Chapter 7 - Listening and Responding Flashcards
Listening
The process of receiving, constructing meaning from, and responding to spoken and/or nonverbal messages.
Sensing
The stage of listening most people refer to as “hearing”; when listeners pick up the sound waves directed toward them.
Understanding
Interpreting the messages associated with sounds or what the sounds mean.
What are six reasons for learning about listening and responding?
1) We spend so much time doing it.
2) Better listening skills can lead to improved cognition.
3) Improved academic performance.
4) Enhanced personal relationships.
5) Enhanced professional performance.
6) Better health.
Why are good listening and responding skills so important in professional settings?
Better listening at work means fewer misunderstandings, less time lost on the job, and greater productivity. Listening seems to play an interesting role in career advancement as well.
Evaluating
Assessing your reaction to a message.
Responding
Showing others how you regard their message.
What are the four stages of listening?
1) Sensing
2) Understanding
3) Evaluating
4) Responding
What is the role of critical thinking in the process of listening?
Critical thinking skills are important in evaluating what you have heard.
Listening Style
A set of attitudes, beliers, and predispostions about the how, where, wen, who, and what of the information receiving and encoding process.
Action-Oriented
Listening style that reflects a preference for error-free and well-organized speaking.
Informational Listening
Listening skills that are useful in situations requiring attention to content.
Content-Oriented
A listening style that reflects an interest in detailed and complex information, simply for the content itself.
Critical Listening
Listening skills that are useful in a wide variety of situations - particularly those involving persuasive speaking.
People-Oriented
A listening style that is associated with friendly, open communication and an interest in establishing ties with others.
Supportive Listening
Listening skills focused not only on understanding information bit also “listening” to others’ feelings.
Time-Oriented
A listening style that prefers brief, concise speech.
What are the four primary listening styles, and in what contexts are each of them most appropriate?
1) Action-Oriented - at work and school.
2) Content-Oriented - when listening to a political speech or a sales pitch, or when friends or acquaintances try to persuade you to see their point of view about an issue or activity.
3) People-Oriented - Informal personal situations, like when we are with friends, family, and relational partners.
4) Time-Oriented - Emergency situations.
How do gender, age, and nationality influence listening and responding behaviors?
Gender: Men are supposedly logical, judgmental, interrupting, inattentive, self-centered, and impatient. Women are stereotyped as emotional, non-interupting, attentive, empathetic, other-centered, responsive, and patient. Women are more accommodating, and focused on the speaker, men focus on facts and handle distractions better, and men interrupt more than women.
Age: Young children stubble sometimes to interpret the meaning of others and to follow adult conversation norms - that is, to listen when others are speaking, not interrupting, and respond to instructions. They have more to say than they can express. Teenagers may close off channels and be critical of parents or other adults.
Nationality: What people consider appropriate nonverbal expressions of listening differ.
What are four common barriers to effective listening and responding?
1) Physical and Physiological
2) Psychological
3) Conflicting Objectives
4) Poor Listening Habits
What are common sources of preoccupation that prevent us from listening?
Thinking of other things, such as extensive to-do lists and feeling stress. Having a personal agenda in a conversations, and being emotional.
Soundscape
The everyday sounds in our environments.
What are three “filters” of social hierarchy that influence how we listen and respond to others?
1) Social Status
2) Physical Appearance
3) Vocal Cues
How do contexts affect how we listen and respond to others?
Different contexts call for different listening styles and behaviors. Societal forces may also effect listening factors.
What are some contexts where choosing to listen (or not listen) is an ethical decision?
Say a friend or yours is passing along a vicious rumor about another person or telling a racial joke.
What are some ethical choices relating to listening and responding?
The choice to cut ourselves off from our immediate environment. The choice to listen selectively. The choice not to listen. The choice to listen together.
