Communication Merit Essay

In this written piece I will be assessing the role of effective communication and interpersonal interaction in health and social care with references to theories of communication. The theories are; Soler theory, Tuckman’s theory and the communication cycle. The Soler theory was created by a man called Gerard Egan. He believed that this theory shows that basic non-verbal communication can help make a person feel involved and cared for when working with another person. This theory is a non-verbal listening method that is used commonly in communication. Soler means: S – Facing squarely- By doing this it shows that a service provider is involved with their clients. The body direction shows the message that you are involved with the other person. O – Keep an open posture- Keeping an open posture means not crossing arms and legs as this sends a message to the other person that you are talking too that you’re not involved or really interested. L –Lean- By leaning forward when a person is talking to you, it shows that you are involved and listening to what the other persons is saying. E – Use good eye contact- By having good eye contact with a clients, this shows that you are listening and that you are not distracted and shows you are involved because you are focusing on the person you are talking to. R – Be relaxed- It is important to keep still and not move about when a person is talking to you. You would use Soler Theory in a GP’s, such as; if someone has got an illness and needs to go to the doctors, the GP would sit squarely in front of the patient and keep an open posture and also, use good eye contact. The GP would use this theory to let the patient know that he is listening to them and to show the patient that you can tell him the problem without feeling shy or embarrassed. You may need to give someone some bad news and by using this communication theory, you will be comforting them and giving them your undivided attention, making them feels that they are valued. If you are giving the person some bad news, you will need to be serious and professional so that the other person trusts and respects you. However if you were fussing about with something else, not concentrating, kept looking at your watch as if wanting to be somewhere else or on your mobile the last thing they would want is to hear some bad news from you. Solar theory can be used in Interviews, such as, the interview could be 2 people getting to know  each other e.g. within early years or education teachers/minders would need to get to know the new children starting/enrolling. This would enable them to build a stable relationship with the child meaning they gain as much help or as little help needed to suit them. The teacher/carer would also get to know how the child best learns. An interview like this is often when first impressions are made so body language is very important. The Soler theory is good within counselling. Counsellors are often dealing with people in a fragile state of mind and will more than likely struggle to trust just anyone. The biggest part of a counsellor’s job is to listen to someone’s problems and react appropriately. Counselling sessions could become quite tense, especially if the counselee is on edge. The R in SOLER states that you need to be relaxed whilst paying attention, seeming relaxed would reduce the tense atmosphere making the other person relax. Soler theory, also states facing the other person squarely with an open posture, this makes the person talking feel valued, making them want to open up to the couns ellor and talk more. The Tuckman’s theory was created by Bruce Tuckman. He developed the four stages of team development in a group, which are; The Forming, Storming, Norming and performing stages. In order for the team to grow, to face up to challenges, to tackle problems, to find solutions, to plan work, and to deliver results. This model has become the basis for subsequent models of team dynamics and frequently used management theory to describe the behaviour of existing teams. Forming Stage- The forming of the team takes place. The team will meet and learn about the; opportunity, challenges, agrees on goals and begin to tackle the tasks. They may be motivated but are usually relatively uninformed of the issues and objectives of the team. The team members are usually behaved but very focused of them self’s. Supervisors of the team during this stage tend to need to be directive. Storming Stage- Every group will enter the Storming stage, in which different ideas compete for consideration. The team will address issues in the group, such as; what problems they are supposed to solve, how will they function independently and together and who would be the leader in the group. The team members will open out to each other and confront each other’s ideas and perspectives. Norming Stage- At some point, the team may enter the norming stage and team members will adjust their behaviours to each other as they develop work habits that will make the teamwork seem more  natural and fluid. Team members may often work through this stage by agreeing on; the rules, values, professional behaviours, shared methods and working tools. During this stage, team members will begin to trust each other and the motivation will increase as the team gets more acquainted with the project. Performing Stage- Some teams will reach the performing stage. These teams are able to function as a unit as they find ways to get the jobs done smoothly and effectively without conflict or the need of supervision. The team members will have become independent and will be motivated and knowledgeable. The team members are now competent, autonomous and able to handle the decision-making process without supervision. You would use Tuckmans theory in multi-agency services, such as, If someone was physically abused, they might contact the police to report the abuser, but the person who has been abused might need to go to the hospital due to the pain where they have been hit, so the police will pass this situ ation to the hospital once they have finished. Once the hospital has finished with the person who has been abused, they might pass the situation to a counsellor because, the person who has been abused may be suicidal due to the physical and emotional abuse. All of these services would work as a team and go through the Tuckman Stages. The Communication cycle refers to the whole process of communication from the origin up to the conceptualizing and the response of the intended message by the right person. The communication cycle is not complete before feedback even if the message reached the intended recipient. There are 6 stages in the communication cycle. An idea occurs- This is the first stage of the cycle, which is when you have an idea that you want to communicate. Message coded- In this stage you will think through how you going to communicate and what you are thinking and begin to put your thoughts into language, or even codes such as, sign language. Message sent- This is the point where you send your message in a form of sp eaking, writing or other ways such as, sign language or braille. Message received- This is the stage that focuses on the other person who has to sense the message by hearing your word or seeing your symbols. Message decoded- This is a vital stage of the communication cycle, where the other person will interpret the message. Message understood- This is the final stage of the communication cycle, this is when the message is understood and they are able to communicate effectively. The Communication cycle is used when trying to communicate  sensitive subjects. For example, if someone is dying, we can use the communication cycle to make sure that we don’t say anything insensitive or even hurtful to the person who is meant be receiving the information. We can use the communication cycle to encode the information correctly. It is also important to make sure that we communicate the information at the correct time to prevent a misunderstanding of the message. The place and method of communication is also important in communicating a sensitive subject effectively and sensitively. We use the Communication cycle in any health and social care services because everyone processes the Communication cycle. Blurtit Ltd. [Online] http://science.blurtit.com/157992/the-6-stages-of-the-communication-cycle-are-obtain-or-giving-thoughts-noting-body. [Available from: 22nd January 2014] AntiEssays.com. (2014) [Online] http://www.antiessays.com/free-essays/325901.html. [Available from: 22nd January 2014]