Blog Entry #1- Egocentrism in Communication

September 18, 2021 by onv5001 3 Comments

Communication is a wonderful yet tricky concept to navigate. While effective communication is efficient, helpful and leaves everyone with what we think of as a mutual understanding–it comes with struggles and faults that cause the wrong, actually misinterpreted, message to go through to someone. One common error in communication stems from egocentrism; the inability to see another’s perspective (Penn State World Campus, 2021).

Egocentrism creates limits in the way we communicate because not only can our communication reflect only our perspective, but sometimes it is only read in one perspective as well. Studies have found up to 1/4 of communication can be misinterpreted or otherwise negatively affected by egocentrism (Penn State World Campus, 2021).

I myself have experienced egocentrism at work through the messaging system our company uses for employee’s timestamps and scheduling. Managers are able to send us messages that we individually see on a computer when we log in to create a timestamp. In theory, this is a nice way to get a quick message out to employees regarding a meeting, an important announcement regarding our fast-changing work environment, etc.

One day while clocking in, my co-worker noticed a message from one of our managers with the subject “Do better please” and a short message along the lines of “Everyone needs to be doing little things to help the store like picking up a piece of garbage when you see it or straightening something out of place when you walk past it”. I felt bad when my co-worker told me about the message because I thought she was singled out. Then a few days later, I had the exact same message on my screen. Turns out, everyone got the message.

I remember seeing the message and I initially felt singled out and like I was approached in a passive-aggressive manner. Why did my manager already assume I wasn’t doing these things? Why couldn’t this be mentioned in a closing meeting?

I felt better when I was able to connect the dots to realize everyone got the same message and someone mentioned it was a test of that particular messaging system. However, my own egocentrism made me feel singled out and ridiculed because I saw it from the perspective of a negative tone.

I do believe the manager that sent the message also had their own egocentrism that limited the meaning of the message. They may have been trying to be helpful and not hurtful and not realize that the message could be interpreted as offensive. They also may not have realized the point of view we read it from–all that we do is not only disregarded in that message but the manager also assumed the worst in us.

To better avoid egocentrism, a mention of the standards/expectations at a closing/opening meeting would allow us to hear the tone of the manager’s voice to interpret the message better. Also, another manager reviewing the manager could edit the message to acknowledge the issue in a more positive approach as well as give a heads up that this was a test so everyone got this message and no one was singled out.

References

Penn State World Campus (2021). Errors in Communication. Retrieved from https://psu.instructure.com/courses/2146712/modules/items/32847667.

Technology and the Communication Process

January 31, 2018 by Jennifer Rosson 3 Comments

In its simplest form, the model of the communication process is rather basic: there is a sender and a receiver, a message channel, and an idea being sent through the channel. During the encoding and decoding process, there are call-outs where noise can enter into the process and cause errors. Overall, this simplistic idea of communication is a great starting point but, in today’s technological environment, no longer represents the various forms of available communication and the amount of activity impacting those messages. In fact, very few messages that are sent today are as simple as this model describes.

In today’s world of technology, humankind is moving away from the basic method of communication and into a world where communication is rapidly becoming virtual. This shift in the paradigm of society has its benefits as well as its drawbacks, which we will briefly discuss an example of each.

With modern technology, the world around us has become a digital wonderland. While most of us grew up with just a “home phone”, today we feel lost if our phone is not within reach. It’s the first thing we look at each morning and the last thing we check at night. We are texting, Tweeting, FaceBooking, Instagramming throughout our days, and most of that has nothing to do with work. In the office, we have seen our face-to-face communications be replaced with emails, instant messages and Slack channels. These digital channels have made communication easier, removing barriers that once existed like looking for an old friend or trying to meet someone new. (Techspirited, 2018) Those things are no longer difficult to do with modern technology!

While our virtual selves are enjoying the champagne, our interpersonal selves are picking up the check. As we move more and more into a digital age of communication, we see younger generations that lack interpersonal skills like showing emotion and speaking face-to-face. (Techspirited, 2018) As a result, when people are communicating in person, they are losing their abilities to interpret non-verbal gestures from others. (Techspirited, 2018) We also see the dependence on digital communication impacting the relationships in families. Children who are always texting with their friends aren’t spending as much time with parents or siblings, which is creating an even larger relationship gap over time. (Techspirited, 2018)

There is a way to reap the rewards of this digital age while maintaining your social and personal abilities, but the key is balance. Make sure that you are taking time to “unplug” and spend time with friends and family. As parents, ensure that your kids have some downtime from the devices and texting. We should all find that happy medium between the digital space and our here and now.

References

Techspirited. (2018, Januaty 31). An Overview of the Overall Impact of Technology on Communication. Retrieved from techspirited.com: https://techspirited.com/impact-of-technology-on-communication

Communicating Lady Gaga

February 5, 2017 by Gabriel DeLong 4 Comments

Lady Gaga entered NRG Stadium from the open roof. Credit Gregory Shamus/Getty Images

As I sit here with my father, his wife, my sister my cousin and his friend watching the halftime show, my cousin and father tell the group that they don’t see why she was chosen for this performance. They agree that she doesn’t “do anything form them.”

Knowing that my father is uncomfortable with anything that has to do with LGBTQ+ people or their allies/icons I raise my eyebrow, ready to jump into conversation defending the community. My cousin tells us that he doesn’t know any of “these” songs and he things that performers like James Brown or New Kids On the Block should be performing right now.

After just having read the course notes, I remember that one part of missing information has to do with decoding error. I take a step back and think about how I am interpreting the information that was just presented to me. I am looking at a black male in his mid 30’s who, I think just said something negative about Lady Gaga, an artist that I respect and that I believe has done a great deal in normalizing the LGBTQ+ community. I wanted to jump to defend her, I wanted him to know that he was being a bigot.

While I was in my short state of reflection, I thought about our different interests and so, I simply asked him “you don’t listen to this type of music, do you?” he responded with “no, not really.” There seemed no judgment in his voice. I knew that in this moment, I judged him based on my egocentric communication. I was so overconfident in my communication style that I didn’t take into account that others communicate differently based on diversity and cultural experiences. He wasn’t telling me that Lady Gaga and the LGBTQ+ community was somehow inferior.

I think that if it weren’t for having read the reading notes for this week, the conversation would have gone into a very different direction that may have blown something simple and non-confrontational into an argument that would not have gone anywhere.

So, how do we prevent this from happening again, how do I remember to take a step back when I am at work talking with a colleague that I disagree with, or reading an email that may come across as harsh or when I am drafting an email to a group of people that I don’t know?

Body Language Makes You Who You Are

February 28, 2015 by Rachel E Maddux 2 Comments

The main form of communication for an individual is likely talking but associated with any type of in person communication is body language. Each culture holds their own understanding of body language and has designated gestures with meanings. As Moran, Harris and Moran explain a gesture can mean nothing, something different or the same thing to both individuals (p. 59). With the world becoming more and more intertwined with business and leisure it is imperative people who will be traveling or doing business with other cultures understand the way body language can be interpreted as something unintended. Body language is more than just using your hands or your posture it involves our head, face, eyes, nose, lips, mouth, arms, hands, legs and feet (Rugsaken, 2006). It would appear that it is easy to control your features and not offend anyone because we were all raised to understand what gestures from our cultures mean. Well so were the other people you’re interacting with and their understanding may have a different than what you know.

The smallest gesture that a culture can know as harmless can be highly offensive in another. The picture below shows how nodding the head, smiling, pointing, thumbs up and feet pointed in a certain direction can be misunderstood and found offensive in another culture.

Body Language 101

Even though it has never been an issue before and it was never known that pointing feet could be offensive, sometimes people get offended and angry resulting in conflict with an ill outcome.

In 1988, two Laotian men walked into a Los Angeles bar where a singer, who was also from an Asian country, was entertaining patrons. The men sat at empty spaces near the front with their feet pointed straight to the singer. After the bar was closed, the singer followed the two men to a parking lot where they got into an argument about how the men pointed their feet at the singer’s face. The argument became fierce when the singer pulled out a gun and killed one of the men. (Rugsaken, 2006)

Nonverbal communication will occur whether you want it to or not. “A study by Ting-Toomey found that up to 65% (an estimate that goes up to 90%) of a message’s meaning is sent through nonverbal cues” (Moran, Harris, Moran, p. 58). Regsaken states, “people in other parts of the world, especially Asians, are more perceptive to body language than the North Americans” (2006). Being a North American I believe it is very important to learn the differences in body language to best of our ability in order to ensure we are not offending anyone we are doing business with from another culture.

Body language is universal but it has different meanings across the world. Understanding how you can offend someone or be perceived because of your gestures is important to know. Even here in our own country we are not always aware of how our body language can offend someone. Our body language sends messages to others about how we are feeling and what kind of person we are. Knowing what your body language gives off could give you the advantage.

Here is a video done by Dr. Amy Cubby on body language, she explains ways it can be interpreted.

References:

Cuddy, D. (2014, January 20). Body Language and Confidence Uptown Dallas Counseling. Retrieved February 28, 2015, from http://uptowndallascounseling.com/body-language-and-confidence/

Harris, P., Moran, R., & Moran, S. (2011). Leadership in Creating Cultural Synergy. In Managing cultural differences (8th ed., pp. 232-251). Houston: Gulf Pub.

Rugsaken, K. (2006). Body speaks: Body language around the world. Retrieved from NACADA Clearinghouse of Academic Advising Resources Web site http://www.nacada.ksu.edu/Resources/Clearinghouse/View-Articles/body-speaks.aspx