Jamie Acker 20161215

Interpersonal Communication Skills

Name

Institution

Date

Interpersonal communication entails the exchange of information, feelings, and interpretations between individuals through verbal and non-verbal messages in a face to face communication scenario. The conversations between two people in a face to face communication setting transcends the language used since the messages can be passed through various non-verbal messages such as attitudes of either party. When two people are in the same place and are engaged in a face to face conversation, they are aware of each other’s presence thus even without the use of speech either party can use cues of posture and facial expression to evaluate the emotional state, personality and intent of the other party. Through interpersonal communication an individual may give and collect a broad range of information, influence the attitudes and behaviors of others, interact with others, and make sense of different experiences. The individual can express his personal needs and understand the needs of others through the application of interpersonal communication thus allowing him to anticipate and predict behavior (Petersen, 2015). Interpersonal communication skills are essential for the success of an individual’s faith journey since they equip him with the capacity to give and receive emotional support, make decisions, and solve problems. Interpersonal communication skills are instrumental in self-assessment since they are comprised of listening skills, emotional intelligence, interdependencies, interactions, and verbal communication. They influence what, and how an individual says something, they also facilitate the interpretation of messages sent by other people thus making it possible to work with other individuals to find a mutually agreeable outcome. They are essential in the identification, definition, and solution of various problems within the society since they provide the means to explore and analyze different options to make informed decisions. Interpersonal communication increase the level of assertiveness since they help the individual to communicate his values, beliefs, ideas, opinions, needs, wants freely. They also help the individuals to understand that other people have different perspectives thus enabling them to learn new things while gaining their respect and trust (Burley-Allen, 1995).

References

Burley-Allen, M. (1995). Listening: The forgotten skill: A self-teaching guide (2nd ed.). New

York, NY: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. ISBN: 9780471015871.

Petersen, J. C. (2015). Why don’t we listen better? Communicating & connecting in

relationships (Revised and expanded ed.). Portland, OR: Petersen Publications. ISBN:

9780979155956.