Communication and Interpersonal Skills

Erica Pavord was a Lecturer in Child and Adolescent Mental Health at the University of Worcester and now works as a systemic counsellor with families in Monmouthshire. Before becoming a counsellor, she spent fifteen years as a secondary school teacher. She has a special interest in communication methods and teaches a range of therapeutic communication and counselling skills. Her research interests include understanding attachment narratives and narrative enquiry methods. She has co-written and contributed to a number of books on subjects such as communication skills and child and adolescent mental health. Elaine Donnelly was a Senior Lecturer in Health, Social Care and Psychology at the University of Worcester, where she developed and taught modules of study across many courses on offer in the department at the time with a specific focus on mental health, psychology and communication and interpersonal skills. As a teacher she encouraged students to learn from their experiences and incorporated their feedback in teaching and learning activities. Student feedback and course requirements played an equal part in the development of her written texts which have been well received. Now happily retired, Elaine still maintains the belief that at the core of effective care lies good communication and interpersonal skills.

Introduction; About the authors



1. Introducing key concepts in communication

     1.1 The importance of good communication

     1.2 The 6 Cs

     1.3 Towards a definition of communication

     1.4 Modes of communication

     1.5 Choosing your approach when communicating with others

     1.6 Studying communications theory



2. Understanding ourselves and our impact on others

     2.1 Intrapersonal communication

     2.2 Developing awareness of how external factors impact on the self

     2.3 Developing awareness of how internal factors impact on the self

     2.4 Negative thinking

     2.5 Positive thinking

     2.6 Reflection and reflective practice



3. Interpersonal communication

     3.1 Interpersonal skills

     3.2 Verbal communication

     3.3 Paralanguage

     3.4 Non-verbal communication

     3.5 Environmental communication

     3.6 Intercultural communication

     3.7 Communicating with the deaf or people with hearing loss



4. Introducing Transactional Analysis

     4.1 What is Transactional Analysis?

     4.2 The concept of ego states

     4.3 Transactions between people

     4.4 Life scripts



5. Listening to people

     5.1 Communication through listening

     5.2 The use of empathy

     5.3 Create an interview plan

     5.4 Acceptance and non-judgemental warmth

     5.5 Being genuine

     5.6 Self-disclosure

     5.7 Active listening skills

     5.8 Confidentiality



6. Communication and interpersonal skills in practice

     6.1 Things that are important to people

     6.2 Understanding ourselves and other people

     6.3 Blocks and barriers to effective communication

     6.4 Dealing with difficult people

     6.5 Working in organisations and communicating with others

     6.6 Codes of practice

     6.7 The written word

     6.8 Telephone

     6.9 Email and text

     6.10 Social media



7. Case study



Index