Business Communication:your Interpersonal Dynamics Through Application Of Theory And Learning During - Essay Example

Part A –Learning from Weekly Reflective Journal EntriesCommunication is a part of life. As long as we are alive, we cannot not communicate. Even if we choose not to communicate, that in itself communicates something. Communication can take the form of a sign, posture, intonation, or a facial expression, and as human beings we use different ways of communicating on a daily basis. What I learnt most from the communication course is that learning is fundamental to every aspect of life and can occur in any setting be it formal or informal.

Atkinson et al. (1993,p. 253) hold the view that learning is lifelong and takes over our lives, as such learning and communication are interrelated.The Context for CommunicationI am of the view that communication always occurs in a context, that is, it does not happen in isolation from the real world and as such it is important to take into account, the psychological, relational and cultural context. The psychological context relates to the individual and what the individual brings to the interaction.

The personality, norms, values, and needs of individuals also form part of the psychological context.The relational context refers to the person’s interactions with other persons in his/her environment and the cultural context includes behaviour that is learned and handed down from generation to generation. The structure of the course required group work and my experience has been a mix of positive and negative experiences. The world of work is moving into the direction of team work and as such there is the need to develop knowledge and skills to work as part of a team.

Bonner and Chaney (2002, pp. 3-2) speak to the fact that teams are a set of persons who come together in order to achieve an objective as a group. At times the team may continue to work together to develop a team identity.Basic Tenets of CommunicationOne of the more popular models of communication is the symbolic interactionist model which is drawn from the discipline of social psychology. Szilagyi and Wallace (1983, p. 343) focus attention in this model on the transmission of meaning from one group or individual to another.

Underlying the process of communication is the fact that the sender has an intended meaning for the receiver and the effective communication requires a clear understanding between sender and receiver.I have found that the basic tenets of effective communication were tested in my group project which required me to interact with persons from different geographical backgrounds and cultural influences. At times the experience was positive and at times it was not. Bootzin et al. (1986, p. 157) have argued that culture affects perception and the overall way persons from different societal backgrounds view and interact with the world.

At times the tones and non verbal ways of communicating among the group members resulted in misunderstandings and difference of opinions which were not always intentional.I have realised that effective communication requires careful attention to the context in which the message is sent, especially, in a business environment. What I also discovered is that if one were to take the extra time to follow up and seek feedback as to how the message was interpreted then a lot of hurt feelings can be avoided, as I discovered with the only male member of my group.

I find this approach to be rather effective in group assignments in order to ensure the group is on track and the project goals are being achieved.