Week 4 Who am I?

This was quite an interesting assignment this week.  I had a co-worker and my husband complete the assessments to rate me.  There were similarities, but there were some differences that I was a bit surprised at. 

The Communication Anxiety Inventory (Rubin, Palmgreen, & Sypher, 2009) completed by my co-worker showed that I was in the low level of anxiety when communicating.  I was surprised at this result.  Both my husband and I rated my communication anxiety in the moderate level, with only two points separating our score.  I was further surprised by the Verbal Aggressiveness Scale (Rubin, Palmgreen, & Sypher, 2009).  I do not perceive myself as exhibiting any sort of aggression in most communication and situations.  I feel that I am generally easy going and avoid aggressive behaviors.  My score was in the moderate level (score was 62) indicating that I strike balance with communication from other speakers.  My husband rated me in the significant category (with a score of 70).  My co-worker also rated me in this category (with a score of 69). 

Being verbally aggressive is not a quality that I want to be associated with, but apparently I must sometimes cross the line and get argumentative or hurtful.  When communicating with others, I need to remember that everyone has an opinion and it may differ from mine.  I need to use wait time before I respond.  In working with children and families, I need to remember that they want what is best for their child and I need to see their point of view before being snappy or judgmental. 

Rubin, R. B., Palmgreen, P., & Sypher, H. E. (Eds.) (2009). Communication research measures: A sourcebook. New York: Routledge.