Reflective Practice Assignment on Communication Skills

This reflective practice assignment focuses on the importance of communication skills and the diagnostic tools used to assess them. The author reflects on their own communication abilities and uses five diagnostic tools to gather data. The literature review discusses the impact of communication apprehension, interactive skills, and dealing with disagreements in the workplace.

Running head: REFLECTIVE PRACTICE ASSIGNMENT 1
Reflective Practice Assignment
Course Title
Student’s Name
Instructor’s Name
Date

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Diagnosis and Reflection
It is imperative to understand ones communication abilities since it helps in establishing
proper relation criteria. It also helps an individual to understand their communication styles
based on which style better works from them. Great communication skills are dependent on the
diagnostic tools used in communication. These tools are methodologies used by experts and
organizations from various divisions use to create incredible communication abilities (Swineford
et al., 2014). Communication investigative tools can be utilized both in the casual and official
sectors. Sulaiman et al., (2016) argue that the essential expectation of the communication
diagnostics tools is to encourage members assurance, certainty and self-worth develop all
through a communication period . Communication is a component that people use all the time to
communicate with each other. Individuals who converse with each other regularly have a goal or
necessity they mean to accomplish from the conversation procedure. Verbal and non-verbal
conversations are made daily where non-verbal conversations utilize signals but are not restricted
to use or expressions or compositions (Bass et al., 2013). Powerful communication must be
accomplished using the depiction of dynamic conversation qualities like certainty and abnormal
state of self-emphaticness (Hartman and McCambridge, 2011). The five communication
diagnostic tools I used to gather the data are exceptionally solid, and the reflective paper has
clarified my communication issues in light of the outcomes. Non-verbal and verbal
communication, listening and communication feelings will be scrutinized in the literature review.
The communication apprehension will address the discernible kinds of apprehension and the
capacity to intercommunicate proficiently (Shahbaz, Khan and Mustafa, 2016).
My reflection will reflect on the tools of communication which will be scrutinized and
research by other academic authors that relates to the paper will be conducted. In this exposition,

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I have significantly characterized the tools of communication and its accommodation in the
professional world while investigating my own style of communication at the work environment.
I will also discuss what I should enhance and what things can be altered in the immediate future.
What helps in successful communication and the significance of communication is also
discussed in this reflective paper with viable utilization of communication in an association.
There are thoughts that address compelling communication and this has a tendency to have a
positive result in the business. What can be addressed, the style of communication and help to
work adequately in a business has been broken down in relation to the diagnostic tools which
will clarify things. While there are sure confinements, it is essential that issues relating to
communication are settled in the business by exploring with different inquiries that empowers
and works in the learning society. According to Guffey and Loewy (2010), this will result to
awareness among the business partners with a specific end goal to pick up information and
uphold communication.
Using my examination, I have connected five diagnostic tools to assess my abilities in
communicating in a few scenarios. The first apparatus I used was the “self-perceived
communication competence survey “that examines the capacity of individuals to communicate
when tested with plenty of correspondence state with a scope of recipients. It is a diagnostic tool
that anticipates to give the individual being accessed a chance to characterize communication
capability. The second tool applied in the survey is the “Personal Report of Intercultural
Communication Apprehension” which measures the sentiments of a person towards intercultural
communication. The tool utilizes diverse scenarios of communication to break down the person
where the individual's conduct is assessed in various communication settings. This tool more
often than not comprises of twenty-four articulations concerning individual emotions when

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communicating with others. The third communication diagnostic tool is the “Tolerance for
Disagreement”. The tool evaluates the consideration of detail, listening capacity and the listening
willingness. The other tool is the “Talkaholic scale” which is a technique that is utilized to
distinguish the people who know about their propensities to over-convey in an impulsive and
steady way. While utilizing the scale, a higher score indicates that a person is a talkaholic. This
instrument has an elevated face legitimacy, it is one-dimensional and has great test and retest and
interior dependability. The fifth instrument of investigating in correspondence ability is simply
the “Non-Verbal Immediacy Scale report (NIS-S)” that depends on how individuals are prompt
in relation to communication. This instrument is thought to be the utmost updated estimation tool
of the non-verbal quickness.
The tools of dissecting communication competence of the individual have an abnormal
state of legitimacy, and the outcomes from the surveys in all examinations were precise to the
models, and I perceive my inclinations and styles of communication from them. All the tools
have shown adequate face legitimacy for their outcomes to be acknowledged. The “self-
perceived communication competence” results showed that when interacting through balanced
communication with companions, I am agreeable and open. Upon completion of the survey, it
demonstrated a score of 97. 5 when conversing with friends which means that I have an elevated
“self-perceived communication competence” that is higher contrasted with other conversation
settings, for example, meeting, public, group, strangers, dyad, outsiders, and acquaintances.
Based on the outcomes, the level of “self-perceived communication” is average when conversing
with outsiders and at greatest when conversing with friends. Upon studying results about the
“personal report of intercultural communication apprehension”, I scored 68 points which
demonstrates a great correspondence fear when communicating with different cultures. The

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scores of “non-verbal immediacy scale self-report (NIS-S)” were 74 points which mirrors a low
“nonverbal immediacy scale for the females”. In relation to the tolerance to disagreement, I
scored somewhat poor, and I deliberated that this was one of my shortcoming on issues relating
communication skill. Talkaholic scale showed comes about which demonstrated that I have the
test to fathom on this. Research has established that the more individual talks, the more
intriguing an individual is to be assessed by others unless the individual is talking things that are
bothering to the audience (BEVAN, 2009). I am poor at talking, and I generally get myself quiet
when I should talk. It is potentially the reason for my low score on this assessment, and I think I
have to work on this.
I observed non-verbal immediacy and alcoholic to be my weak areas on issues concerned
about communication skill. As this outcomes I see myself needing to address these areas which I
observed to be my shortcomings. By enhancing the frail areas, I assume that it will be of
incredible advantages to my communication fitness for my communication in business since it
will help me build my network. Clients require somebody who is inventive and creative. They
require regular and consistent interaction to keep up the noteworthy market segment. For any
organization to thrive, it is essential to listen to its clients' grievances and input. Collaborative
communication is important for a business that needs to keep up a constant upgrading on its
items and services (Lahti and Valo, 2017). On the issue of NIS-S, I generally discover my
consideration diverted when communicating with other individuals. The diversion makes me use
inappropriate non-verbal communication for instance having a tense body posture.
Thinking about the matter of being talkaholic, I have a previous personal scenario that I
believe I can relate to. During my previous job as a production manager, the company was
looking forward to introducing another item in the market. As the production manager, I was

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assigned different roles to execute, and one of the essential role was to evaluate the coast
effectiveness of producing a new product including the source and cost of raw materials. I was to
conduct a survey on the different suppliers of raw materials and their prices and afterward
present the discoveries to the board for enactment of the innovative thought. As I was doing the
examination, I was to talk with suppliers in the market arbitrarily. Amid the meeting I ended up
staying silent when I should have asked for more information from the suppliers and this move
decreased precision from my research. In addition, I was not able make the meeting intriguing
since I did not utilize all the more fascinating words in the meeting. In spite of the fact that I had
a decent technique of gathering the data, I was not able actualize it accurately.
The second illustration identifies with the issue of NIS-S which requires a person to be
immediate about communication. The case occurred in another large organization that used to
offer cosmetics, and I was part of the marketing team. The organization needed to increase sales
of its foods and I had to interview clients on their opinion. It was putting forth to the clients, and
it chose a group that will prompt the new upgrades. As a researcher I had to have great verbal
and non-verbal qualities . I however ended up failing to engage the clients and make them
withhold some information since I was using a dull voice and using a tense body posture.
Literature Review
There is existence of a few aspects that influence viable verbal communication. In that
capacity there exists interactive skills which are nonverbal communication, listening abilities,
being gracious and elucidation of communication. These interactive skills are significantly being
utilized as a part of the business in order to give equal significance to the verbal and nonverbal
communication. The verbal communication is referred to as an open communication which is

REFLECTIVE PRACTICE ASSIGNMENT 7
crucial for two people and clears up the information in a group or with people ( Daft, Richard
and Dorothy, 2013). For a communication reason, it is critical that viable verbal communication
is a must and this is a noteworthy point to break down the interpersonal skills at working
environment. The underlying communication process is essential between the two individuals
though the discussion may prompt positive or negative results in a short time. There exists
certain desires that are satisfied and this changes with the change in communication procedure
(Jia, Cheng and Hale, 2016; Kalidindi, 2018). Verbal communication fundamentally alludes with
the sounds and the dialect which causes the message to be imparted to the next individual.
According to Berger (2014), the interpersonal skills fill in as a means that communicates the
thoughts, ideas and wants of an individual which is an essential procedure in training and
learning. Verbal communication helps as a fundamental prerequisite to communicate, while
nonverbal communication might be a mix utilized with the communication demonstrations so as
to prompt the message among two individuals or a group of individuals. According to Bosuwon
(2017), there exists interpersonal communication and even public communication which help as
an essential kind of communication. In that capacity, public communication is more about
conveying the message in a group and interpersonal skills is about exchange of thoughts which
includes listening and speaking with other individuals.
Russ (2013) argues that communication apprehension is characterized as the degree of
nervousness or dread of a person related with foreseen or genuine communication with people or
a person. It is generally controlled by the degree of the interpersonal skills controlled by the
person speaking or their knowledge (Perrault, 2017). As a result of the antagonistic relationship
toward communication, an individual with large amounts of communication apprehension will
avoid connecting with oneself in verbal communication (Rahmani, 2017). In addition, there are

REFLECTIVE PRACTICE ASSIGNMENT 8
four sorts of communication apprehension, which include: trait, situation, a group of people and
situation. The trait connected to Talkaholic alludes to the person who is staying away from a lot
of talking, and rather, the individual stays silent because of absence of sufficient information of
what the person is stating or low degree of certainty to speak the words completely. This concern
of Talkaholic might be related with the low involvement of the person speaking to speak to the
kind of group of onlookers listening, the setting of communication or medium (Worthington,
2017). There exist some close undesirable associations amid the two. The essential driver of this
undesirable connection is thought to be the person's capacity to be imaginative while developing
explanations for conversing (Baile and Blatner, 2014). By building up this attribute, the person
will have the capacity to beat the concern of Talkaholic which is extremely noteworthy in
marketing.
Dealing with disagreements and focusing on the speaker is exceptionally significant in
the life of business. Communication is imperative to every organization. Other than having the
eagerness and attentive listening additionally, it is imperative to have phenomenal interpersonal
skills (Furnham, 2012; Reece, 2016). The degree of communication apprehension is critical, and
it influences the relational connections at the work environment. Likewise, it influences the
viability and effectiveness of the organization generally. Top management who have noticeable
levels of CA, are less inclined to team up with juniors, and they have a high possibility of
excluding others in their basic leadership process (Russ, 2013; Cummings and Worley, 2014;
Sawyer, 2016). According to Worthington and In Bodie (2017) and O'Sullivan and Partridge,
2016), a group and a collaborative basic leadership process are critical in thinking of a decent
and educated choice of the organization. Despite the fact that a lot of communication may have

REFLECTIVE PRACTICE ASSIGNMENT 9
negative impacts on the business, it is important to keep up direct conversations with all partners
of the business.
In relation to the concern of dealing with disagreements, the theoretical structure
demonstrates that many components influence the CA of the people. There exists a few
components related with less eagerness to listen at the work environment which incorporates
feelings, convictions, encounter and the environment among others. Quinn et al., (2014) the
communication mode assumes a critical part with regards to the readiness and consideration of
the audience. Utilizing distinctive verbal styles of communication was recognized to influence
the communication. Jia, Cheng, and Hale (2016) argue that factors, for example, steadiness,
certainty, articulateness, and exactness affect the business as it decides the connection between
the supervisors and the specialists. Communication viability of people is a factor that is well
thought-out by many organizations amid the advertising procedure (Thompson, 2018).
Communicating utilizing diverse styles and in different conditions, one can perceive the
necessities of the audience and subsequently adjust the style of communication as need be.
Through the reflective survey, I have recognized my weak points that I need to address.
This will be done through the different techniques I have developed. One of the techniques is
that I have thought of a plan of action that I will apply in the ensuing four months to address the
concerns. To begin with, I will keep an individual diary that would assist me with keeping track
where I can keep my advance and note what I have accomplished. I will rely on journals as a
valuable tool for assessing what I have improved and if there are issues I have to deal with it will
act as a base for future planning In addition, I will seek advice from a mentor to oversee the
procedure of change and after that apply the aptitudes and the ability of the mentor to conquer
the issues. The mentor will give direction in the entire procedure by sharing his experience and

REFLECTIVE PRACTICE ASSIGNMENT 10
great knowledge of communication to me. For the training program, I will allot it around four
weeks of teaching within which I will enhance the NIS-S and Talkaholic.
Action Plan
Formulating a plan to act on to enhance communication is complicated not feasible. In
view of the broad literature examination of articles and assessing different investigations there is
sufficient material and rule to design my forthcoming advances. In view of my own involvement
and information from assessments and audit, an exhaustive arrangement was articulated to
enable me to defeat the difficulties and work on the sections of development. The emphasis will
not just be on the exact sections examined but additionally on different sections and be
comprehensive of written, verbal and non-verbal communication style.
Many people, for example, competitors who enhanced their performance through
mentorship, have connected mental practices and systems effectively. Because of this recognized
proof, I feel that I have to incorporate these routines into my change action plan. I likewise feel
that I have to acquaint myself with different literature relating to Talkaholic and showing NIS-S.
Other than that, I will take an interest in courses relating to communication, for example,
"effective people and communication skills" directed by Odyssey Training that will help me to
enhance communication viability and professionalism. The course will enable me to change the
communication skills depending on the circumstance, and this was thought to be of incredible
significance to administrators in the organization. In addition, the course will enable me improve
my NIS-S.
Moreover, I will take another course on emotional aptitude, which will enable me to gain
familiarity on control and emotional mindfulness. According to Furnham (2012), it is

REFLECTIVE PRACTICE ASSIGNMENT 11
additionally alluded to comprehending, perceiving and responding to sentiments, being aware of
how your activities and articulations have emotional effect on others and being able to overcome
pressure. The ability to be thoughtfully attentive with one's feelings and additionally having a
comprehensive situation cognizance can be a reliable tool of dealing with a group in
organizations. To be “Talkaholic”, it needs a person to have consciousness of what to discuss to
maintain a strategic distance from breaks amid communication. This course will likewise
enhance my inner tranquility that will enable me to advance listening urge.
The most ideal way that I will use to assess my progress in the wake of completing the
four months will be the future performance on the ability to be immediate and the capacity to
focus in addition to the input from the group of onlookers on how Talkaholic I will be.
Communication is a long lasting procedure that should be assessed consistently, and
interpersonal communication expertise ought too much of the time be evaluated. Making a Gantt
chart will help in the routinely refreshment of my development and assist me on remaining
focused. Time management and suitable planning are basic keys. Likewise, I will keep a diary to
keep tabs on my development and write the key occasions which have impacted me in this
procedure. The key considerations which ought to be utilized incorporate – length to finish
courses, time used to complete the journals and articles, utilization of self-evaluation instruments
to gauge the points scored and adequacy and criticism.

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Work plan
Table 1: work plan to enhance my future communication
Time and activity June July August September
Personal journal
Choose a mentor
Mental practices
Reading books and journals
Course on communication
Course on emotional aptitude

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References
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