Part I: Communication Competence Analysis
Place a checkmark next to those skills that you feel you need to work on.
1. I’m sensitive to contexts of communication. I recognize that changes in physical, cultural, social– psychological and temporal contexts will alter meaning.
2. I assess my channel options and evaluate whether my message will be more effective if delivered face-to-face, through e-mail, or by some third party, for example.
3. I look for meaning not only in words but also in nonverbal behaviors.
4. I am sensitive to the feedback and feed forward that I give to others and that others give to me.
5. I combat the effects of the various types of physical, psychological, and semantic noise that distort messages. X
6. I listen not only to the more obvious content messages but also to the relational messages that I (and others) send, and I respond to the relational messages of others to increase meaningful interaction.
7. Instead of looking only at the punctuation patterns, I also look at the patterns that others might be using in order to understand better the meanings communicated.
8. Because communication is transactional, I recognize that all elements influence every other element in the communication process and that each person communicating is simultaneously a speaker/listener.
9. Because communication is purposeful, I look carefully at both the speaker’s and the listener’s purposes. X
10. Because communication is inevitable, irreversible, and unrepeatable, I look carefully for hidden meanings, am cautious in communicating messages that I may later wish to withdraw, and am aware that any communication act occurs but once.
11. I am sensitive to cultural variation and differences, and I see my own culture’s teachings and those of other cultures without undue bias.
Strong
The ability to communicate is vital to our very