Academic Paper About Communication Competence

Republic of the Philippines
PHILIPPINE STATE COLLEGE OF AERONAUTICS

Institute of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Piccio Garden, Villamor, Pasay City | philsca.edu.ph
Certificate Number: AJA16.0920
ACADEMIC PAPER
COMMUNICATION
COMPETENCE
Submitted by:
Ed Mathew P. Razon
Submitted in
Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement
of the Subject
GEC-1104- PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION
Introduction
Good interpersonal communication skills allow us to work in groups and teams
in an effective manner. This may either be formal, like at work, or informally - in social
situations. Interpersonal competence is an aspect of communication that, despite
being a crucial facet of human interaction, is seldom given attention. Moreover, an
individual’s ability to choose an acceptable communication behavior that is best suited
for a particular situation is referred to as communication competence (McCroskey,
1982).
Competence is being able to do something well. Competence has three parts,
according to American professors Brian Spitzberg and William Cupach, who
developed the communication skill model together in the 1980s (Mustaco, n.d.). This
three parts includes motivation, knowledge and skills. Communication competence
involves appropriateness and effectiveness and these two are more likely when a
person is motivated to communicate, knowledgeable about communication, and
skilled in communicating in a particular interpersonal relationship and context.
In addition, effectively communicating means getting across to the point in the way
you intend. Your audience have to receive the message, in the way you intended it to
avoid misunderstanding. Attending to the rules and expectations that are applicable in
a social situation is also included in communication. This component is a bit tricky as
appropriate communication varies with the individual you communicate with and the
cultural identities that a person holds. That is why to be able to communicate
competently, one must recognize the particular skills that are deemed necessary for
all certain situations, and be encouraged and able to use these skills. One individual’s
communication competence can develop by enhancing their adaptability,
conversational involvement and management, empathy, effectiveness,
appropriateness and self-awareness.
Characteristics of a Competent Communicator
According to Floyd (2012), competent communicators are able to assess what
will be appropriate and effective in a given context and modify their behaviors
accordingly. This is adaptability, wherein you are able to adjust your communication
based on the particular context of the situation you are in or your relationship with your
audience or listener at a certain time. For example, in delivering a good speech, one
needs to be aware of the audience and adapt his or her behavior to the listeners. This
ability is also important because what works in one situation might be ineffective in
another. In addition, a speaker’s level of adaptability influences how others judge their
relationship or connection with him or her. An increase with your level of adaptability
is also an increase in trust and credibility; a decrease with your level of adaptability
also decreases trust and credibility. Adaptability also allows you to communicate with
difficult people more productively and helps you prevent or handle tense situations.
Furthermore, adaptability is a combination of flexibility and versatility (Alessandra and
O’Connor, 2015). Flexibility is your willingness to adapt- your attitude while versatility
is your ability to adapt- your aptitude. A fundamental trait of flexibility is confidence.

When you're scared or easily intimidated, it is difficult to be flexible and versatile in
terms of communication because confidence is necessary if you want to attract or
catch the attention of your listener.
Another characteristic of being a competent communicator is conversational
involvement and conversational management (Cupach and Spitzberg, 1984, as cited
in McWorthy, 2016). Conversational involvement shows a person’s interaction through
verbal and non-verbal gestures. Appropriate nonverbal feedback is necessary to
acknowledge involvement in interactions. For instance, a competent communicator
knows how to maintain strong eye contact during conversations, and also
acknowledges receipt of a message such as through nodding. Conversational
interaction is a factor determining the degree to which people are engaged in
conversation with others. In particular, communication recipients differ in their
attentiveness and perceptivity. Such criteria affect how other people receive data and
signals. As cited in Sharma (2018), in a survey involving 1000 self-assessment
reports, Cegala D.J. ("Interaction Engagement: A Cognitive Component of
Communicative Competence. Communication Education") found that about 48
percent of individuals were typically not highly involved in their conversations.
Responsiveness is “a tendency to mentally react in a given situation or circumstance
and adapt by knowing what to say and when to say.” I believe that highly involved
people will be more problem-oriented and attentive to the underlying message in the
conversation. On the other hand, it is expected that less involved people will focus on
conversation events or surface.

Conversational management however is the ability to build conversations. Not
interrupting the speaker and knowing how to take turns while talking shows
communication competence. This ability also includes control and regulation of
communication in changing moods or topics. A good example of this is evident in
debates or during an awkward situation.
Moreover, competent communicators practice empathy. Empathy is the ability to
understand the thoughts and feelings of other people or to be “other-oriented” (Floyd,
2012). For example, if your friend has just announced that her boyfriend broke up with
her, you'd consider what that friend is thinking and refrain from showcasing how great
your own significant relationship is at the moment, because you are aware that such
statements will probably make your friend feel worse about her own situation. To add,
we live up our lives also according to our “social self”. Each individual is constantly
influenced by what the social sphere has offered them and lives by it. As we
communicate, we communicate with someone else, that is why you can adapt your
communication to what will be most effective for the transaction when you inhabit your
listener’s minds and see the world from their perspective. Empathy is a key to better
communication because empathy is enables us to see the perspective of other and
think, feel and act like like you are them. Motivational speakers is a good example of
these, such as priests, pastors or preachers. That is why they were taught to “know
your audience” so that they can make a connection between them and their listeners
by putting themselves into their listeners’ shoes.

Good communication requires a greater awareness of our own behavior. This
awareness is called “self-monitoring”. A high self-monitor is aware of their behaviors
and adjusts accordingly in different contexts while a low self-monitor will not adjust
their behaviors to different contexts. This is similar to adaptability, but adaptability is
more about adapting communicative behaviors whereas self-monitoring is more about
the self-awareness of the need to adapt different behaviors to different situations.
According to Walker (n.d.), we should monitor our own behavior in a number of areas
such as monitoring out language use and being sensitive our intended meaning and
interpretation of others, which is referred to as semantic sensitivity. Another area is
cultural sensitivity where we monitor our verbal and nonverbal behaviors so as to
respect and be sensitive to cultural norms, values, and meanings.
Last but not the least, communication appropriateness and effectiveness are the core
components that we should strive for in our personal and professional lives.
Competence means employing communication behaviors that both you and others
judge to be appropriate to the situation (Walker, n.d.). Appropriateness in interpersonal
communication is the ability to behave in a manner that is accepted or expected of you
in any given situation. We be highly competent in what we should and should not say
to people during conversations. Know your accurate timing and content control when
deciding how and what you should say to certain people. Furthermore, one must set
objectives in order to be an effective speaker. To communicate effectively, you must
deliver your message to the receiver in an understandable manner. As individuals we
have our different norms, values, opinions, and etc. Our cultures are distinguish from
one another. By witnessing an event or receiving some communication, we process it
to discern meaning through our own unique set of perspectives and experiences.
Competent communication in the sense of intercultural communication essentially
means keeping in mind that each of us belongs to our own culture and collection of
co-cultures.
Conclusion
Communication is common and this something we spend most of our time doing, but
the ability to make sense of our communication and to improve and develop it takes
competence or skill that is learned through deliberate study and personal reflection.
So, to get started on your road to competence, I am proposing that you do two things.
First, challenge yourself to see the value in the study of communication. Apply the
concepts you are learning to your life and find ways to help you achieve your goals.
Second, commit to using the knowledge you gain to improve your communication and
the communication of those around you. Become a higher self-monitor, which means
start to notice your communication more. We all know areas where we could improve
our communication, and focusing on the characteristics where you lack will probably
expose even more. But you have to be prepared to put in the time to improve; for
example, it takes effort to become a better listener or to give better feedback.
Communicative competences have come to an agreement that a skilled language user
should not only have language knowledge but also the capacity and willingness or skill
to use that information in a communicative situation.

References
Alessandra, T. (2015). Communication Adaptability - Part 1: Confidence. Retrieved
from https://assessments24x7.com/blog/communication-adaptability-flexibility-part-i-
confidence/
Floyd, K. (2012). Interpersonal Communication, Valencia College Edition. Publisher:
McGraw Hill: New York, NY.
Walker, G. (n.d.) Communicating Well in Conflict: Competence Skills and
Collaboration. Retrieved from http://oregonstate.edu/instruct/comm440-
540/comptent.htm
McCroskey J. (1982) Communication Education (Vol. 31). Retrieved from
http://www.jamescmccroskey.com/publications/102.pdf
McWorthy, C. (2016). Communication Competence. Retrieved from
https://www.oercommons.org/authoring/6192-communication-competence/view
Muscato, C. (n.d.). Competence in Interpersonal Communication. Retrieved from
https://study.com/academy/lesson/competence-in-interpersonal-communication.html
Sharma (2018). Communication Competence - Conversational Involvement.
Retrieved from https://sharmasridhar1.blogspot.com/2018/02/sharmas-
communication-skills_19.html

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Republic of the Philippines

PHILIPPINE STATE COLLEGE OF AERONAUTICS

Good interpersonal communication skills allow us to work in groups and teams

situations. Interpersonal competence is an aspect of communication that, despite

being a crucial facet of human interaction, is seldom given attention. Moreover, an

individual’s ability to choose an acceptable communication behavior that is best suited

for a particular situation is referred to as communication competence (McCroskey,

Competence is being able to do something well. Competence has three parts,

according to American professors Brian Spitzberg and William Cupach, who

three parts includes motivation, knowledge and skills. Communication competence

person is motivated to communicate, knowledgeable about communication, and

skilled in communicating in a particular interpersonal relationship and context.

a social situation is also included in communication. This component is a bit tricky as

cultural identities that a person holds. That is why to be able to communicate

communication competence can develop by enhancing their adaptability,

conversational involvement and management, empathy, effectiveness,

appropriateness and self-awareness.

Characteristics of a Competent Communicator

According to Floyd (2012), competent communicators are able to assess what

Furthermore, adaptability is a combination of flexibility and versatility (Alessandra and

is your ability to adapt- your aptitude. A fundamental trait of flexibility is confidence.

When you're scared or easily intimidated, it is difficult to be flexible and versatile in

terms of communication because confidence is necessary if you want to attract or

catch the attention of your listener.

Another characteristic of being a competent communicator is conversational

involvement and conversational management (Cupach and Spitzberg, 1984, as cited

in McWorthy, 2016). Conversational involvement shows a person’s interaction through

verbal and non-verbal gestures. Appropriate nonverbal feedback is necessary to

acknowledge involvement in interactions. For instance, a competent communicator

acknowledges receipt of a message such as through nodding. Conversational

interaction is a factor determining the degree to which people are engaged in

conversation with others. In particular, communication recipients differ in their

signals. As cited in Sharma (2018), in a survey involving 1000 self-assessment

reports, Cegala D.J. ("Interaction Engagement: A Cognitive Component of

Communicative Competence. Communication Education") found that about 48

percent of individuals were typically not highly involved in their conversations.

Responsiveness is “a tendency to mentally react in a given situation or circumstance

conversation events or surface.

Conversational management however is the ability to build conversations. Not

communication competence. This ability also includes control and regulation of

communication in changing moods or topics. A good example of this is evident in

debates or during an awkward situation.

Moreover, competent communicators practice empathy. Empathy is the ability to

understand the thoughts and feelings of other people or to be “other-oriented” (Floyd,

communication because empathy is enables us to see the perspective of other and

by putting themselves into their listeners’ shoes.

Good communication requires a greater awareness of our own behavior. This

awareness is called “self-monitoring”. A high self-monitor is aware of their behaviors

their behaviors to different contexts. This is similar to adaptability, but adaptability is

more about adapting communicative behaviors whereas self-monitoring is more about

the self-awareness of the need to adapt different behaviors to different situations.

interpretation of others, which is referred to as semantic sensitivity. Another area is

cultural sensitivity where we monitor our verbal and nonverbal behaviors so as to

respect and be sensitive to cultural norms, values, and meanings.

judge to be appropriate to the situation (Walker, n.d.). Appropriateness in interpersonal

communication is the ability to behave in a manner that is accepted or expected of you

objectives in order to be an effective speaker. To communicate effectively, you must

deliver your message to the receiver in an understandable manner. As individuals we

one another. By witnessing an event or receiving some communication, we process it

Competent communication in the sense of intercultural communication essentially

example, it takes effort to become a better listener or to give better feedback.

Communicative competences have come to an agreement that a skilled language user

to use that information in a communicative situation.