Conversation Messages

By

Ayman Saleh, Vanity Duquet,

Daphne Anne Gopo & Mathew
Valle
 5 Steps in a Conversation:
1. Opening

2. Feed forward
 Open the channels of communication
 Preview future messages
 Alter cast
 Disclaim
Feed Forward Example:

Jacobs-Rosenbaum
Levin
Thorne
Hayes
Ohman
 5 Step of a Conversation

1. Business
2. Feedback
– Positive or negative
– Person Focused or Message Focused
– Immediate or Delayed
– Low Monitor or High Monitor
– Evaluative or Supportive

3. Closing
Managing Conversations
 Opening
conversations

 Maintaining
conversations

 Repairing
conversations

 Closing
Opening Conversation
 Self references

 Other references

 Relational
references

 Context references
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLubGooyRpc
 The opening line

 Cute
flippant
openers

 Innocuous
opener

 Direct opener
Opening and closing
conversations
some scenes may be
graphic 
How to communicate
powerfully by email
 Subject Lines are Headlines
 Make One Point per Email
 Specify the Response You Want
 Be a Good Correspondent
 Avoid spamming
 Proofread
 DON’T TYPE IN ALL CAPS! IT LOOKS
LIKE YOU’RE YELLING AT THE
READERS!
Repairing conversations
Types of excuses

 “I didn’t do it”

 “It
wasn’t so
bad”

 “Yes, but…”
 Five elements of a good
excuse:

1. Demonstrate that
you really see the
problem, and that
your partner’s
feelings are
legitimate and
justified
Five elements of a good
excuse:

1. Acknowledge
your
responsibility for
doing what you
did
 Five elements of a good
excuse:

1. Say that you regret

what you did
Five elements of a good
excuse:

1. Request
forgiveness
Five elements of a good
excuse:

1. Make it clear
that it will not
happen again
Maintaining Conversations
Principle of
Cooperation
Principle of
Dialogue
Principle of
Turn-taking
Principal of Cooperation
a. Principal of Cooperation
b. Conversational maxims
 The four conversation maxim
rules
1. Quantity maxim

2. Quality maxim

3. Relation maxim

4. Manner maxim
 The four conversation maxim
rules
- Please note that the four maxims just
discussed describe most conversations as
they take place in much of the United
States.
 - However, these maxims may not apply to
all cultures.
 - Some cultures even have their own
 According to Koppelman and
Goodhart…….
“Differences in cultural norms can cause
misunderstandings”
Some examples:
-Business men and how they conduct
meetings
-Us direct approach VS Other Cultures
indirect
 More examples
- Arab cultures: They stand closer in
conversation
- French culture: Anything but handshake is
rude
- In Ecuador: Greeting someone without a
handshake is a sign of respect
 Principal of Dialogue
a. Monologue –one person speaks and the
other listens.
*Not surprising, effective communication
is based not on monologue but on its
opposite dialogue.
 Principal of Turn Taking
a. Conversational turns
 Speaker Cues

c. Listener Cues
d. Backchanneling cues
 According to the text
Understanding Human
Communication

Keep the following in mind…..

1) Communication is not always a good thing
2) It will not solve all problems
3) More Communication is not always better
4) Meanings rest in people not in words
 Closing Conversations
1) Reflect back on the conversation and
briefly summarize it.
 Closing Conversations
2) State the desire to end the conversation
Closing Conversations
3) Refer to future interaction
Closing Conversation
4) Ask for closures
Closing Conversations
5) Say you enjoyed the interaction
 EFFECTIVE
CONVERSATIONAL SKILLS
 Stuttering: A Communicative
Disorder
 Communicative disorders can cover a broad area
of disorders which includes, but might not be
limited to voice, fluency, language,
speech/articulation and a host of other
subcategories.
 Stuttering: Defined as a difficulty in the
conception and planning of coordinated motor
speech movements of respiratory and phonatory
systems.
 True or False
1

 Ifsomeone has a stuttering problem, it

will be helpful if we help him/her finish
their sentences.

FALSE
 True or False
2
 We should avoid giving directions
like “slow down” or “relax” to
people with speech disorder

TRUE
 True or False
3
 When talking to a person with
speech disorder we should try to
minimize eye contact time, so that
we don’t cause them
embarrassment

FALSE
 True or False
4
 We should treat people who have
language problems like our little
siblings

False
 True or False
5
 We should NEVER ask people who
stutter to repeat what they said

FALSE
 True or False
6
 Ifyou have a stuttering problem, you
should let others know what your
special needs are

TRUE
 True or False
7
 Encourage those who stutter to use
tricks such as substituting words or
tapping a foot, to help her/him get
through a moment of stuttering.

FALSE
 True or False
8
 People
who stutter usually have
more difficulty controlling their
speech on the telephone

TRUE
 True or False
9
 Stuttering
is a speech problem,
and not an emotional or
psychological one

TRUE
 True or False
10
 Stuttering
is a disease that could
be genetically inherited from one
generation to the other.

TRUE
 Facts about Stuttering
 Parents do not cause stuttering
 Treatment during childhood is
preferred
  Early intervention is best
 Stuttering should not be ignored
"Ignore it and it will go away" is a bad
advice.
 References:
 Ayman:
– Stanley Fish, Is There a Text in This Class? (Cambridge, MA: Harvard UP, 1980).
ISBN 0-674-46726-4.
http://academic2.american.edu/~dfagel/Class%20Readings/Fish/HowToRecognizeAPoem.htm
, accessed online on 10/13/07
– Bowen, Carolie “Stuttering: What can be done about it ?” 2001. Online resource:
http://members.tripod.com/Caroline_Bowen/stuttering.htm
 Mathew:
– Adler, Ronald B, Rosenfeld, Lawrence B, and Proctor II, Russell. INTERPLAY. New
York: Oxford University Press
– “Jung Typology Test.” 1998-2007<www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes2.asp>.
 Vanity:
– Koppelman, Kent and R. Lee Goodhart. Understanding Human Differences
Multicultural Education For a Diverse America. Boston: Pearson Education Inc, 2005.
– Rodman, George and Ronald B. Adler. Understanding Human Communication. New
York: Oxford University Press, 2006.
 Daphne
– et Talking.” Professional Safety. 52.8(2007):56. Academic Search Premier. 3 October
2007. <http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN
=26116422&loginpage=login.asp&site=ehost-live&scope=site>.
– Dowling, Ellen. “10 Tips for Effective E-mail.” MindTools. 3 October 2007. <http://
www.mindtools.com/email.html>.