Page 79 - Communication in Organizations Basic Skills and Conversation Models

Communication in organizations 68

In fragment 2 (reactions 2 and 3) we see Alex’s hesitation decreasing. He realizes he’s
not going to be put on the spot, but he decides to hold back a while longer. Once the basis
for cooperation has been formed, Harry decides to begin with a general open question:
‘I’d like to hear what you think of it’ (action 3). He does not ask a series of questions in
order to confirm his own suspicions, as in fragment 1, but he gives Alex some space.
Then Alex starts to talk, in bits and pieces. Harry restricts himself to listening, giving
minimal encouragers (actions 4, 6, 7), asking open questions (actions 5, 9), one direct
closed question (action 10), and showing understanding by means of reflection of
feelings and paraphrasing content (actions 8, 10, 11). This causes Alex to lose some of
his inhibitions and to talk more openly. In the end it becomes clear that his absent-
mindedness and temper towards the waiters are caused by the situation at home.
This did not come out in the diagnosis-prescription conversation. Why not? Here we
see a major difference between the diagnosis-prescription model and the cooperation
model. In the diagnosis-prescription model the questions follow from Harry’s
preconceived ideas. In the cooperation model Harry connects as much as he can to what
Alex says. Alex is given the opportunity to tell his own story.
In bringing our discussion of the second fragment to an end, we want to list the
advantages of the cooperation model over the diagnosis-prescription model. First, the
employee is encouraged to think actively about his problems. Thus an appeal is made to
his responsibility. This results in a clearer view of the factors influencing the problems.
Second, the relationship between manager and employee is more confidential. Third,
there is no need to be as directive as in the diagnosis-prescription model, which makes it
easier to listen to attentively.
Last but not least we want to mention some early scientific evidence supporting the
cooperation model. Research (Lewin, 1958; Korsch & Negrete, 1972) shows that
diagnosis-prescription advice is rarely taken. The same research shows that clarity and
openness in the approach to the clients and their involvement in the recommendations led
to higher rates of compliance.
It will be clear that we prefer the cooperation model for personal problem interviews
with employees. We now proceed to show how to conduct such a conversation by
presenting a dialogue model that can be seen as a specification of a more general
cooperation model.

A dialogue model with communication skills

The dialogue model presented below is based on the work of Egan (2002). The function
of the model is to arrange the various conversation goals with their respective methods,
thus keeping a clear view of the situation. Before discussing the different phases of the
model it should be stressed that dealing with someone else’s personal problems is not
easy. You should continually be aware of the fact that you are not a professional
counsellor or psychotherapist. However, offering assistance within the workplace does
have its advantages. For employees it might be easier to talk to a familiar person.
Moreover, the manager knows part of the employee’s situation. Especially when the
problems result from work-related factors, knowledge of specific situations can be very
useful. It is easier to understand the nature of the problem, and possibly simpler to take