Benjamin M. Phelps
COM 200
Mrs. Joyce Walther
October 4, 2010
Communication in Interpersonal Relationships Today many people still lack the ability to communicate effectively with in interpersonal relationships. It is through cooperation and collaboration that effective communication occurs. By analyzing and studying the communication process we can improve our ability to communicate effectively between one another.
To have a successful interpersonal relationship one must first interact with others, which is called interpersonal communication (Hybels & Weaver, 2007). Recognizing emotions in other is a very important first step to building a relationship. If you can’t feel what someone else is feeling then you can’t connect with them on a personal level and that can hinder your relationship process.
Interpersonal communication is important because of the functions it achieves. Whenever we engage in communication with another person, we seek to gain information about them. We also give off information through a wide variety of verbal and non-verbal cues. Verbal communication has huge effects on many aspects of life, including interpersonal relationships. Speaking and telling our needs and wants verbally or non-verbally is a necessity for daily life.
Verbal communication is organized by language; non-verbal communication is not. Most of us spend about 75 percent of our waking hours communicating our knowledge, thoughts, and ideas to others (Allis, 2002). However, most of us fail to realize that a great deal of our communication is of a non-verbal form as opposed to the oral and written forms. Non-verbal communication includes facial expressions, eye contact, tone of voice, body posture and motions, and positioning within groups. It may also include the way we wear our clothes or the silence we keep.
In person-to-person communications our messages are sent on two levels simultaneously. If the nonverbal cues
References: Allis, R. (2002). Non-verbal Communication. Zeromillion.com. Retrieved September 25, 2010, from http://www.zeromillion.com/business/management/non-verbal- communication.html Borchers, T. (1999). Interpersonal Communication. Allyn & Bacon. Retrieved September 22, 2010, from http://www.abacon.com/commstudies/interpersonal/interpersonal.html Hybels, S., & Weaver, R. (2007). Communicating Effectively. New York: McGraw-Hill