Cab 3- The voice
response
There are many possible ways to respond to conflict. According to Wood (2012), the voice response is usually the best way to
handle conflicts in intimate relationships.
She defines the voice response as a method that “…addresses conflict
directly and attempts to resolve it” (p. 232). She goes on to say that people
use voice when they are concerned about their relationship and see that
something is wrong.
Today in class, many people talked about conflicts that they
had with their roommates. They mentioned
how some roommates have terrible habits, such as not doing their share of
chores, and how they had poor communication skills and conflict responses, like
rolling their eyes and walking away. I
tried to think of some major conflicts I had with my roommate and I really
could not think of any in particular. I believe
this is because both my roommate and I used the voice response and talked about
anything that we did not like. This
worked so well that I cannot remember having any conflicts at all, and I ended
becoming great friends with him even though we had little in common.
Out of the methods of responding to conflict listed in
the book, I would say that I use the voice response most often, and I think
that this method works the best.
Honestly, I think I can use this method very frequently because of my
size. When you are 6’5’’, you are not
afraid to talk to many people, especially if you have a problem with them. I do not mean to say that I am a bully when
it comes to conflict. I only mean that I have the courage to talk to people if
something they do bothers me. Not
everyone is able to do so.
References
Wood,
J.T. (2012). Interpersonal communication: Everyday encounters (7th
ed). Boston, MA:
Wadsworth.
I would agree size helps when confronting people. I used to be terrified of conflict with others (especially if they were bigger than me). It was something I was able to grow out of and move on. I am not a big guy but I long history of military and martial arts training. My current job has me working at the county jail and a lot of the inmates are much bigger than me. Not being able to get away from verbal or physical conflict in that situation has made me very assertive. My wife has problems confronting people about anything, I am trying to help her with this.
ReplyDeleteI think it's neat that you and your roommate both use the voice response. It must make a huge difference in relationships when people have similarities in their uses of communication. I find this section interesting also because I am a very vocal responder to conflict, myself. I like to be straightforward and I find myself saying "too much" at times. I just like to know that my friends and the people around me understand me completely!
ReplyDeleteI think it's wonderful that you two have a relationship that allows for the voice response. I have ruined quite a few roommate situations by choosing other responses that are less open and honest.
ReplyDelete