Gender and communications

Verbal Behavior

Nonverbal Behavior

- as status asserting, dominant and negative
- display of high levels of visual dominance, power
and status
- keeping people in eyecontact and time control,
- intrusive interruption of others to gain the floor
in conversation adapted to wide variety of social
and professional contexts
- associated with formal leadership and authority
in groups
Male communication

- disclose more personal information
- collaborative, warm and more supportive and open
- encourage others´ speech and reinforcing by minimal verbal responses
- mitigated speech
- tentative manner including tag questions
e.g. Carli (2000), Mulac (1998), Grob et.al. (1997)
Female communication

Maleness as a set of principles, symbols, behaviour, strategies and objectives is predominant in the backbone of organizations and in their patterns of communication and interaction.

Is there a male & female talk –and is promotion in the workplace and for leadership positions connected with linguistic styles?

It has been documented that,
women and men have different notions of what
constitutes interruption of a turn at talk.

In relation to (western) values of individualism and gendered hierachy in society,men prefer:
sole-speaker-turns,
interpret any invasion into their turn as violation of their sole-speaker-right,
favour competition in talks,
it is important to achieve a dominant position in hierarchy.
Male perceptions and preferences:

Female perceptions and preferences
In relation to socialization and segregation of private and public spheres in society, women prefer:
inclusivness and egalitarianism
prefer ensemble or melded conversation floors
achieve collaborative floors through overlapping speech and completion of another woman´s utterance
share knowledge and experience.
(e.g. Coates 1994; Coates 1996)

According to a male gender logic in organizations, women, who want promotion, are required to sacrifice major elements of their gender identity.
So promotion is possible only at higher costs and by perpetuation of the traditional male gender oder in the workplace.

Women have more constraints on their style of communication in order to be effective influence agents in the workplace than men.
Women who look for promotion and female managers must adhere more closely to gender-role-prescriptions to avoid penalties.
Women leaders must display exceptional levels of competence to overcome the presumption that women lack agency, competency and leadership abilities of men.
Implications

4. Women who exhibit exceptional levels of competence may be evaluated unfavourably because such behaviour violates prescriptive gender-role-norms particularly in domains as management and leadership which are seen stereotypically as masculine.
Gender stereotypes thus create a double bind for women, who can be penalized for showing too little or too much agency.
Women may overcome the double bind by displaying communal behaviour, which can reduce resistance to female promotion, authority and influence.
Female managers have shown to employ a transformational leadership style, which effectively combines communality with competent leadership.
Implications II

Men make people believe they know what the words mean when they choose them.
$, Costs, Productivity..
Gender& communication

Women tend to mix business talk with talk about personal lives- men talk sports, politics.
Asking for Feedback
Women are more wholesome -360 degree to include positive & negative aspects
Men praise and allows only negative feedback
Gender& communication

Business Communications
Listening
Sholpan Gaisina, Ph.D.
KIMEP University

Example
A secretary entered her boss’ office and presented her boss with a copy of the schedule for the next day. The secretary told the boss that she has a packed day for tomorrow, and that she only has an hour of break time for the whole afternoon.
The boss, busy studying a report, merely nodded to the secretary, and motioned for her to place the schedule on her desk. The boss continued to study the report as if there were no interruption. In this
The problem with communication is the illusion that it has been accomplished.

LISTENING
There is a substantial difference between hearing and listening. Hearing is merely an involuntary physical response to the environment. Listening, on the other hand is a sophisticated communication skill which can be mastered only with considerable practice. You can learn to be an effective, capable listener by using the techniques we’ll review.

Fast Facts
We listen at 125-250 wpm, think at 1000-3000 wpm.
75% of the time we are distracted, preoccupied or forgetful.
20% of the time, we remember what we hear.
More than 35% of businesses think listening is a top skill for success.
Less than 2% of people have had formal education with listening.

Why Listen?
The average person spends about 70 percent of each day engaged in some type of communication.
Of that time,45 percent is spent listening, 30 percent speaking, 16 percent reading, and only 9 percent writing.

Percentage of Time We Spend on Each Type of Communication

Why Listening Matters:
By taking responsibility for successful communication through active and reflective listening, you can become more successful at those activities that depend on communication, including your personal and professional life.

How Well Do You Listen?
Rate yourself as a listener.
How would your subordinates/peers rate you?
How about your boss?

http://www.jknirp.com/skills.htm
Listening is a system of interrelated components that include both mental processes and observable behaviors.
The six skill areas, or components, include: hearing, understanding, remembering, interpreting, evaluating, and responding.
http://www.jknirp.com/skills.htm

Triple-A-Listening
1) Attitude
2) Attention
3) Adjustment

1)Attitude
A positive attitude paves the way for open-mindedness. Don't let reactive interference prevent you from recalling the speaker's key points.
2)Attention
You cannot attain concentration by concentrating on the act of concentration. Your attention must focus on the speech. When you hear a speaker, the words enter your short-term memory, where they have to be swiftly processed into ideas. If they aren't processed, then they will be dumped from short-term memory and will be gone forever. Attentive listening makes sure the ideas are processed.
3)Adjustment
Although some speakers clearly indicate what they intend to cover in their speech, you need to be flexible enough to follow the speech regardless of the direction it may take. If, however, you are thoroughly lost, or if the speaker's message is not coming across and you need to ask a clarifying question, do so.
http://www.ccsf.edu/~lernasst/Lern10_Online_Tutor_Training/tripA.html

Adjustment
Imagine walking through the woods. You carefully move and step slowly on the uneven ground where even the exposed tree roots are all covered by leaves. We adapt to environment. Although trees might seem static and unmovable they are still flexible and adaptive. They adjust to the surrounding environment and therefore become even more stable. They do not consume extra energy to rise straight up. It is natural for them to adapt to the floor declination when they grow.
http://leadershipbyvirtue.blogspot.com/2013/07/leadership-catch-adjustment-and.html

Empathy
What is it:
reflection of content and feeling at a deeper level
Purpose:
To try and get an understanding of what may be deeper feelings

It is easy to know when you are being empathic because:
1. Your body language and tone match
2. Your tone and your feelings match
3. You are focused on what your partner is saying and meaning.

Ineffective Listening Habits
Dr. Ralph Nichols has discovered that many of us employ ineffective listening habits that interfere with learning:
Calling the subject uninteresting.
Criticizing the speaker’s delivery.
Getting over-stimulated.
Listening only for the facts.
Trying to make an outline of everything we hear.
Faking attention to the speaker.
Tolerating or creating distractions.

Ineffective Listening Habits (cont.)
Avoiding difficult, expository or technical material.
Letting emotion-laden words throw us off the track.
Wasting the differential between speech speed and thought speed.

INFORMATIVE LISTENING
Where your aim is to concentrate on the message being given.
This may be the content of a lesson, directions, instructions, etc.

APPRECIATIVE LISTENING
Where the listener gains pleasure/satisfaction from listening to a certain type of music for example. Appreciative sources might also include particular charismatic speakers or entertainers.
CRITICAL LISTENING
Where the listener may be trying to weigh up whether the speaker is credible, whether the message being given is logical and whether they are being duped or manipulated by the speaker. This is the type of listening that we may adopt when faced with an offer or sales pitch that requires a decision from us.

DISCRIMINATIVE LISTENING
Where the listener is able to identify and distinguish inferences or emotions through the speaker’s change in voice tone, their use of pause, etc. Some people are extremely sensitive in this way, while others are less able to pick up these subtle cues.
EMPATHIC LISTENING
Where the listener tends to listen rather than talk. Their non-verbal behavior indicates that the listener is attending to what is being said. The emphasis is on understanding the speaker’s feelings and being supportive and patient.

WHY LISTEN
ACTIVELY?
Our brain works four times the speed that someone can speak. You have to actively focus on listening so that your mind doesn’t wander.
It enriches you and those around you, and guides other areas of your life.
It can build trust and respect between people, and prevent misunderstandings that can lead to conflict, frustration or hurt feelings.
While listening to other people’s point of view, you may just learn something new and fascinating!

Discussion
ACTIVE LISTENING HANDOUT

Active Listening
Active Listening - the skill of listening carefully to another person and repeating back to the speaker the heard message to correct any inaccuracies or misunderstandings

Reflective listening
Reflective listening emphasizes
the personal elements of the communication process
the feelings communicated in the message
responding to the communicator, not leading the communicator
the role of receiver or audience
understanding people by reducing perceptual distortions and interpersonal barriers

Active Listening
Listener
comprehension

Active Listening:
4 Levels of Verbal Response

Active Listening Skills
Effective listening is active participation in a conversation.
The listener must actually hear and not assume what is said.
Active listeners sit or stand alertly, maintain eye contact with the speaker, concentrate on the speaker’s words, make verbal responses, and summarize parts of what has been said when clarity is needed.

We cannot learn anything from others if we try to do all the talking.
Let speakers finish out their own sentences.
Don’t interrupt them to interject your own thoughts.
Pay attention to the tone of the words and the nonverbal cues of the speaker.
Active Listening Skills

Active Listening Requires…
Definite Intent to Listen
Focus on the Speaker
Verbal and Non-Verbal Encouragers
Feedback Loop to Insure Accuracy

Active Listening (3 Steps)
Listen
Question
Reflect-Paraphrase

Exercise
Face to face

Step 1: Listen
To Feelings As Well As Words
Words – Emotions -- Implications
Focus on Speaker
Don’t plan, speak, or get distracted
What Is Speaker Talking About?
Topic? Speaker? Listener? Others?
Look At Speaker
Use Verbal & Non-Verbal Encouragers

Step 2: Question
3 Purposes
Demonstrates you are listening
Gather information
Clarification

Question
When you asked some questions:
Show interest
Encourage more explanation
Keep the person talking
Ask questions but not too many

Types of Questions
1) YES/NO QUESTIONS
2) OPEN-ENDED QUESTIONS
3)PROBING OR FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS
4) LEADING QUESTIONS

1)YES/NO QUESTIONS(Closed questions)
This type of question involves asking a question that requires only a "YES" or "NO" response

2)OPEN-ENDED QUESTIONS:
Observation: "What happened?"
Meaning: "What do you mean?"
Affect: "How do you feel?"
Motive: "What do you want?"
Action: "What will you do?"

3)PROBING/FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS
Asking another question to clarify or obtain further information about a interviewee’s response.

4)LEADING QUESTIONS
Phrased to indicate a preferred response
Indicates the auditor asking the question isn’t objective

Other Questioning Tips
Avoid asking multiple questions at once.
Generally, it’s best to start with open questions
Best questions are short, clear, objective.
Ask questions in logical order.
Allow for quiet, thinking time.
Limit why-questions.
Take notes.

Handouts
Guidelines for Reflexive Listeners

Step 3: Reflect-Paraphrase
Reflect What Is Said (In your words)
Reflect Feelings
Reframe
Capture the essence of the communication
Remove negative framing
Move toward problem solving

Act like a mirror and reflect feelings that you see and hear. This is particularly useful when the person’s tone of voice or gestures don’t match the person’s words.
OR just as a check…
☺“Seems like you had a fun time, right? OR
☹“I sense you’ve become worried. Is that so?”

Exercise
Giving feedback

2.REFRAMING
Why You Do It?
to help the other person see their concerns in a new light
to broaden the meaning of an issue to identify needs or interests
to diffuse negative feelings
to establish the focus for resolution
How You Do It?
recognize underlying needs
re-word concerns from negative → neutral/positive past → future; problem → opportunity; interpersonal → system rights/wrongs → impacts positions → interests singular → multiple

REFRAMING(cont.)
Concern: “She always talks to everyone else but me when there is a problem.”
Reframe: “It sounds as if you would like more direct communication to resolve concerns.”

3.PARAPHASING
PARAPHRASE the speaker to acknowledge the story and capture the content.
EXAMPLE: “Let’s see if I got this right. You’re upset because you think we’re going off in the wrong direction and you want to clarify our objective before we write this assignment. Is that right”

CAUTION: Don’t parrot back; be sure to put the message in your own words – that’s active listening.

4. ACKNOWLEDING
Problem Solving Might Not Work In the Face of Strong Feelings
Feelings May Need Acknowledgement Before Effective Problem Solving

5.SUMMARIZE
Why You Do It?
to review progress
to pull together important ideas and information
to establish a foundation for further discussion
How You Do It?
restate the central ideas and feelings you have heard
Example: “Let’s see if I have a clear understanding of
your experience at this point…”
“So basically what is most important to you is…”

Why is active listening difficult?
When people are preoccupied with current life stresses or difficult situations, it is hard for them to listen.
Anxiety can make it hard to listen.
Being angry at the person who is talking also makes it hard to listen.
Having an idea in mind of what a person “should do” makes it hard to listen to that person's point of view.

Active Listening
Emphasizes receiver’s role
Helps the receiver & communicator clearly & fully understand the message sent
Useful in problem solving

External Barriers
noises
clutter
other interruptions

Internal Barriers Within the Listener
Comparing
Personal Experience
Automatic Talking
Mind-Reading
Judging
Day Dreaming
Perceptual Errors

Barriers Within the Speaker
Expectations
Avoidance
Speaking in Code
Boundary

When to Use Active Listening
Inappropriate
Routine interactions
Physical emergencies
Appropriate
Organizational Crises
Conflict situations
Giving and receiving feedback
Brainstorming, problem solving
Seeking peers’ cooperation

Non-Verbal Behavior
Non-Verbal Active Listening Techniques:
Maintaining appropriate eye contact with the interviewee.
Occasionally nodding affirmatively to display understanding and interest.
Using expectant pauses to indicate to the interviewee that more is expected

The various forms of
NVC
touch
sound
smell
timing and speed of delivery of speech
proximity
posture
dress
eye contact
gestures
facial expressions
use of silence

REFLECTING FEELINGS
Someone may say: “Don’t worry. I’m fine” (when she actually looks very upset)… Reflecting, you say
“You say you’re OK, but by the tone of your voice, you seem upset, correct?”

Active styles
1. Result-style listeners
Direct and explicit
Action-oriented
Present-oriented
Solve problems
Interest in the bottom line

Listening styles (2)
2. Reasons-style listeners
Is a solution practical, realistic and reasonable for the situation?
Weighing and balancing everything
If asked a direct question - ‘It depends’
Arguing out loud or internally
Very organised
First concern= why?

Listening styles (3)
3. Process-style listeners
People oriented
The whole story first before making a decision
High regard for quality
Future oriented
Jump from one subject to another
Language and messages are indirect
First concern=how? and “what are the benefits?”