Chapter 5 question #2

From what I understand, the concept of “white men of privilege” refers to the idea that White men in most societies have greater power and more opportunities than other ethnic groups. This idea mentions that “White Europeans” in the United Stated are better off socially, economically, and politically. Although white men were the dominant group for hundreds of years, I believe that this is no longer the case in our ever-changing society. I forgot where I read the article, but I remember it stating that white men or even the caucasian group in general, is no longer the majority in the United States. This may seem shocking to some but I have been aware of this for quiet some time because I have noticed a lot more “diversity” in different areas of society. For instance, I noticed that there is a greater mix of ethnic students in school, particularly college. I grew up in a small town where everyone was either white or hispanic. So once I began going to college I was a little surprised to see so many types of people. Also, as someone else touched on in another post, this has also caused universities to seek out potential students with different backgrounds other than “white”. I remember growing up I would hear about things such as affirmative action and how it was helping the minorities get better opportunities, which I am totally for.

On the other hand, I still believe there is a certain level of “white privilege”in today's society. Meaning that I think sometimes people who are not white get treated differently. I know that in certain areas of the United States ethnic groups like African American and Hispanic males are more likely to be pulled over and/or questioned by authorities than white males. A little bit of this concept can be related to the controversy in Arizona where authorities have the right to stop and question people on their citizenship based on their looks. This type of racial profiling can be seen as white men having privilege because I don't think any white male has ever been questioned if they were a legal U.S. Resident. In conclusion, I think that for the most part the idea of white privilege is mostly gone but there are a few areas where it is still relevant. 

Chapter 5 question #3

One section I found interesting in this week's reading was the section on Diversity in small groups and teams. Specifically, I enjoyed reading about the group commitment and consensus. I found this interesting because it is a concept I learned a little about in a previous communication course here at San Jose State. In this section it talked about how members of a group depend on each other for success and productivity. It also mentioned that people in groups are more committed and work harder in a group if feel their input and contributions are valued.

This is important because I feel it is an essential part of a successful group and I completely agree with the idea. I have felt both sides of this particular idea. Meaning that I have been in a group where my ideas and feedback were highly valued and therefore I felt the desire to work harder and put more effort into what I do. On the other hand, I have been in a group where my input and ideas were not appreciated whatsoever and as a result that made me withdraw from the group and not want to work hard at all. Another idea I found interesting in this section was how the book stated that being insensitive to diverse perspectives can lead to negative feelings and could cause those group members to sabotage the group. This is important because if not all members of a group feel like they are valued, then it is obviously not a strong group and it is likely the goals will not be met.

Chapter 5 question #1

As mentioned in the text, diversity is vital factor in our constantly developing society. Although we have diversity everywhere we look, valuing diversity does not come easy to every one. One reason for this is because often times people are scared of change and fear anyone and anything that does not fit into their personal lifestyle and way of thinking. Unfortunately this is quite apparent in the United States. For example, one area where there is lack of appreciation for diversity is in politics. During elections there is a lot of mudslinging and negative ideas pushed around about the candidates running for office as well as the democratic and republican parties. Two specific areas that come to mind where there is no valued diversity is the topics of gay marriage and immigration. Those opposed of gay marriage do not like the fact that two people of the same sex should have the same rights as heterosexual people, thus they are not valuing those people outside their own group. On the topic of immigration, those opposed often have negative feelings towards illegal immigrants and simply will not accept the idea of giving them a chance to become legal U.S citizens. Both of these examples also strongly tie into the section on stereotypes because our assumptions about others lead us to feel certain ways which in turn do not allow us to value diversity. As for ways to enhance a group's ability to value diversity, I think it is just a matter of getting to know one another on a more personal level. By understanding one's personal story, I think there's a better chance of accepting them instead of making assumptions and shoving them into a category. In high school my school decided to participate in a program called “Challenge Day”(exactly like the show on MTV “If You Really Knew Me”) and here students were required to get to know other students they had never really hung out with by telling each other very personal things about their lives. It was an eye-opening experience because a lot of the students felt closer to each other because they shared common problems and felt they had someone who knew what they were going through. Overall, I believe to truly understand and value diversity, we need to take the time to really get to know the lives that others live.

Chapter 3 question #3

One concept I found intriguing in Chapter 9 was the “Black Swan”phenomenon which the text states as a “rare, hard-to-predict, large-impact consequence that is beyond the realm of our normal expectations”(pg. 149). This caught my attention because I recently saw the film “Black Swan”with Natalie Portman but I didn't quite understand the reasoning behind the movie. After reading the concept of this phenomenon, it made much more sense. The book mentions that the term Black Swan comes from the assumption that all swans are white. This idea is also portrayed in the film (*spoiler alert*) when Natalie Portman's character is auditioning for the role of the lead swan in the ballet Swan Lake. Although her character can play the white swan perfectly, she cannot seem to play the role of the black swan because she is not considering both sides of the role. In short, the text states that we must take into consideration both the positive and negative possibilities when making decisions this way we are more likely to make better decisions when considering all possible outcomes.

Chapter 3 question #2

As stated in the text, the function of norms in groups is that norms tend to define the nature of the group by telling the members in the group what they can and can't do. As previously discussed, norms are not always formally outlined or written down. Sometimes norms are just expected to be known by all members in the group. One personal example is the norms in my family group. In my specific family, we are taught at a young age to always respect your elders and never talk back to them. However, throughout adolescence it is sometimes difficult to refrain from telling your parents exactly what is on your mind. When my brother was a teenager, he would always get into heated arguments with our mother and it seemed as if they were always fighting. Now, he is much older and understands that he was wrong in always blowing up and not respecting her rules. I too have come to this realization as I get older. Although I'm still young and constantly learning, I know that is is better just to stay quiet than to get into an argument that will get me no where. However, there are still those times that I would forget this important rule and then I'd violate these “norms”. For instance, when I get home tired from work sometimes my mother will immediately start asking me why I didn't wash dishes, take out the trash, clean up, and I would respond back to her in an irritated tone. She would then proceed to lecture me on how I needed to help out more and we'd begin arguing. By me responding in a negative way, I was violating the norm of respecting my elders and treating her as my roommate instead of my mother. 

Chapter 3 question #1

There are several group norms at SJSU ranging from social to academic. For instance, specific groups like sororities and fraternities have certain norms such as crucial norms that involve attending weekly meetings and completing a certain amount of community service hours with their brothers and sisters. These groups can also have peripheral norms such as having good manners and behaving respectfully during public events. Aside from these types of verbal norms, groups can also have explicit norms which are part of the policies of the group sanctioned procedures. Such norms can include having a specific dress code during events, attendance requirements for rush events or meeting certain deadlines.

Other group norms at SJSU include the academic integrity rules for every SJSU student. For this specific group, every member (students) is required to be honest in all their academic course work. Aside from students being expected to show their academic integrity, faculty members are required to report all infractions where students are caught cheating and/or plagiarizing. These are explicit norms which are almost always found the course syllabus in every class.

With the group of individuals I spend time with the norms are pretty common and straight forward. In the classroom, one norm is raise your hand when you want to speak. Although it is not specifically written or verbally outlined, most students have the common respect to not interrupt another student or instructor while someone else is speaking. Another peripheral norm is the seating arrangements. Although most classroom settings don't have assigned seating in college, most students usually try to sit in the same area for the duration of the semester. Of course there are always those days when you walk into class to find someone sitting in “your” seat which is extremely annoying :)

One way that I identified these norms is just being being a student for so long. As a child, one gets used to how the classroom works and they are continuously learning how to behave. For example, in kindergarten you learn the “golden rules”such as treat people the way you want to be treated, sharing, play fair, etc. As time goes on, you learn how to act and react to certain situations. Adapting to these norms is fairly simple. The way I learn to adapt to new situations is by watching others. For example, being a new student to SJSU I didn't know where anything on campus was. One day I needed to use a computer so I was walking around in Clark Hall and I saw a bunch of computers being used by students. Being that I was new and didn't know the process of how to get access, I just observed some students as they checked in with the front desk and after watching for a few minutes, I 

built up the courage to ask if I could sign up to use a computer. 

(p.s. here's a link to the "golden rules" I found to be interesting. http://www.peace.ca/kindergarten.htm )

Chapter 2 question #3

One topic I found interesting in chapter two was a concept that I have never heard of. Of all the communication classes I have taken, the idea of “double-loop learning” has never been mentioned. I was intrigued by the idea and I found it useful when applying not only to individual learning but learning in groups. First, single-loop learning is the learning the particular procedures for doing something. The idea behind double-loop learning states that its a process of understanding the principles that underlie those procedures in ways that allow us to extrapolate, combine, and creatively invent new processes and procedures. I love the analogy the authors used in the text because it was very straight forward and easy to understand. The authors described single-loop learning as a cook who knows how to combine ingredients to make a great meal as long as they have a list of what they need. On the other hand, a chef (double-loop) is someone who knows what it takes to make a great meal but can either substitute or take the best ingredients and combine them to get the same great tasting meal. The difference would be knowing how to do something even if there is not a single plan on how to do it. I find this to be really vital when working with groups because many times people think that there is only one way to do something and that they must follow these exact steps to get the desired outcome. In reality, the secret to achieving goals is to understand the goal and be able to work with each other to find everyone's individual strengths. Many believe that since they worked in a group where one process worked, it will always work in every group setting. Double-loop learning emphasizes that processes never happen exactly the same way twice so it is important to learn the concept of double-loop learning to have effective and successful groups.

Chapter 2 question #2

As stated in the text, entropy impacts small groups when there is too much information overload which leads to chaos. As I was reading this section in the chapter, I immediately thought of the commercials on television for the internet search engine “Bing”. In the commercials the people are portrayed as having “search overload”from having too much information when searching for something on the internet. I think many of us have had similar situations working in groups where everyone wants to say something at the same time which then leads to chaos. I think that in these types of situations, the people in the groups all want to take on the leader role and want their ideas to be heard. Another reason I believe this type of information overload happens is because people are afraid that their opinion wont be heard if they don't say it in the beginning. For instance, I know I have felt left out of group decision-making because instead of stating my opinion first, I let others go ahead so everyone would have a chance. However, this backfired and once an idea was mentioned, any other ideas were not even discussed. For this reason, I believe it is important to give everyone in a group a chance to state their opinion without any interruption. This way, once they are done giving their input, the rest of the group can have a chance to give their feedback and have balance.

The idea of equifinality is basically stating that there is more than one way of doing things to get the same outcome. This reminds me of one of my favorite old songs by a Mexican musician Jose Alfredo Jimenez. In his song he says that it's not about getting to the destination first but rather knowing how to get there. In other words, many groups will try to rush through their tasks in order to get to their goal quicker, however this may not always work because people will not put their best work into the project. I had an experience in my online class where we had to write group essays and each group member had a certain section. For our class, our assignments were always due Sunday night before midnight. I had one person in my group who always had his work done the next day after the assignment was given and he wanted the rest of the group to do the same. However, due to our own hectic schedules, we could not always meet his deadlines and instead had our work done by Saturday afternoon. At first this was a problem because he wanted everyone to complete their work several days prior to the due date but as the group began discussing our busy schedules, we all compromised to have it done on Saturdays. Overall, this experience showed how taking the strengths of each group member and compromising on certain areas made our group successful.

Chapter 2 question #1

1. There are many factors that affect a groups' ability to function properly and effectively. The key to having successful small groups is communication between members and a clear understanding of the goals. However, due to factors such as lack of communication, misunderstandings, and poor effort, having groups hat function well are often rare in any environment whether it be in the workplace, school, or a sports team. Usually, groups that have such issues do not tend to reach their expected goals on time or how they had initially hoped.
   I've had several experiences in which I have faced both poor and great communication within my small group. When I was in community college I took a small group communication class where we were assigned to work in groups of 5 to 7 people. For our first assignment we had to choose a topic that was a big problem in our society and to present to the class with possible solutions for the future. As my group was throwing out ideas for possible topics, one student suggested the issue of teen pregnancy since she had gone through it as a teenager. Once my group agreed on the topic, this student immediately took the leader position and started suggesting what everyone should contribute. She told us about her story and how much it effected her life and then told us how it could be fixed. Although she had first hand knowledge about the subject, it seemed as if she thought she was an expert on the matter because every time someone would try to give any input, she would cut them off and start talking about her experience once again. It got to the point where no one in the group wanted to contribute because we felt our opinions were not even being heard ( which they weren't). This was important because our group did not have a sense of interdependence. Instead we had a group with one leader who insisted she had all the right answers. Our group did not gain the benefit of having the shared ideas and interactions-all of which lead to successful groups.

A positive example of my experience in small group communication is in a intercultural communication class I took. In this class we had to choose a chapter from our textbook and teach it to the class. My group immediately agreed and selected a chapter and we began discussing who would be doing each part. After everyone had their part assigned, we then took a day to gather information and agreed to share it the next day. We then came back into our groups and shared out information with each other and provided feedback and assistance. This worked out really well because everyone had a chance to give input on everyones work and we developed an intereltionship as well as have some interdependence.