COMM 1004 WK 4 ​Assignment: Relationship Analysis

Assignment: Relationship Analysis

Being in a relationship can, at times, feel like you are living in a fishbowl—where it is a challenge to gain an outside perspective. As professional communicators, we can learn to use skills and strategies to take a step back and analyze our relationships to improve our communication performance at home or the office. Emotional intelligence and listening skills are critical soft skills that directly impact our relationships. Learning to recognize our own emotions, and those of others, is an important personal and professional skill. Listening skills, from active to empathetic, is a key skill to understanding ourselves and others.

In this Assignment, you complete Soft Skills Builder Assessments on Emotional Intelligence and Listening, learn about strengths and opportunities, and analyze a relationship that came apart.

To prepare for this Assignment:

Read the Communication Program Professional Writing Guidelines.

Read Chapter 7 Communication in Relationships and Chapter 5 Listening.

Read Emotional Intelligence: Developing Strong “People Skills.”

Read “Poor Listening Habits.”

Take the Soft Skills Builder Assessments on Emotional Intelligence and Listening. You will want to keep the results.  These will be needed in Week 6, as well.

Week 4: Relationship Development Stages

Communication is a dynamic process, and relationships never stay the same over time. Like changes in the weather, we come to know each other, form relationships, experience emotional storms, get wet once in a while, and, hopefully, grow as we experience conflict and joy and learn to manage the tensions we all feel and experience. Learning to recognize the signs and symptoms of coming together, or growing apart, is an important element of your interpersonal skills.  Addressing tensions that pull you and others in different directions is an important and healthy part of relationship maintenance.

Learning Objectives

Brown, A., Edes, A. & Roman, L. (2018). From ‘bae’ to ‘submarining,’ the lingo of online dating. Retrieved from

https://www.npr.org/2018/01/07/574980150/from-bae-…

Executive Advisory. (n.d.). Poor listening habits. Retrieved June 12, 2019, from

http://www.theexecutiveadvisory.com/toolkit/listen…

Fetters, A. (2018). The 5 years that changed dating. Retrieved from

https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2018/12…

Jeet D. (2018). Data study: Generational dating differences & similarities. Retrieved from

https://www.zoosk.com/date-mix/dating-data/generat…

Lebowitz, S. (2017). 9 ways millennials are approaching marriage differently from their parents. Retrieved from

https://www.businessinsider.com/how-millennials-ge…

Markarian, T. (n.d.). How dating has changed over the last 100 years. Retrieved June 12, 2019, from

https://www.thelist.com/62575/dating-changed-last-…

MindTools. (n.d.-a). Emotional intelligence: Developing strong “people skills.” Retrieved June 12, 2019, from

https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newCDV_59….

MindTools. (n.d.-b). How emotionally intelligent are you?: Boosting your people skills. Retrieved June 12, 2019, from

https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/ei-quiz.ht…

University of Minnesota. (n.d.-h). Chapter 7: Communication in relationships. In Communication in the real world: An introduction to communication studies. Retrieved June 12, 2019, from

https://open.lib.umn.edu/communication/part/chapte…

University of Minnesota. (n.d.-f). Chapter 5: Listening. In Communication in the real world: An introduction to communication studies. Retrieved June 12, 2019, from

https://open.lib.umn.edu/communication/part/chapte…

Required Media

[BuzzFeedViolet]. (2015, December 13). When should you define the relationship? [Video file]. Retrieved from

Note: The approximate length of this media piece is 3 minutes.