discuss a problem or decision in front of an audience. There is a moderator who starts the meeting by explaining the format to the audience, introduces the speakers, keeps time and sometimes summarizes the speakers points. The panel never have direct with the audience. In a colloquium the form is a public discussion in which a group of three to six experts, that are usually chosen for their divergent views, discuss a problem in front of an audience with a mediator facilitating their interaction. The purpose of a colloquium is to identify, develop, and work through possible solutions to a problem for the benefit and with the participation of the audience. A symposium is made up of two to six brief speeches made on different aspects of a difficult problem. The speakers are usually experts in different areas related to the problem. The speeches are well prepared and uninterrupted by the audience. If I were to chose one form of discussion I would chose forum because I think that hearing different viewpoints from the audience is more helpful than speaking and not hearing what people really thought of what you said. Some of the comments might be hard to hear, but it will be more helpful than not hearing it at all.

Week 13, Question 3

The concept from chapter 10 that I thought was interesting was emotional barriers to creativity. When you think about being creative you wouldn't think that there would be any emotional strain, but for a lot of people there is. "There are risks and hard work associated with 'going out on a limb' and trying something new. We may have to take more time than we would like, we may make a mistake, and we may risk the censure of our peers by looking foolish or being judged incompetent." (Harris & Sherblom) So many people are worried about what other people think of them. They don't want to be judged and looked at as an outsider. Our society rewards being right and judges people who are "wrong" in their eyes. This often keeps people from expressing their ideas and what they really believe in. Many of the most significant people in the history of our country and inventions have been initially rejected for being too "out there", but that didn't keep them from making a mark on our history. If they had let the emotional strain on what other people think then we wouldn't be where we are today.

Week 13, Question 2

The five barriers to creativity that are discussed in the book are lack of self-confidence, fear of taking risks, feel the need to conform, don not feel we are in an environment that encourages creativity, or find ourselves locked into our habitual ways of looking at the world. I think that these five barriers would definitely keep people in small groups from being creative because people are scared of being judged by others. We are all so concerned with what other people think that we hide behind a wall and don't express what we really think and present our ideas. I have personally experienced these barriers to creativity throughout my whole life. Mainly because I don't think that my ideas are good enough to contribute to the group. This was the way I felt when I was in high school. As I have grown up and gained more self-confidence in my ideas and my work I don't really focus on what other people think. I have learned to throw my ideas out there because people may like them better that I think.

Week 13, Question 1

I don't consider myself to be a creative person. I have always had a hard time coming up with creative ideas when it came to school projects, papers, or even decorating my room. Whenever I would be assigned projects at school I would get overwhelmed with the criteria sometimes. I have gotten better at coming up with new ideas as I have grown up. One recent experience where I had to be creative was in the PR190 class that I am taking. A couple of weeks ago we had to write a practice pitch letter about the Beatles music being released on iTunes. The first sentence of the letter needed to be catchy and grab the readers attention. It had to set up the rest of the letter. At first I sat at my computer and stared at the blank screen for a while trying to figure out what I was going to do. After a while as I was going through some of the song titles I figured out a creative way to use Here Comes the Sun in the opening sentence and play off of it. I know that it doesn't sound like much, but my teacher really liked what I did and I got a good grade on the assignment. This was a big accomplishment for me. I think that my recent experience with creativity strays away from the books definition of creativity a little bit, but it was an accomplishment to me and I think that's what makes creativity and achievable goal.

Week 12, Question 3

One concept from chapter 15 that I thought was really interesting was group performance in CMC. CMC groups perform differently than groups who work together face to face. "CMC has been shown to facilitate active participation and collaboration among team members and to increase the equality of participation among group members." (Harris & Sherblom) When people are involved in a CMC group they tend to make more of an effort to collaborate with their group and show more interactivity. I thought that concept was really interesting. I would have thought that it was the other way around. I would think that people that are in a face to face group would be more actively involved. I know that when I am in a group online I do worry about the work I have to do and I make sure that I get it done on time if not earlier and I am in constant communication with my group members.

Week 12, Question 2

Groups that communicate solely through CMC is a lot different than a group that communicates face to face. Anonymity, group size, diversity and proximity effects the way the group communicates and sometimes the successfulness of the group. Larger CMC groups seem to benefit the most from CMC. They have more ideas generated during brainstorming. Diversity in groups also brings greater idea generation because they have a greater knowledge base and different experiences. Proximity in a CMC group has a big effect as well. CMC groups that don't live in close proxemics to one another are more likely to get their work done in a timely manner. Anonymity of CMC group members also has an effect on the group performance as well. When group members don't know each other there is a pressure placed on them to show their group members that they are reliable and will get the job done. They will show the group that they will work with their fellow members toward the same goal.

Week 12, Question 1

In todays technology driven world computer mediated communication (CMC) dominates the way people communicate with each other. People send text messages, email, write facebook and twitter posts, and create blogs to connect with the rest of the world. We hardly remember what it was like before we made the technological advances. I personally feel that with the CMC dominating the way people communicate I don't think that people effectively communicate when they are face to face anymore. I have met so many people that have the hardest time talking to someone face to face, but they can send text messages all day. Face to face communication is very different than CMC because it shows you what a person is really like. It is easier to interpret their messages because you can sense the tone of their voice and read their nonverbal communication. CMC communication allows a person to respond or ignore someone, whereas face to face requires a response. Although, face to face communication is the least popular choice of people to communicate it is a skill that you should master because it will benefit you in the long run.

Week 9, Question 3

The concept that I choose to discuss this week is the concept of motivation because I think that a lot of people, especially students, lack motivation when it comes to listening. The class textbook says that no one can become a better listener without the motivation to do so. I completely agree with this statement. The only way someone is going to become a better listener is if they want to and they actually try. Although, people don't want to admit it we are all a little selfish. We always think what's in it for me? Having the motivation to actively listen has a greater payoff in the end. When you actively listen because you want to you learn new things, have life-changing experiences, and you can build relationships. Having the motivation to improve you listening skills and actually doing it make you a better employee. Listening skills is something that employers values so that is something to keep in mind.

Week 9, Question 2

Selective attention is something that I have a lot of experience with unfortunately. I notice that it happens a lot when I am being told something that I already know or when I don't find that specific topic interesting. I notice that this also happens when I am reading books for school or sometimes even when I'm talking with friends and family. When I do it with my friends and family I'm not doing it to be rude. I tend to do it when I have a lot of other responsibilities to take care of and I am stressed out. For the most part I pay attention to what other people have to say to me. When I am reading my text books I notice that my mind tends to wander and I have to read some sections over a few times in order for me to retain any of the information. This happens because a lot of the time I'm not interested in what the book is saying. One recent example where I had selective attention was when I had to attend the showing of a documentary one of the professor put together. The documentary was very long and I found it really hard to pay attention. I found myself daydreaming a lot and then I would come back and pay attention to the movie. This happened quite a few times while the documentary was showing. I did this because I wasn't interested in the topic and it's not something that I wanted to be doing at the time. By the last bit of the film I was able to overcome my selective attention and pay attention to the message of the documentary.

Week 9, Question 1

The most recent situation that I was in where I found it hard to listen actually occurred today during my child development class. I am taking Chad106 to satisfy one of the areas for my upper devision general, but I'm also taking it because I love kids and I thought this class would be really interesting. Unfortunately this class has turned out to be very boring. Every time I am in class I find it very hard to listen to what the teacher is saying. Part of the reason for this is that her voice tends to be monotone sometimes and that makes it very had to pay attention. The phase that presented the most difficulty for me was the hearing the message phase. I guess you could say I was experience selective attention. I would listen to parts of the lecture, and then i would find myself daydreaming. I think this problem can be overcome if I focus more on the material and not let my mind wander.

Week 7, Question 3

One concept from chapter six that I thought was interesting was humor. As a college student we are taught to be serious, not to waste time, and to always be professional. When I read about humor in this chapter I was surprised it was referred to as an important area of communication. If you were to walk down the street and ask someone what kind of qualities they look for in other people somewhere on this list humor is going to be included. People love to laugh. Humor is a way to relieve stress, support group fantasies, and integrate new ideas. “Humor is based on our ability to take advantage of inconsistencies and incongruence’s.” (Harris & Sherblom) Humor can make people feel better about difficult situations as well. The use of humor in a small group can help get work done faster. When people are happy they focus better on the task at hand. Being happy and relaxed can clear your mind and spark creativity. I know personally that the use of humor by some of my previous group members definitely contributed to a positive group experience.

Week 7, Question 2

Proxemics refers to how we use space to communicate with one another. In other words it is how we use and are affected by space. Our proxemics to one another can have a very big impact on the way we communicate with one another. I have worked with many people from different cultures in the group projects I have done at SJSU. I have experienced in all of my groups that when we first meet with each other we all keep quite a distance from one another. Once we start getting more comfortable with one another that distance gradually starts to close. Chromenics on the other hand is the study of the use of time. “Western cultures are particularly oriented toward clock-based time as an organizing principle in the work world.” (Harris & Sherblom) Time is also money in the work world. Wasting time is like wasting money. In small groups the amount of time being spent by individual members is constantly being monitored. If an individual group member is wasting time they are going to be looked at as lazy and unproductive. In all of the groups that I have worked with at SJSU we are very time oriented no matter what culture we identified ourselves with. We all wanted to get our work done so we stayed on task. Personally I think that there are universal rules for proxemics. Every culture has a distance that they are comfortable with when they meet new people. Eventually that distance changes over time as people get to know each other, but I think that cultures universally agree on certain proxemics. I don’t think that there are universal rules for chronemics. The way time is spent around the world is vey different. The United States is a very fast paced country. It is different than what you would see anywhere else in the world.

Week 7, Question 1

The first principle that I decided to discuss is principle four. Principle four says nonverbal behaviors are guided by the context and power of relationships. For example, two people who work together are going to shake hands when they greet each other in the work place. The same two people who happen to be best friends are going to hug and possible give a small kiss on the cheek when the meet for dinner. Principle four is all about appropriate behavior performed at the right time. The second principle that I choose to discuss is principle five. Principle five says that cultural norms and expectations guide our interpretation. This principle is very apparent in small groups. Being placed in a group with people from different cultural backgrounds is very likely to happen. With all of the different stereotypes and expectations that are assigned to these different cultures the way we nonverbally communicate with others can be seen in many different ways. For example someone may value organization in preparedness in their culture, and if someone is disorganized and unprepared all the time, that behavior will be noticed and make the other person uncomfortable.

Week 6, Question 3

One concept that I thought was interesting from this chapter was verbal interaction analysis. Verbal interaction analysis traces the number of times group member interact with each other. When I read this I thought it was a little silly. I thought if you are working in a group then of course you are going to be interacting with your members all the time. As I thought about it more and thought back on all of my group work experiences I realized that many group members can go through an entire project and not talk to one or maybe 2 or three group members. Being a college student I know how busy we can be at times. When group projects are assigned it can be difficult for everyone’s schedules to match up and meet. When this happens group members tend to communicate through email and text messages. If one group member takes on the role of leader then they talk to all the group members and communicates the information out to everyone. By doing this not all the group members need to communicate with each other. I thought that was a really interesting concept.

Week 6, Question 2

When providing observer feedback to a group you need to make sure that what you are telling them is useful and will really help them improve on their group work skills. Some areas that you can touch on when providing observer feedback is the goals and objectives of the group. You should identify the goal of the group and what they are trying to accomplish and see if they accomplished that goal. The next areas you can assess are utilization of resources. See if the group utilized all of the resources that are available to them. Trust and conflict is another area to look at. You should evaluate the level of trust that the group members have between each other and if there was any type of conflict. If there was conflict, how well did they handle the conflict. Leadership is another area to look at as an observer. You should keep an eye for any group members that step up and really lead the group to get their tasks done and done on time. You can also watch and see if the leadership is shared in the group. Control and procedures is also important. Is the group under control and is there any lack of procedures to guide the team functioning. Interpesonal communication is important because if group members aren’t communicating with one another problems can arise. Problem solving and decision making can make or break a group. If groups can’t solve problems that arise or make decisions together they will get off task and not accomplish anything. Evaluation is one of the last things to look at as an observer. If a group evaluates the way they worked together and the work they did then they are on the right track.

Week 6, Question 1

I think the use of a consultant or an observer for a small group is very important to evaluate the success of a group. Bringing in someone who doesn’t have any connection with the group is beneficial because they don’t have any biases. I think that having someone who isn’t connected to the group is more beneficial because they can provide feedback that is more helpful. They are there to discuss what worked well between the group members and what they accomplished during their time as a group. They also can provide feedback that someone within the group might have missed. Groups can think that they worked well together, but when an outsider is looking at the group they can point out things that might have been overlooked by the group members. Just because a group accomplished a task on time does not necessarily mean that they accomplished it well. Receiving effective feedback from an outsider will definitely benefit a group for the better.

Week 4, Question 3

One concept from the reading that I found to be interesting was pressures for conformity in groups. When working in a group it can be hard to work with members who come have different assumptions about the work to be done or the group work process itself. When a group member refuses to go along with the majority opinion of the group and constantly raise issues that are irrelevant can cause a lot of discomfort for the group and sometimes even hostility between the members. Although having people go against the majority opinion is inconvenient, the one group member or the few group members who bring up the issues of the can move the group toward creative thinking and bring up new ideas that would have been looked over. Pressures to conformity tend to be very high in larger groups because group members want to get the task done, but if not conforming to the majority opinion of the group grants a better outcome and new ideas I would say don’t conform and voice your opinion.

Week 4, Question 2

To a certain extent I agree with the concept “white men of privilege.” Through the history of the United States it is shown that being white and a male has more perks than being a man of color. While the United States was developing into the country that it is today you were able to achieve more if you were a white male because you were presented with more opportunities. You were more likely to be literate, well educated, and a land-owner if you were a white male. Today this is not the case. People of different races and ethnicities are presented with the same opportunities as any other person in this country. Today there are many successful men and women of color and ethnicity. Take president Obama as an example. He has overcome a long history of doubt to get where he is today. I feel that this country is starting to move away from the concept of “white men of privilege” to more of an equal opportunity to all.

Week 4, Question 1

Growing up in America diversity is all around you. You attend school with kids from different countries and practice different cultural norms. “Diversity describes the reality of our national and world community that is made up of people having cultures, languages, and social customs different from our own.” (Harris & Sherblom) I think that growing up in the world today makes it easier to accept and value diversity. Back in the early 1900’s and through the middle of the 1900’s diversity was something that people didn’t want to accept. We saw this with the struggle of integration. Now I think people have a new respect for diversity and all the new ideas that people have to offer. I think that if people in groups, such as a work place, try and see all of the new ideas and value someone can bring to the group they will value diversity a little more. People need to become more open minded about the things they don’t know about.

Week 3, Question 3

One concept from this chapter that I found interesting was the concepts of roles. “Norms and roles are related but different from each other. Norms are expectations of behavior patterns for the group as a whole. Roles identify the particular way we, as individuals are expected to act in a group.” Harris & Sherblom) Take the structure of a family for example. A family is a group. You have the parents and the children and each member of the family has a certain role to play. The father usually takes on the role of the financial provider. He is expected to go to work and make money to provide the things the family need. He is also supposed to take care of the manual labor the family requires. The mother usually takes on the nurturing role. She is supposed to provide love and support and take care of the house and the children on top of working a job. The kids take on the role of respecting their parents as they grow and learn from them. You see these roles played out whenever you look at families. It is different with every family you look at, but those roles are there.

Week 3, Question 2

Norms in a group have many different functions. “Norms influence our behaviors during the group process. They reduce ambiguity, help us to feel part of the group, and develop our overall sense of “groupness.” (Harris & Sherblom) I think that group norms help some groups to function properly. I feel that people work together better if they have a set of guidelines to follow. I am not saying that once these norms are set they are set in stone and people have to follow them forever. I do think that it is ok for people to step outside of the norms if it is for the better. For example In middle school I was best friends with two girls. The three of us could not be separated. The two other girls had stronger personalities then I did at the time and they expected me to be the quiet one who would follow along with whatever they wanted me to do. Unfortunately I did follow along with that for a while until one day I was tired of it and I stood up for myself. I was tired of being told what to do and I told them I wasn’t going to be their puppet anymore. I was very proud I did that. Even though it disrupted the group norm I made a positive change for myself and also changed the group norm, which benefited everyone.

Week 3, Question 1

When I first read this question for this weeks discussion I had to really think about my response. I do believe that there are many different group norms at SJSU. It took a while for me to come up with them, but I thought about some of the experiences I have encountered while I have been at SJSU and I came up with one example that stood out. I think, as a SJSU student, a group norm would be having pride in the work that the students create. One specific example I can think of is the four professors from the communication lab. When I first signed up to be a communication lab tutor I knew that the lab was respected throughout the campus because it had been recommended to me numerous times by these professors. They constantly bragged about all the services the lab offered and how great the tutors were. When I started tutoring in the lab I knew that I had to live up to these standards that the professors had so they could continue to be proud of the work that was being done in the lab.

In my personal group of friends there is one vey identifiable norm that didn’t take me long to notice at all. I have a small group of girl friends that I have known for a very long time. One of my friends is a big time talker. Whenever I get on the phone I know that our conversation will be a minimum of 20 minutes. This is our group norm. I know that whenever I am with my friends I can expect this one friend to always have something to say. I used to get very annoyed with this friend, but as time has gone on I’ve learned to tune her out if she isn’t talking about something important.

Week 2, Question 3

Feedback is an essential part of small group communication. Feedback helps to make a group live up to its full potential. “A group must pay attention both to feedback that it receives from its larger environment in the form of its initial charge and directions and to the response to its presentations.” The response that a small group receives from its audience will help make it stronger. Positive feedback is a way of encouraging creativity among the group and will help to make the group stronger. It also encourages different ways of thinking and encourages appreciation. Negative feedback is harmful to a small group because it can cause a reduction in productive work. It can also cause people not to voice any new ideas, which can cause damage to the work of the group. I have always though that feedback was very important to not only a group but to an individual as well, especially positive feedback. Hearing positive thoughts and suggestions helps to make a small group or individual stronger with their work.

Week 2, Question 2

Entropy and equifinality are two different characteristics of small group communication. Entropy is the disorganization, stagnation, and chaos of a small group. When you are working with a small group it is easy to be overwhelmed with all the work that needs to be done. Once group members are overwhelmed things can start to get out of hand and the productiveness of the group goes out the window. Some ways to avoid entropy is to increase inputs of energy and information to the group. There is only a small window where you can add energy and information, because if you add too much you can cause entropy to the group all over again. Equifinality, on the other hand, says that there is more than one way to reach results in a small group. Small groups don’t have to reach the same results the exact same way as another group. Not everyone thinks about things the same way.

Week 2, Question 1

When I first started at San Jose State the one thing that surprised me was how often group projects were assigned. I wasn’t expecting to do group projects because college students tend to be very busy. Not only do college students attend classes, but many of them also have jobs. Some of them even have families they have to take care of as well. I have had good experiences with group projects and bad experiences with them. After reading about interdependence, which is group members depending on one another to get their work done, I realized what went wrong in some of my group projects. One group project I did was a complete mess. In the end it came down to myself and 2 other members putting together the presentation because our other members couldn’t find the time to meet with us. It was very disappointing that they left all the work for us to do and expected the same grade. I have had great group experiences other than the one I just wrote about. Everyone did their share of the work and was willing to help other members if they needed it. These are the group projects that I look forward to.