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Communication Competence

 

The communication of emotion is very important and we propose to split this into two parts: the expression of emotions to others and the perception of others’ emotions.

 

Expression of emotions

Communication of emotion to others is a very important part of emotional competence. This involves several types of expression, some more subtle than others, but the most well-known are facial expressions, words, tone of voice and gestures.  Good communication of emotion not only signals the qualities of the situation or the event that elicited the emotion but also what we are intending to do about it. However, for it to be really useful, it needs to be authentic and balanced between over-reacting and under-reacting. So called display rules that belong to cultures, social groups or individuals govern the license to express different emotions in social situations.
 

                              Expression Competence is about sending appropriate and unambiguous
                                        signals to encourage understanding and interaction with others.
                                        It is also about awareness of social rules (either consciously or
                                        unconsciously) that influence the expression of emotion and adapting
                                        our communication according to these rules, which may change from
                                        culture to culture or from social group to social group.

 

Consider the following example: When a loved one dies, the communication of our emotion will depend on situation and who is present.

There may be certain situations where grief is acceptable and even encouraged, such as funerals, and there may be other places where it is frowned upon, such as the workplace or in a work meeting. Some people may not wish to show their sadness in public and prefer to grieve alone. Others may need the company of others to express how they are feeling. Sometimes emotions may be tempered if someone vulnerable or naïve is present such as young children.

There may also be social and cultural rules that mean we manage our emotions in certain ways, for example Mediterranean countries often embrace grief whereas in other northern European countries it is felt that, particularly men, should keep ther grief hidden.

If the loved one has been suffering for some time and there is also an element of relief in the emotional response, this more complex aspect of relief may only be shown or expressed to people who are very close and would understand.


 

Perception of emotions
 

Not only is it important to be able to communicate emotion but also to perceive it in others. Again this is done through  a number of channels, such as the face, the voice and the body and there has been plenty of research on how well we can perceive the emotional cues of others. Our perception of emotion in others will influence our own emotions and their communication, producing an interactive emotional dance between who is present.  Our perception of emotion also interacts with our appraisal and regulation of emotion.

 

                              Perception Competence is about accurate recognition or interpretation of
                              emotional expressions through face, voice, body or hidden cues
.

 

Consider the following example: When a loved one dies, recognising levels of grief accurately in others is important in providing support and also in assessing our own emotional response and its appropriateness. Hence it is highly interactive with appraisal competence and regulation competence. 

Depending on our level of grief we may not notice the emotions of others or we may be highly sensitive to the point of seeing sadness in others when it may not be there - either extreme does not reflect competence in this area. 

If we are someone who often provides emotional support we may possess a high level of competence in emotion recognition. Competence will also help in recognising the possible complex mix of emotions, for example between grief and relief.

 

 

Read more about:                                    

>> Appraisal competence

>> Regulation competence

 

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