Page 365 - Effective Communication Soft Skills Strategies For Success by Nitin Bhatnagar, Mamta Bhatnagar

Model Question Papers | 353

Microkinesis is concerned with bodily emotions that communicate different meanings.
Social kinesis is concerned with the role and meaning of different bodily movements.
Proxemies refers to the interpersonal distance that individuals maintain when they
interact with one another. The usual face to face distance in ordinary conversation is
four to five feet, and variations of even a few inches may create feelings of discomfort. In
different parts of the world, people belonging to different cultures have their own sense
of a comfortable distance between them and the person they are talking to. Effective
communication can take place, if one knows and respects these differences in nonverbal
signs in intercultural communication.
b. The two strategies considered for overlapping non-assertive behaviour are broken
record and fogging.
Broken record: When a record gets stuck it plays the same thing over and over again. So,
in broken record all you have to do is to repeat yourself again and again and again, until
the person gives in or concedes to your demands.
Children are masters at being broken records, but somehow during adolescence
we lose the skill. It is observed most people capitulate after you repeat yourself three
times.
Broken record is particularly useful when:
• Dealing with those in authority, or when you feel that the other person has more
expertise than you.
• You think you are not getting what you are entitled to.
• You are dealing with people brighter or more fluent that you.
• The other person is likely to use put-downs, or attack you verbally.

Example
You: ‘I’ m not satisfied with the service, I would like to see the manager.’
Reply: ‘He is busy right now.’
You: ‘I’m sure he is, but I would still like to see him.’
Reply: ‘He doesn’t usually get involved in these matters.’
Your: ‘I can understand that, but I want to see him.’
Reply: ‘You will have to make an appointment and write in.’
You: ‘That may be your procedure, but I want to see him now.’
Reply: ‘Well, if you would like to wait for an hour I‘ll see what I can do.’
You: ‘Thank you but I want to see him now.’

Fogging: Fogging is useful when someone is putting pressure on you to do something that
is really not in your best interest, and you would rather not do it. Thus, your response to

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