Foundational Interpersonal Skills and Nonverbal communication in nursing (Due 20 hours)

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Non-verbal Communication in Nursing

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Communication is a vital part of life and of patient-nurse relationships. Effectively communicating with patients improves the quality of care. Communication occurs through non-verbal and verbal modalities. Non-verbal communication is a range of communicative behaviors that do not have linguistic content and messages are transmitted without the use of any word (Ali, 2018). Personal space is one of the non-verbal cues for communication that guarantees comfort to the people involved by ensuring space is created between the communicator and the listener based on their relationship. Recognizing relationships and identifying cross-cultural variances can help make a person a better communicator.

Keywords: Communication, personal space, communicator.

Q2. Personal space for a communicator refers to the space surrounding each individual. It also refers to the comfortable distance between the communicator and the listener. Personal space is a form of non-verbal cue that makes those involved comfortable between themselves. It involves four zones known as the intimate zone, which is the shortest measuring 0-2 ft., personal zone, which measures 2-4 ft., social zone measuring 4-12 ft., and public zone measuring more than 12 ft. (Kneebone, 2019). When the communicator or listener enters the wrong zone, the one whose zone has been invaded feels uncomfortable.

Q3. The first step is to recognize the relationship between me and the other person. For example, in the case of a first-time business relationship with a person, I would ensure the personal space is in the social zone. However, as the relationship advances and trust is created, the space can reduce to the personal zone (Stewart, 2020).

The second and the last step is to identify cross-cultural variance. Since personal zones differ across cultures, personal preferences, and professions, I would study and learn these other people’s preferences to avoid invading their personal space while communicating (Ali, 2018).

References

Ali, M. (2018). Communication skills 3: non-verbal communication.  Nursing times,  114(2), 41-42.

Kneebone, R. (2019, June). Personal space. The Lancet, 393(10188), 2291. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0140-6736(19)31203-6

Stewart, H. L. (2020).  The Impact of Facial Expressions on Established Personal Space. Arkansas State University.