Interpersonal chapter 8 communication and relational dynamics

Looking Out/Looking InFourteenth Edition 8 8 Communication and Relational Dynamics CHAPTER TOPICS • Why We Form Relationships • Models of Relational Dynamics • Characteristics of Relatio

Looking Out/Looking In

Fourteenth Edition

8

8

Communication and Relational Dynamics

CHAPTER TOPICS

• Why We Form Relationships

• Models of Relational Dynamics

• Characteristics of Relationships

• Communicating about Relationships

Why We Form Relationships

• Appearance

• Is especially important in the early stages

• Partners create “positive illusions,” viewing

another as more attractive over time

• Similarity

• We like people who are similar to us

• Similarity is more important to relational

happiness than communication ability

COMMUNICATION AND RELATIONAL DYNAMICS

Why We Form Relationships

• Complementarily

• Differences strengthen relationships when

they are complementary

• Each partner’s characteristics satisfy the other’s needs

• Reciprocal Attraction

• We like people who like us – usually

• People who approve of us, bolster our

self-esteem

Why We Form Relationships

• Competence

• We like to be around talented people

• If a person is too talented it can be difficult to

be around them because they make us look bad

• Disclosure

• Revealing information about yourself can help

to build liking

COMMUNICATION AND RELATIONAL DYNAMICS

Why We Form Relationships

• Proximity

• We are likely to develop relationships with

people we interact with frequently

• Allows us to get more information about other people and benefit from relationship

• Rewards

• Social Exchange Theory

• Relationships that give us rewards greater than or equal to the costs of the relationship

Models of Relational Dynamics

• A Developmental Perspective

• Mark Knapp

• Rise and fall of relationships

• Ten stages

• Other researchers

• Coming together

• Coming apart

• Relational maintenance

COMMUNICATION AND RELATIONAL DYNAMICS

Models of Relational Dynamics

• Stages of Relational Development

Figure 8.1 Page 276

Models of Relational Dynamics

• Knapp’s Ten Stages of the Relationship

• Initiating

• Communication during this stage is usually brief

• Usually follows a conventional formula

• Experimenting

• After initial contact we decide if we wish to pursue the relationship further

• Uncertainty reduction

• The search for common ground

COMMUNICATION AND RELATIONAL DYNAMICS

Models of Relational Dynamics

• Knapp’s Ten Stages of the Relationship

• Intensifying

• The interpersonal relationship begins to develop

• The expression of feeling becomes more common

• Integrating

• Parties begin to take on identity as a social unit

• Partners begin to take on each other’s commitments

Models of Relational Dynamics

• Knapp’s Ten Stages of the Relationship

• Bonding

• Parties make symbolic public gestures

• Commitment is increased during this stage

• Differentiating

• The “We” orientation shifts back to “I”

• The stage is likely to occur when the relationship experiences its first feelings of stress

COMMUNICATION AND RELATIONAL DYNAMICS

Models of Relational Dynamics

• Knapp’s Ten Stages of the Relationship

• Circumscribing

• Communication decreases in quantity and quality

• Restrictions and restraints

• Stagnating

• No growth occurs

• The relationship is a hollow shell of its former self

Models of Relational Dynamics

• Knapp’s Ten Stages of the Relationship

• Avoiding

• Parties begin to create physical distance between each other

• Indirectly

• Directly

• Terminating

• Includes summary dialogue

• Relationships don’t always move toward

COMMUNICATION AND RELATIONAL DYNAMICS

Models of Relational Dynamics

• A Dialectical Perspective

• Dialectical tensions

• Conflicts that arise when two opposing or incompatible forces exist simultaneously

• Several dialectical forces that make successful communication challenging

Models of Relational Dynamics

• A Dialectical Perspective

• Dialectical tensions

• Connection versus autonomy

• Openness versus privacy

• Predictability versus novelty

COMMUNICATION AND RELATIONAL DYNAMICS

Models of Relational Dynamics

• A Dialectical Perspective

• Managing dialectical tensions

• Denial

• Disorientation

• Alternation

• Segmentation

• Balance

• Integration

• Recalibration

• Reaffirmation

Characteristics of Relationships

• Relationships Are Constantly Changing

• Rarely stable for long periods

• A cycle in which partners move through a series of stages

• Relationships are affected by culture

• A variety of differences can make relationships between people from different cultures challenging

COMMUNICATION AND RELATIONAL DYNAMICS

Characteristics of Relationships

• Relationships Are Affected by Culture

• A variety of differences can make relationships between people from different cultures challenging

Communicating about

Relationships

• Content and Relational Messages

• Content Messages

• The subject being discussed

• Relational Messages

• How the parties feel toward one another

• Types of Relational Messages

• Affinity

• Immediacy

• Respect

COMMUNICATION AND RELATIONAL DYNAMICS

Communicating about

Relationships

• Metacommunication

• Messages that people exchange, verbally or nonverbally, about their relationship

• Communication about communication

• Important method for resolving conflicts in a constructive manner

• Can be used as a way to reinforce the

satisfying aspects of a relationship

Chapter Review

• Why We Form Relationships

• Models of Relational Dynamics

• Characteristics of Relationships

• Communicating about Relationships