Knapp’s relationship model

 It’s week 3, and our topic is Knapp’s relationship model. 




Knapp’s relationship model pictured above (source: https://evolveinc.io/self-improvement/motivation/knapps-relationship-model/) is a communication theory based on the stages of growth or deterioration that people go through in their relationships. The image does a great job displaying the definitions, so I will be referring to it for this week’s post where we have to discuss a current relationship. 

Looking back at my own relationship, the initiating and experimenting phases were fun progressions where my boyfriend and I had the “friends to lovers” trope. We became closer and went hiking in the Smoky Mountains, where we went from watching a meteor shower to talking about a future together. Once we started dating our communication styles evolved, along with our friend group + workplace dynamics. The intensifying and integrating stages, as it relates to Knapp’s model, paved out our goals/expectations on how to coexist with each other. We are both our own ambitious, individual people, so the differentiation phase has always been there, but in a healthy way (for example, right now we are currently each working on our own assignments, typing away, but still joking and laying next to each other). I have always appreciated the silly and loving memories we have been able to create while still working towards our goals. 

Communication has always been difficult for me, so it takes a lot of effort and attempts at personal growth to not self-sabotage this amazing relationship. It’s good to know which behaviors to avoid from Knapp’s model, but still understand that my partner and I can differentiate while coexisting at the same time while maintaining a fun, healthy, supportive relationship. 

As it pertains to online communication, we have definitely had miscommunications due to text messages lacking tone, but it’s also truly nice to see his name pop up in a notification while I’m in the middle of a 24hr shift at work. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Digital Natives vs Digital Immigrants

 This week we will be looking at two articles and answering questions about them.  According to Prensky, what is the immigrant/native divide, and how has it affected how students learn? The first article by Marc Prensky,  https://www.marcprensky.com/writing/Prensky%20-%20Digital%20Natives,%20Digital%20Immigrants%20-%20Part1.pdf  — talks about what exactly digital natives and digital immigrants are. There terms were coined to differentiate learning styles and attention spans of young generations that grew up with the digital world vs older generations who grew up pre-internet.   Younger generations are having learning differences because their minds work in a different way compared to how material is being taught. There is also a divide caused by knowledge to use online resources or not.  Here is the second article  https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0742051X16306692  by Paul Kirschner.  Kirschner some of the myths associat...
Read more

Social semiotics

Image
       Social semiotics is a social theory that displays how something can be communicated in different modes, by using text and imagery to convey information. Michael Halliday and Gunther Kress developed tools for the analysis of the interrelation of power and language by providing their account of language as a social phenomenon (Gualberto & Kress, 2018). It is important because it describes how we see the world, the assumptions we make, and how we choose to communicate.      Understanding vertical and horizontal positioning is key in understanding the rules of social semiotics. When an image is positioned vertically, it is interpreted as saying that the top of the image represents ideals, aspirations, and what is imagined. The bottom, in contrast, represents what is known, reality and facts. In horizontal positioning, the left of the imagine shows known, given information while the right displays new facts and findings. The methodology also incl...
Read more

The Toulmin Argument

Image
  The Toulmin Argument is an argumentation style that breaks it down into different components: claim, grounds, warrant, qualifier, rebuttal, and backing.  The claim is the main argument, something you are trying to prove to your audience. The grounds are evidence to help support your claim, while the warrant is an assumption that links the two. The qualifier is something you may add to give it some leeway since the claim may not always be correct. Backing provides extra support to the warrant, such as using specific examples, and the rebuttal essentially validates a different point of view.  These can successfully be applied to online arguments or discussions to show a reasonable exchange of information and facilitate productive discourse. Many online arguments are fueled by emotions, especially around the current political state of our world. The Toulmin argument offers a better way of communication. For example, instead of just saying “Trump is awful” or “Israel sucks”...
Read more