Messages: The communication skill book
Reading Question #1
University of Colorado Boulder
Question 1-
Assertiveness is a skill “tool” because it can be fully controlled and their use can be trained. The chapter “Assertiveness training” is a tool in itself, because of the obvious fact that it trains you how to be assertive. In ‘Messages’ the communication challenge is finding the right “tool” for the right “job” and using that “skill” in a useful way. The first stop to assertiveness training is exactly that. They teach the reader how to distinguish between passive, aggressive, and assertive styles of communication, which are the “tools” the reader needs to learn about for the right “job”. An example of a tool used in ‘Messages’ is expression. In the Assertiveness chapter, the authors state that there are 3 parts to completing an assertive statement, expressing your perspective of the situation, expressing your feelings about the situation, and expressing your needs regarding the situation. Another tool that is used with to be assertive is assertive listening. There are again, 3 steps to assertive listening, 1, preparing yourself for the other person to speak, 2, listening with your full attention to the other person, and 3, acknowledging that you have heard the other person. The authors in ‘Messages’ communicate skills as “tools” effectively with assertiveness training in that it gives you step-by-step directions to listening assertively, each step, representing a different “tool”.
The Single Contingency Perspective is the success of communication depending on the effectiveness of sending and receiving messages. Assertiveness is one approach to sending and receiving messages. The authors of ‘Messages’ give the reader a successful method to send and receive messages in an assertive manor. It is perhaps one of the more risky ways to communicate with someone, but when used correctly, can be very
University of Colorado Boulder
Question 1-
Assertiveness is a skill “tool” because it can be fully controlled and their use can be trained. The chapter “Assertiveness training” is a tool in itself, because of the obvious fact that it trains you how to be assertive. In ‘Messages’ the communication challenge is finding the right “tool” for the right “job” and using that “skill” in a useful way. The first stop to assertiveness training is exactly that. They teach the reader how to distinguish between passive, aggressive, and assertive styles of communication, which are the “tools” the reader needs to learn about for the right “job”. An example of a tool used in ‘Messages’ is expression. In the Assertiveness chapter, the authors state that there are 3 parts to completing an assertive statement, expressing your perspective of the situation, expressing your feelings about the situation, and expressing your needs regarding the situation. Another tool that is used with to be assertive is assertive listening. There are again, 3 steps to assertive listening, 1, preparing yourself for the other person to speak, 2, listening with your full attention to the other person, and 3, acknowledging that you have heard the other person. The authors in ‘Messages’ communicate skills as “tools” effectively with assertiveness training in that it gives you step-by-step directions to listening assertively, each step, representing a different “tool”.
The Single Contingency Perspective is the success of communication depending on the effectiveness of sending and receiving messages. Assertiveness is one approach to sending and receiving messages. The authors of ‘Messages’ give the reader a successful method to send and receive messages in an assertive manor. It is perhaps one of the more risky ways to communicate with someone, but when used correctly, can be very