1. AshleyBeach
Test1
September14,2016
1. Outline the six (6) principles of interpersonal communication. (6 points)
Unavoidable: Our actions communicate just as clearly as words in most cases, there
is no way to avoid communication.
Irreversible: Things that we say cannot be taken back, Pandora only comes out of
the box, she doesn’t go back in.
Symbolic: Words are just symbols for things we use or do in everyday life.
Rule-governed: Spoken and unspoken understandings between people and society
about appropriate communication.
Learned: Throughout our lives we’ve gathered data on communication, because it’s
unavoidable, but in order to have mad skills we have to continue to learn.
Content (a) & Relationship (b): Refers to the verbal and non-verbal communication
that occurs between people (a) Refers to how well conversants know each other, or
even the type of relationship they may have: professional, romantic, long term
friends.
Describe and explain the five (5) ethical systems of communication and how each can influence
interpersonal communication. Illustrate your descriptions with real life-type scenarios or
examples. (10 points)
2. Categorical Imperative: This is when we monitor ourselves and how we communicate as
if we’re always being watched.
The best example I could give is religion, truly religious people act as though they are
being watched by their God or Deity. This can influence interpersonal
communication by
Utilitarianism: This refers to the literal amount of people involved and the number that will
benefit from what you’re communicating.
For example your maintained person of your apartment building knows your
housing an unapproved animal, but he also knows it’s policy that if he tells the
landlord they will be evicted, therefore he doesn’t because more people are hurt by
him telling, then keeping quiet.
The Golden Mean: This is the sweet spot of communication, the place in the middle of the
extreme and non-existent information.
Three friends go to lunch, when discussing their current relationships with each
other, one talks about their sex life and how great it is, another simply states that
they are doing well, and the third tells her friends that they are doing pretty good,
they fight sometimes, but overall they are happy.
2. AshleyBeach
Test1
September14,2016
Ethic of Care: This is based on the consequences of ones actions or decision in
communication; it refers to respecting the privacy of others.
Two middle school girls tell a boy that another girl has a crush on him, they are not
acting with an ethic of care.
Significant Choice: This is in reference to full disclosure, giving a person the best information
you have without leaving out significant needed information.
Jo and Betty just returned from their honey moon, Jo’s friend lets it slip that after the
bachelor party Jo left with his high school fling Sally, a surprise to Betty and she begins
questioning Jo about his omission. It comes out later that evening that Jo had an affair
with Sally that night. Jo did not act ethically by not communicating the truth to Betty
immediately; he also acted very impulsively and unethically.
3. Outline the five (5) factors that influence perception. (5 points)
Culture: The reason we have our perceptions.
Sex (a) & Gender (b): (a) How a person is biologically made. (b) How culture teaches
behaviors to boys and girls.
Physical factors: Such as age, ability, health, and even the way we look.
Technology: Makes dishonesty easy, we are dealing with people from a variety of
backgrounds and cultures, making communication touchier.
Our sense of Self: How one perceives themselves
4. Choose one of the following theories. Describe and explain the theory, how it works in
interpersonal communication, and then provide a real life-type scenario or example of
your chosen theory. (12 points)
Identity Management Theory is the idea that people generally have different identities
depending on who they are dealing with or the situation they are in. One’s identity is
based a variety of things such as; age, gender, culture, experiences, occupation ect.
When we manage our identities, it is because we want to control how other perceive us.
An example of identity management is when I manage Kaw Valley Greenhouses, I have a
variety of different employees ranging in age, culture, and relationships. It’s important
to me to fair and conscious of all them personally. Therefore, when my friend was hired
last season, I treated her just like the rest of the employee’s. When she did something
wrong and needed wrote, I did that; although, when I got home that night I would call
her and say, “Oh my God, I can’t believe you made me write you up today!” When this
happened I was managing my identities. While at work, I had to act on my managerial
3. AshleyBeach
Test1
September14,2016
responsibilities and ethically by following procedures, even though she was a friend of
mine, then when at home I was just her friend.
5. Outline the six (6) imperatives for studying intercultural communication. (6 points)
Technological: The reality the technology continues to evolve and must be accepted
for the greater good of society.
Demographic: The U.S. as a melting pot VS a salad bowl. People having different
demographics such as culture, age, sex, gender, geography, and even idea’s.
Economic: The fact that most countries rely on each other to sustain their economic
status.
Peace: Understanding the differences in cultures and the reasons they do things a
specific way in order to help keep the peace between people.
Self-Awareness: Being aware of ones’ self gives us the ability to be better aware of
others
Ethical: Avoiding judgement in cultural traditions based on our own cultural views.
6. Outline the five (5) dimensions of culture including both ends of the spectrum for each
dimension. Provide real life-type scenarios or examples for each dimension on both
ends of the spectrum. (12 points)
o Uncertainty Avoidance: The amount of anxiety or resistance to change a culture has. I
look forward to all the surprises awaiting me in life, but my husband has anxiety about
the surprises that rear their heads.
While we were in similar living environments as children he grew up in an area
of California where if you left your home your surprise might be getting shot,
while I grew up here in Salina Kansas and such things were rarely even heard of.
o Distribution of Power: How a culture or society divides power amongst the people. High
Power Distance Powerful and Powerless, Low Power Distance Equal Power to All.
At K-State Polytechnic campus professors hold higher positions then students,
but you don’t notice a power difference, because there is a low power distance,
but at a resounding University such a Harvard you might run into a higher power
distance and can see a noticeable difference in the power distribution between
professors and students.
o Masculinity (a) – Femininity (b): (a) achievement, competitiveness, success, strength,
labor division (b) equality, quality of life, affection, nurturing, compassion.
A man g
o Individualism (a) – Collectivism (b): (a) focus on the individual, (b) Focus as a group
4. AshleyBeach
Test1
September14,2016
In the united states we operate very separately from each other, yet still in
groups displaying both of these dimensions because we group together with our
families and focus on doing better together, we also separate ourselves and
compete with others to an extent because we focus on our families separate
from the rest of the nation.
o Context: The amount of non-verbal communication taken into account when
communicating. High Content/Low context communication is focused on verbal
communication rather than non-verbal communication. High Context/Low Content
communication focuses on non-verbal communication as well as verbal communication,
but isn’t as clear and may be ambiguous.
It’s raining cats and dogs or it’s raining cats and dogs.