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9593A  Contemporary Theories of Communication

Module Purpose

The purpose of this module is to provide you with introductory knowledge of contemporary communication theory and its applications to management in the workplace. When you complete this module you will be able to use communication theory to analyse the communication competencies used by managers.

How to use these Resources

These resources will assist you in finding appropriate online material to help broaden your understanding of the concepts involved and to complete assessment events for the module. They are meant to complement the work done in a classroom with a teacher.

For each learning outcome this page provides some activities to lead you to some key sites, some background reading and some additional sites to explore if you choose.

 Learning Outcomes

When you finish the module you should be able to:

1. Outcome - Relate theories of Communication to the contemporary workplace.
2. Outcome - Explain the applications of, and relationships between, verbal and
                   non-verbal communication in the workplace.
3. Outcome - Define Communication competency and explain its importance for
                   managers and supervisors (as first line managers).
4. Outcome - Analyse and evaluate the importance of Communication to workplace
                   ethics and an organisation's values.

 Outcome 1

• Outcome - Relate theories of Communication to the contemporary workplace.

Activity 1

Go to Communication Theory: A First Look and The Talk About Communication (Introductory Historical Perspective). Which subject areas does the discipline of Communication include?

Activity 2

Read the article Information Theory. What is the misconception about communication that the author says is reproduced in almost every Communication textbook?

Activity 3

On the same page read Proxemic Theory by Edward Hall. Explain how an understanding of proxemics is important to a good communicator.

Activity 4

Read the article Groupthink by Irving Janis. What communication skills do people working in an organization need to avoid groupthink?

Activity 5

Read the first 6 slides of the summary of Social Presence Theory. How can you increase social presence in emails and newsletters?

Read the article Improving Communication.

Activity 6

Read the introduction to Heather Adams’ Masters Thesis which discusses Information Richness Theory in relation to her workplace.
  

Activity 7 (previously Activity 2)

Read the article 'Are your programs centered on face-to-face conversations?
(If not, you’re wasting your efforts)'. What is the central argument of the author?
How does it tie in with the theories of communication you have studied?

Activity 8 (previously Activity 6)

Using Google conduct a search on 'linguistic theory'. What areas of communication do the sites you found mainly relate to?

Activity 9 (previously Activity 7)

Browse through the Communication Theory Online Journal and read some of the abstracts to get an overview of the issues covered by Communication Theory.

 Outcome 2

• Outcome - Explain the applications of, and relationships between, verbal and
                  non-verbal communication in the workplace.

Activity 10 (previously Activity 8)

Read Gender Differences in Nonverbal Cues. What are the four gender differences in nonverbal communication listed there?

Activity 11 (previously Activity 9)

Look at the pictures and activities on the website Exploring Nonverbal Communication. From it make a list of some of the issues that make up the area of nonverbal communication.

Activity 12 (previously Activity 10)

Go to About.com's Top 10 Tips for Nonverbal Communication. How can you apply these practical examples to improve your own nonverbal communication?

 Background reading

• Marco Pacori's Nonverbal Library - developed by Italian psychotherapist Marco Pacori. It has an extensive list of web links to papers and abstracts about all aspects of nonverbal behaviour; moreover, it contains the whole collection of contents and abstracts of the most important review about this topic - the Journal of Nonverbal Behavior.
  
• Understanding Your Communication Style - an outstanding analysis of the nonverbal cues associated with aggressive, passive and assertive communication.  

 Outcome 3

• Outcome - Define Communication competency and explain its importance for
                  managers and supervisors (as first line managers).

Activity 13 (previously Activity 11)

Read through the Communication Competency Assessment devised by Communication Development Associates. What are the core competencies that they seem to be trying to measure?

Activity 14

There are many communication skills and practices which employers value IN ADDITION TO interpersonal skills. For the purposes of this exercise we will consider them to be communication skills which are required by a manager as distinct from an entry level worker in order to carry out the role of manager effectively.

Go to the TAFE NSW Library catalogue and in the General Keyword box enter
“ business communication”. Skim read the list of items noting down the main subject categories. Select some of the items and write down the Dewey number.

Go to the TAFE NSW Library catalogue and in the General Keyword box enter “interpersonal communication”. Limit your search to videos. Skim read the titles and write down the Dewey number of three of them.

Go to an online bookshop such as www.amazon.com and conduct a search on the topic “business communication”. Read the reviews of at least three top selling books and list what topics they deal with.  

 Outcome 4

• Outcome - Analyse and evaluate the importance of Communication to workplace
                  ethics and an organisation's values.

Activity 15 (previously Activity 14)

Read the article Ethics and Communication at the Ivy Sea Online Leadership & Communication Center and at least four of the short practical related articles & tip sheets.

Activity 16 (previously Activity 15)

Read the article Toward A Code of Ethics for Organizational Communication Professionals: A Working Proposal from the American Communication Journal which outlines a model for a code of ethics proposed by Daniel Montgomery, Daryl W. Wiesman and Peter DeCaro. Note which points you would agree with as being essential in a code of ethics for your organisation.

Activity 17

Read the mission statement of the Great Place to Work Institute. What kind of communication climate does it suggest is important in making a good workplace?

Activity 18

The White Dog Café is considered by many as an inspirational place to work and a model for great workplace communication. Read why.

Activity 19

How would you describe the values (often unspoken) and ethical standards of your own workplace or other places you have worked? Does your organisation have a stated code of ethics like this one? List 3 ways your organisation communicates its values orally or in writing.

Activity 20

What communication practices do you consider unethical? Read the credo of the (American) National Communication Association.  Discuss how a manager’s unethical communication could influence the ethical behaviour of others.

Activity 21

How can you as a manager improve the communication climate of your organization? Read http://www.allenshea.com/knowyourself.html.
 

 Background reading

Ethics and Communication in Organizational Contexts: Moving from the Fringe to the Center - a paper by Matthew W. Seeger, Wayne State University.
  

Organizational Communication Ethics: The Radical Perspective of Performance Management - a paper by Daniel J. Montgomery and Peter A. DeCaro.
  

Icons and Values: Communicating Ethical Leadership - a paper by Patrick Primeaux and Laura Pincus Hartman.

 Other useful websites

Influence At Work - a website dedicated to the psychology of persuasion. It includes definitions, methods and ethics .

Last updated: 23 August, 2006

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