Sofia Saladdino

 

POV on Chapter Presentations

Summary and Review 

In our communications class, we had presentations based on textbook chapters that focused on intercultural communication, group communication, and leadership within groups. These topics are very important and relevant today especially with how connected the world has become and how often people have to socialize and work together, especially work with those who are different from each other. At the end of the day, this all means different beliefs, different cultures, and personalities fall into this and create a big impact under this topic.

Chapter 3 Overview: Intercultural Communication

This chapter was the first one to be presented which introduced the basic idea that culture is more than traditions or where one was born, its overall a system of shared beliefs, values, and behaviors. Which all these things guide and impact the way people act and communicate within themselves.  Intercultural communication happens when people from different cultures and beliefs interact and it could be really good or there could be some troubles coming from it. This is because each person brings their own beliefs and expectations to the table causing terrible communications skills leading to bad interactions.

    Culture shock is one important term presented, which is overall the stress/confusion people usually feel when they enter a new culture impacting them in how they live, what their beliefs are, etc. One good example is moving from a high-context culture where communication is indirectly to a culture where people are more direct, it could potentially lead to confusion and a terrible time.

    Dominant and Co-cultures were presented in the group presentation as well. The dominant culture holds the most power and influence in society. On the other hand, co-cultures are smaller groups and they base on race, gender, language, and religions. Overall, this is important because someone's cultural identity is shaped based on how one identifies with culture shock and dominant and co-cultures, figuring out where they belong.

    Cultures being individualistic and collectivist is also something reviewed in the presentations. This focuses on how different cultures can vary just like individualists = personal independence, and collectivist = value group cooperation/harmony. Depending on the culture it's either more strict or extremely flexible. This is mostly when and how groups are accepting how power is distributed, and how gender roles are viewed as well. The way to avoid any miscommunication is to understand these key concepts in order to stay on the lane.

    One way to become better at intercultural communication; because as humans it's complicated to do everything the right way, by being open minded, aware of opinions, avoiding certain stereotypes, and learning how to listen/adapt to how others think is really important. Right there, we can learn to be flexible and accept in order to be accepted with skills and patience.

Chapter 9: Communicating with Groups

    

    This group presented on communication with groups and how they shift the focus from cultural differences to how people should work together in a groups. The presentation focused on the different types of groups: families, service groups, work teams, virtual groups, etc. One of the most important parts of working in groups is knowing how to set clear and specific goals in order to serve a common purpose.

    Virtual groups was pointed out in this presentation and explained how it is becoming even more common in today's world. The way these groups work is by video chats, online platforms, etc. These virtual groups are relatively convenient, just as they can be harder to manage and adapt too since it's easy to misread tone especially if it's not face to face.

    Characteristics to know if the groups are healthy:

• Have ethical/clear goals
• Interdependence = rely on each other
• Follow agreed up norms
• Holding members accountable 
• Experience Synergy (group accomplishes more by being together and rather than individually)

Five stages of group development:

1. Forming: Getting to know each other
2. Storming: Involving conflict/figuring out roles
3. Norming: Groups agree on how to work
4. Performing: Doing the work
5. Adjourning: When the group ends/changes direction

   Due to human nature, the most common thing in a group setting is conflict. In the chapter and presentation there were 3 types of conflicts and what they are.

1. Pseudo conflict: Misunderstandings
2. Issue related conflict: Different opinions on the task
3. Personality related conflict: Personalities and how they differ

    Therefore, the lack of nonverbal cues does cause virtual conflicts and making it harder to solve since there is hardly face to face connections and bonding. Even though conflict isn't always a terrible thing, it also has a good side to this which can help the group if all these factors are used and managed properly.

Chapter 10: Group Leadership and Problems

    One big important factor this chapter taught me was that leadership doesn't always mena one person in charge. Instead, leadership can be shared among all the group members instead of focusing on one specific "leader." This chapter mainly focuses on how leadership works in group communication. All of these functions fall into these 3 categories:

1. Task roles: Getting all the work done 
2. Maintenance roles: Keep group connected/positive
3. Procedural roles: Documenting/organizing work

    This chapter mainly focuses on how leadership is important because at the end of the day the best groups share leadership. This is because every member should contribute and help manage conflicts by staying on task and supporting each other as a group. The chapter also talked about how to run effective meetings. Which at the end of the day it is extremely important to do this especially in groups. In a group, it is important to have an agenda to keep all the dates and times tracked to make sure each group member knows the type of responsibility they have before and after the meetings. There are 6 important steps the book outlines:

1. Define the problem
2. Analyze it 
3. Determine criteria for solutions
4. Brainstorm opinions
5. Evaluate opinions 
6. Implement the best one 

    The final part of the chapter was about evaluating groups and their effectiveness. This is important to look at because it depends on how groups interact within each other and how well groups completed the task. This also helps evaluate how well members worked together as well. At the end of the day, groups should reflect on what and how they communicate as an overall group.

MY OVERALL OPINION ON PRESENTATIONS AND CHAPTERS

    
    I thought all of these chapters and presentations were filled with important information and were explained very well. It made me realize how communicating is important especially in groups. It gave a real life explanation as to how culture is helping those understand for the better of everyone. Some presentations were more engaging than others and helped understand the topic deeply. Overall, these topics are relevant for an everyday life and should be done the right way in order to avoid any sorts of conflicts. In conclusion, it is important to follow all these steps and use it as a guide in order to do the right things when it comes to grouping and adapting/accepting different cultures.