Group Communication Essay

In my opinion, group work is a type of cooperative learning that helps people to accomplish a certain task in a faster and more effective manner. Team working also helps to achieve the tasks that are impossible to finish by one individual. However, if people in a group have a lot of conflicts, group work will not be able to achieve as much as we expected. There are many reasons which lead to dissatisfaction in group work such as individualism as well as conflicts in opinion and time. Initially, I had a negative view on group working because of the challenges that I had. When I was in high school, my five other friends and I used to work together in a music competition. Although we were supposed to get together to practice for the event, we were only able to meet up once a week. In addition to having a hard time with time scheduling, we often did not have a consensus of opinion. Whenever we had a discussion, we usually ended up with no results. So it always took a long time for us to make a decision. Consequently, the performance did not turn out as well as we expected. Because of this initial failure, I thought group work was time consuming and ineffective. However, I have changed my opinion lately because of the successful results in some of my laboratory classes. In each laboratory assignment, it is nearly impossible to work by myself because there are a lot of steps and each step needs to be very precise and accurate. Therefore, a group of two or three students will work more effectively compared to an individual because they can help to remind each other and finish the assignment faster. Based on those experiences, one more time I give myself a chance to work in a group and figured out how work effectively. Finally, thank to the Small group communication class, I found out that group work can become very productive if all the members in the group cooperate and follow the principles of small group communication. In this paper, I want to talk about my recent success in my current group regarding the effectiveness of our group communication as well as my communication competence during the last four months of working together. First, I want to discuss about how we follow the principles of small group communication. Fortunately, our group usually does not have a lot of conflicts because our opinions often support each others’. While other groups need thirty minutes to make a decision, our group can make it in half of that time. I think it is one of our group biggest strength. Besides, we always favor majority viewpoints, but we also listen and analyze the idea which is different from others. For example, when we were working together in the winter survival exercise, most of the members agreed that compass is the second importance. However, Phong thought that in a heavy snow, compass was useless. After discussion, we decided to make it the sixth importance. Thanks to Phong’s opinion, we lost fewer points because compass turned out to be the most useless one. Phong is an expert with cold weather because he used to visit his friend in Alaska where the temperature usually drops under zero degrees Fahrenheit. Phong is also the most quiet group member. He only shares his opinions in the topic which he is expert of. The others group members can be considered as verbal group members because they always contribute their ideas and experiences to all discussions in the group. Regarding leadership, we only have one leader throughout because we want the leader to get used to her role. Thus, she and the group can work more effectively. Finally, I have to admit that our group is not a creative group, but we have one member who is such a creative person. Again, in the winter survival activity, I thought the old newspapers were totally useless, but Lan came up with a creative idea that it could be used to keep warm. She said she often see people who are homeless use old news papers as their blankets. At last, it turned out that the newspaper worked even better than clothes. Because of following well those principles, our group has gradually worked more effectively. Secondly, I want to mention our group climate. In my opinion, our group has a supportive climate. Each member is willing to help other members in the group to complete their tasks. Our group favors description compared to evaluation. Instead of criticizing others’ behaviors and ideas, we often tell our feelings about problems. All the group members always encourage each other to share their opinions and feelings with the group. Even though some opinions are too conflicting, the main purpose is trying to give all the members equal opportunities to talk about their ideas. Thus, the success of the group is the consequence from the equal contributions of all the members. Besides, in most of the discussions of our group, we are oriented toward problem solving; therefore, we look for the consensus of the ideas in order to solve the problems effectively and quickly. Because our group has many members who have senses of humor, we always maintain an interesting and comfortable atmosphere to gain assertiveness in the group. Sometimes, Ngoc and Phong share their experiences of how they solve their families’ problems. Through perceiving more deeply about each member’s own life, we have gradually gotten closer together; therefore, we are always honest and open to each other. Also, we do not criticize when a group member cannot finish his or her task as expected because there are always personal issues out of the class. In addition to empathy, I think that provisionalism is one of the factors that helps the group to do well. In life, there is nothing certain, so we do not expect everything to be absolutely perfect. We only try our best and hope for a deserved result. To sum up, with a supportive climate, our group can take advantage of group work regardless of difficulties that people usually have when working in a group. Also, our group does not have a difficult group member because we are cooperative and responsible for our tasks. Moreover, all the members are always willing to cover the missing roles to get the work done. I think that the supportive climate in our group really helps us to work better. In addition to the success of the group communication, I think that my communication competence is one of the most important factors. In most of the Vietnamese family, parents often attempt to have their children follow some particular rules especially being polite and respecting elders. Because I am not an exception from those Vietnamese children, I always follow those rules whenever I communicate to others in the family and in the society as well. For example, when I work in my present group whose members are different ages, I usually listen to the opinions of the older members before sharing mine. I feel that they have more experiences than I do about life. Also, I truly respect others ideas even though sometimes they are really opposed to mine such as the idea about the importance of the rope in the moon survival. I thought the rope was useless but it was thought to be the most important tool which was used to connect people together by another member. I thought it was actually reasonable in some way. Another rule in my communication is that I try to keep myself from being different. Therefore, if my opinion is opposed to the others, I hardly argue with them because I think it is best to keep a friendly and peaceful environment in a group. Accordingly, my present group always has less conflict. Thus, I think that the way I work and communicate in the group also helps the group to perform better. In the last part of his paper, I want to mention the roles and leadership in our group. Each member in the group has their own roles and tasks. First, Trang, our leader, is an energizer and a tension reliever. She loves to joke around her group members. In addition, she always gives funny ideas to make other members laugh and relieve tension. Next, Lan is a summarizer and a process observer who often listens to the ideas of all the members in her group. Then, she collects information and summarizes the group’s opinions. Besides, She usually laughs and makes jokes which helps to release the tense atmosphere in the group. Ngoc is an information and opinion giver and a communication facilitator who often shares her ideas and speaks clearly to help other members in the group easily understand her. Also, when an idea of a group member sounds too complicated and confusing, she is the one who makes it simpler to understand. I am also an information and opinion giver and an encourager of participation. I love to give my opinions of the group activities. Also, I often ask questions to have other members participate in the group. Finally, Phong and Chau are information and opinion seekers. While Phong researches information online, Chau often represents our group to communicate with other groups for more information and ideas. Lan and Trang are considered themselves as clowns because they are the funniest members in our group. Every one of us kept laughing with their interesting ideas. Because all the members have specific tasks to focus on, whenever the group is assigned, each member tries their best to accomplish their tasks; therefore, this increases cohesiveness in the group. Working this way, we ask for the responsibilities of each member in the group. Therefore, we always encourage and help each other to do things better. Finally, I want to mention the leadership role in our group. Initially, Lan was assigned to be our leader in the ball tossing activity. However, Trang emerged as a leader in the winter survival activity. She always encourages the group members to work harder, and she gives interesting and funny opinions to relieve our tension. At the end, she is the one who summarizes the group opinion and makes the final decision. We as a group think that Trang is a democratic model with participating style. When the group members are willing to share their ideas, Trang becomes a listener. She respects the others’ ideas, and her decisions always fit most of the members. Therefore, with a good leader and a specific role for each member, all the assignments have become easier when we work together. Through four months working together, I finally realized that if we all cooperate and follow the principles of small group communication, group work will be an excellent approach to solve any problem. I have experienced and learned many things from my present group. At the beginning, I was considered as a quiet group member because I rarely shared my ideas with others. However, there were some cases that my ideas might have helped if I had shared. I kept thinking about it and I had been trying to communicate more often; and eventually, I am the one who gives most of the ideas to the group. Also, I have learned that we need to be responsible for our tasks. If a person in the group does not finish his or her task, it will affect everyone in the group and the initial task cannot be accomplished. If I have a chance to work in a group in the future, I will try to follow all the factors that help my current group to perform really well.

Computer Shopper Essay

Technology has evolved and changed throughout history and the world. In the 80’s and even early 90’s, type writers and the mail man were highly relied on when it came to communication. Today when it comes to communication now we have e-mail and text messaging. Presently different professions use computer but with different configurations. So what I did was take three known professions business, student and professional gamer. To describe what functions are needed for their profession. The Student Being a fulltime student takes a lot and requires one to be on point at every task at hand. Having all materials such as paper, books, pens and pencils. Even through textbooks breaks the bank in your pockets. The need for a notebook also known as a laptop is a major requirement. Having a notebook definitely helps a lot in everyday class curriculums. One problem is that once you have your notebook you need software such Microsoft Office. Microsoft Office is a wonderful tool when it comes to creating and reviewing documents. How can you determine what type of notebook to get though? On table 1 below, I have looked into Best Buy, one of America’s top known electronic retail companies, to see what is it that they have to offer to students. I came across Hewart Packard Pavilion A-8 series. This notebook comes with a 500 gigabyte hard drive and 4 gigabytes of memory. The processor is an Intel Celeron 2.1GHz. It is not one of Intels high end processors but for a student, it is definitely at the top of its class. The price provided by Best Buy is $429.99. The Business Man Reports, meetings, reviews, and analysis are the assignments general business men have to complete daily, weekly and/or monthly. But what type of desktop does a business man usually have in his or her office? Some random hand me down desktop provided by the IT Department? I believe so. What if you were your own boss and needed some sort of desktop that can get you  through everyday business. What type would you go for? Generally you want a desktop with a moderate processor, high on memory and a large hard drive to keep all documentation. Below on table 1, I suggested the Dell XPS desktop. Dell is popular nationwide when it comes to businesses and even schools. The Dell XPS provides 1TB of hard drive, 12GB of memory, and on top of that a 3.4 Intel 4th Generation Core. This desktop is an awesome display of business power and priced at $699.99.

There Are Four Elements to a Valid Contract

There are four elements to a valid contract. 1. At least two separate parties entering into an agreement: The agreement can be between two people, or one person and a company or between two companies. 2. The parties are qualified to agree to the terms and conditions in the contract: The parties must be of legal age and have an understanding of what the contract is and details it outlines. 3. Both parties are receiving consideration or value from the agreement: This is most commonly money in exchange for a good or service, but there are other methods of consideration, especially in the business arena. . The contract is created for legal activities: Contract are not binding or considered legally valid when they propose illegal activities or violate existing laws in anyway. (What are the four elements of a contract, 2010). The Objective theory of contracts is a principle in U. S. law that the existence of a contract is determined by the legal significance of the external acts of a party to purported agreement, rather than by the actual intent of the parties. (Objective theory of contract, 2010).This theory applies in this case because in this case it was stated they could win a Harrier-Jet if they collected the Pepsi points, but in actuality it was never their intent to give one away. The Court held there wasn’t a valid agreement here, because one party (Pepsi-co) made an agreement, but never signed a contract with the other party (John D. R. Leonard). As expensive as that jet was, a commercial ad couldn’t have actually offered the consumers the jet. (Unilateral Contract, 2010). Some advertisements are considered offers because if they advertise something and you have to pay for it that is money exchanged for a good or service.This case differs, because Leonard fulfilled his end by coming up with the points, but didn’t actually receive his reward upon the completed act.References Objective theory of contract; Retrieved from, http://www. encycl opedia. com/doc/1G2-3437703138. html Unilateral contract; Retrieved from, http://www. legal-dictionary. thefreedictionary. com/Unilateral+contract What are the Four Elements of a Valid Contract? 123; Retrieved from, http://www. life123. com/career-money/business-law/contracts/what-are-the-four-elments -of-a-valid-contract. shtml

The Changing Global Econ FIANL Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

The Changing Global Econ FIANL - Essay Example The main features of globalization include liberalization, specialization of trade and exchange, increased connectivity, multi-dimensionality and top-down process. Liberalization Globalization is characterized by liberalization; liberalization is the freedom granted to businesspeople and industrialist to establish industries and carry out trading activities within the boundaries of their own countries or abroad. Liberalization involves free exchange of capital, goods, services, and technological advancements between countries and regions. Globalization guarantees increased trans-boundary cultural exchanges resulting from free flow of immigration, more differentiated products, tourism, and economic integration. Specialization of trade and exchange Specialization is the basic way through which trade works to improve people’s lives. International trade takes place because one country can produce what another country cannot produce. Prior to globalization, cross-border business wa s limited because most of the national economies were self-contained entities separated from one another by barriers to international trade and investments. Globalization has enhanced cross border business opportunities and enabled firms to sell what they can produce and buy those commodities they do not have the capacity to produce. Regional and international organizations have been formed to oversee the seamless trade among countries across the world. Member countries have to follow the guidelines provided. Trade and exchange has allowed countries, multinational companies, small companies, large scale and small scale producers to gain economically and small Increased Connectivity Globalization makes it possible for various localities to be connected with the rest of the world through removal of barriers to connectivity. This is achieved through the role of globalization of breaking national boundaries and enhancing the links between one community and another. Globalization creates proper links between countries through international transmission of information, literature, culture, technology, and knowledge. The space age device, the internet, has enhanced communication and knowledge exchange among people from different locations in the world instantly. It has also permitted people to understand the various cultures in the world, making it easy to interact and do business together. Multi-dimensional Process A multi-dimensionality approach to globalization implies that the concept can be looked at from three dimensions: economical, political, cultural, and ideological. Globalization in economic terms means opening up of global markets by enhancing free trade and commerce among countries of the world. Politically, globalization means decentralization of power and functions of state, which grants more rights and freedoms to people through empowerment of the private sector. In cultural terms, globalization refers to the exchange of cultural values among various societies and nations of the world. Ideologically, globalization is the spread of liberalism and capitalism. Top-down Process Globalization origintates from the industrialized world and Multinational Corporations, and spans to less industrialized countries. Technologies, capital, goods, and services are manufactured in industrialized countries and sold to the developing world. It is the responsibility

Balancing Life and Responsibility Research Paper

Balancing Life and Responsibility - Research Paper Example The project involved operations in different locations. While operations within the office majorly required office work, field operations were more involving and subjected team members and their supervisor to adverse conditions such as cold weather and dust. It was therefore equitable to alternate team members between office and the field for a fair experience. My two project supervisors were therefore expected to alternate but one of them reported allergic reactions that could not allow her to work in the field under the then conditions. The other supervisor equally needed a break from the field as members of his team were accorded. This created a dilemma because while each of the supervisors’ needs was justified, I did not have extra personnel to supervise the field apart from the two. I therefore had the option of compelling the allergic supervisor to honor her contractual obligations and go to the field or to protect her life by compelling the other supervisor to work in t he field since that was still part of his contractual obligation (Badaracco, 1998). I applied a directive approach of situational leadership to resolve the dilemma (Blanchard, 2008). I balance my professional identity and personal identity by avoiding conflict of interest in my professional scope of work and avoiding personal attachments to involved processes. This is because personal identity involves personal traits with emotional attachments and a conflict with professional identity may undermine decision-making and compromise professional roles. I therefore ensure a balance between the two identities by being emotionally sober and ensuring that I identify organization’s interest and policies in every decision (Badaracco, 1998). Professional identity and personal identity are different in their scope of development and application. Personal identity is derived from social setups and experiences and majorly applies to family setups and informal

Team Performance Measurement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Team Performance Measurement - Essay Example Even though performance evaluation can be a successful process that acts as a basis for human resource development in healthcare organizations, there is a likelihood of various challenges being encountered especially if some of the team members consider it to be a punitive undertaking by the management. In a situation whereby individual accomplishments are valued more than teamwork (Sangvai et al. 2008), the junior staff in the healthcare cadre may regard performance measurement as an undesirable process due to their minimal contributions in the hierarchical structure where physicians dominate leadership and public trust. Such attitudes of inferiority may hamper the process of performance measurement as some team members feel intimidated (Castka et al. 2004). Members of a team usually have different perceptions regarding their individual performance and that of others. Some perceive themselves as the top performers, which may present a challenge in the performance measurement process when the continuous feedback to the group reveals results that are contrary to their expectations. If such individuals are rated below their counterparts in the preliminary results, they are likely to be de-motivated and discontented, thereby lowering their performance. Enthusiasm of such team members to participate in subsequent performance measurement processes may decrease; hence delaying the evaluation exercise and the ultimate results (Schrader & Lawless, 2004). Even though a strong team is expected to pursue shared objectives, the different roles require individual performance evaluation so that the management can determine the career development needs for each employee (Sanwong, 2008). This presents a major challenge since the teams normal workflow is affected by the idiosyncratic approach that promotes individualism rather than collective accomplishment of tasks. Some of the team members are likely to develop a pessimistic attitude thereby reducing their

Totaltarian Regimes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Totaltarian Regimes - Essay Example In addition, totalitarianism is considered as a system of rule guided by an ideology whose perspective is geared on achieving a certain favorable political, social, and economic end by guiding every aspect of society to that goal with the use, to some extent, of "propaganda and terror"(Pleuger, "Totalitarianism," par.2). The system is also described as "both a form of social control as well as a method of social control" facilitated by advancement of technology and mass communication (Keis, "The Age of Totalitarianism," par. 10). Within the context of those definitions mentioned above that our discussion of totalitarianism will be based. In discussing history of totalitarianism, we do not consider intensively the birth of the concept of totalitarianism but we look into regimes that fit into the character as described by scholars as it occurred in history. We look deeper into what are the motives of totalitarian leadership and its impact on the society. By definition, it can be inferred that like any other form of governments, the system, by the perspective of the rulers, is anchored on the goal of total development for the country. Whether the approach would benefit a select few at the expense of other sector the concept of total development would likewise benefit the entire society. Taking violence, war, and human rights abuse and violations out of context, we can see that development brought by totalitarianism is highly considerable as shown by Russia's might in the Cold War era, the totalitarian monarchies in the Arabian region, and China's rise to economic dominance in the present times. Most totalitarian regimes with autocratic leadership hold on to power by imposing an official ideology upon its people. The master plan is laid and facilitated by controlling all means of mass media and information systems. There is only one political party which in some case becomes an alter ego of the leader and the exercise of free well and freedom of speech is being suppressed. Critics are subject to intense surveillance and executions are frequent with the use of strong police and military backing. All these are utilized to achieve the goals of the leadership. Dirty as it can be described, however, in dealing with totalitarian regimes it is argued that totalitarianism is different from authoritarianism although most totalitarian regimes are governed by authoritarians and dictators, but which is not always the case. Monarchy can be considered totalitarian but the role of a king is not as intimidating as a dictator. Of course, this point had its share of arguments in the past and is also a point of controversy in political science today. But looking at the present times we can see that monarchies rule in the principle of totalitarianism yet democratic processes are being recognized like the case of Britain, Saudi Arabia, Japan, and the other present day monarchies. This argument is the reason why the term totalitarian democracy emerged. Therefore we consider the brutal totalitarian regimes as a manifestation of extremism within the totalitarian concept. History of Totalitarianism Within