Most Effective Communication Interpersonal Communication Essay

Most Effective Communication Interpersonal Communication - Essay Example In this paper we are going to discuss effective interpersonal communication and how it helps in developing effective communication in our lives. We are also going to study roles of self-disclosure, non-verbal communication and listening in building effective interpersonal communication. For this purpose we will be considering three aspects of interpersonal communication and how these branches of communication are connected to have an effective communication. What is interpersonal communication? McCornack (2012) defines interpersonal communication as a dynamic form of communication between two (or more) people in which the messages exchanged significantly influence their thoughts, emotions, behaviors, and relationships. It is a process of give and take and is extremely impactful. Communication is multi-dimensional. Various aspects such as nonverbal communication, self-disclosure, and listening impact interpersonal communication great deal. To understand correlation of these key concepts, we have to understand definitions of these concepts. Self-disclosure –Revealing private information about yourself to others is known as self-disclosure (McCornack, 2012). How much information you are willing to share about yourself plays a pivotal role in building relationships with people. We are not very comfortable about sharing our personal experiences and life events with anyone as we fear that it could alter the image I have created in the mind of the listener. However it is also observed that in interpersonal communication, effective self-disclosure along with implicit trust has often helped strengthening relationships and mutual understanding. Wood (2007) states that one way to get information about yourself is through self-disclosure, which is revealing information about ourselves that others are unlikely to discover on their own. Self-disclosure is an important way to learn about ourselves. Wood suggests that as we reveal our hopes, fears, dreams, and feelings, we get responses from others that give us new perspectives on who we are. In addition, we gain insight into ourselves by seeing how we interact with others in new situations. Nonverbal communication – communication that happens without saying a word written or oral is nonverbal communication (McCornack, 2012). We say so many things with the help of gestures, eyes and body language. As nonverbal cues keep giving away what is going on in our minds, it is often said that we c annot communicate. Hence we do not believe only on words said in communication, and it becomes imperative that it is accompanied by appropriate body language. Knapp and Daly (2002) state that interpersonal communication scholars have probably always recognized the vital contributions of proxemics, kinesic, olfactory, vocal, and verbal signs to the understanding of interpersonal communication, but the early emphasis was clearly on verbal behaviour. As the number of scholars studying non-verbal behaviour increased, it gradually became a separate area of study. Moreover, Knapp and Daly (2002) report that the study of verbal behaviour and non-verbal behaviour appeared, for practical purposes, to be independent of one another. Listening – listening is not hearing words. It is hearing words, understanding their context, processing them and reacting or offering