leadership dialogue topics – Dr. Daniele Trevisani – Formazione Aziendale, Ricerca, Coaching

Paralinguistic Channels

trevisani@studiotrevisani.it — Wed, 10 Feb 2021 11:03:26 +0000

© Article translated from the book “Negoziazione interculturale, comunicazione oltre le barriere culturali” (Intercultural Negotiation: Communication Beyond Cultural Barriers) copyright Dr. Daniele Trevisani Intercultural Negotiation Training and Coaching, published with the author’s permission. The Book’s rights are on sale and are available for any Publisher wishing to consider it for publication in English and other languages except for Italian and Arab whose rights are already sold and published. If you are interested in publishing the book in English, or any other language, or seek Intercultural Negotiation Training, Coaching, Mentoring and Consulting, please feel free to contact the author from the webstite www.danieletrevisani.com

Non-Verbal Training and Formation

Paralinguistics concerns all vocal emissions that are not strictly related to “words”, and includes:

the tone of the voice;
the volume;
the silences;
breaks;
the rhythm of speech;
the interjections (short emissions, like er, uhm …).

Paralinguistics establishes the punctuation of speech, and helps convey emotional information. Messages such as “I am tense”, “I am angry” or “I am well disposed” ooze more from the paralinguistic system than from the linguistic system. A sentence can carry completely different meanings that depend on the emphasis on words and tone of voice.

Exercise of modulation of meanings through the non-verbal and paralinguistic system

The exercise involves the modulation of meanings through the non-verbal system, gestures, intonations. Convey the different meanings associated with the following sentence: “Our company may be very interested in your proposal”. Possible formulations to be interpreted:

Our company may be very interested in your proposal (emphasis on ours; meaning to be conveyed: “other companies less”)
Our company may be very interested in your proposal (emphasis on can; meaning to convey: “we don’t know, we’ll see, doubtful”)
Our company may be very interested in your proposal (emphasis on a lot; meaning to convey: “really interesting”)
Our company may be very interested in your proposal (emphasis on interested expressed in a doubtful way; meaning to be conveyed: “interested, but it’s all yet to be seen”).

Non-verbal training and formation

Training in the use of paralinguistic requires training on the strategic use of pauses and tones. In general, training for the non-verbal includes access to all repertoires of theatrical and actor techniques, the Stanislavskij method and other theatrical training methods, the only ones truly capable of acting in depth on the transformation of expressive behavior.

Adequate training can be useful to train the negotiator to grasp the trembling of the voice of others (symptom of nervousness and stress), and the non-verbal reactions to one’s statements, to act “theatrically” through movement, pauses and alternating rhythms to give emphasis parts of the speech and key points to emerge. As with any other managerial task, without adequate preparation the chances of being competitive on a negotiating level decrease when the balance of skills is unbalanced.

As the gap between our training and the level of training of the counterpart increases, the risks of an unfavorable outcome of each negotiation increase.

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Role Theories and Communication of the Leadership Role

trevisani@studiotrevisani.it — Tue, 09 Feb 2021 10:55:45 +0000

Cooperative Dialogue (Cooperative Interaction)

Being the leader of a family means being able to act as a “guide” of the family itself, and this is expressed in group and individual conversations with family members. Being the leader of a production department means assuming the role of reference point for all technicians, managing to manage conflicts, meetings, training and motivational processes.

Being the leader of a sales force means taking on the role of mentor and coordinator of resources and strategies, and applying the role in every communication with your collaborators. Regardless of which corporate or social reference group is, leadership must be considered a meta-role that transversally invests a subject within a group of individuals.

The assumption of the role is evident in the method of communication adopted, and its lack is equally evident. As Tonfoni points out, each role is charged with expectations and role behaviors: According to the Theory of Roles, a certain sequence of planned actions, called “role”, refers to the individual actors who occupy certain positions within one or more groups, within which there is a balance determined by the fact that at each “status “separate functions are assigned.

Based on the dynamics of the role, each individual must correspond to relative expectations; the role is therefore definable as a model of social behavior appropriate in relation to the expectations and the actual way in which an individual behaves in a certain situation. Failure to respect expectations and role behaviors is evident precisely in the inter-individual and group conversation in which the subject does not act as a “private individual” but as an “interpreter of the role of leader”.

Leadership therefore requires attention to the communicative listening dynamics in which they manifest themselves:

attacks on the role by team members;
improper role assumptions by team members or other subjects;

The correlated communicative behaviors are therefore:

reporting of the leader’s perception of the attack on the role;
clarification of the facts, making it clear that it is understood what is happening.
defense of the role;
negotiation of mutual roles. Leadership move detection exercise
Simulate starting a project to build a new product (banking, automobile, tourism, or others of your choice) that requires joint work between engineers, marketing experts and management control and finance experts.
Have all the participants start the dialogue in turn, with the requirement that those who open the negotiation try to be the leader.
Notice how during a conversation a participant taking an agreed role implements leadership. What to do to manage the power? Participants must decode the moves implemented by the assigned role, understand how the leader implements his leadership on the field.
In the debriefing phase (post-simulation analysis), provide feedback to the conversation leader on the effectiveness of the moves implemented.

Cooperative Dialogue (Cooperative Interaction)

The cooperative dialogue involves a strong concentration of positive moves, of openness, a use of SIM for analysis and sharing, and the elimination of attacks on the role and identity of others. The cooperative dialogue mainly consists of:

listening, avoiding interruption;
strategic shifts between the macro-purposes of the projects and the details, with a preference for macro-purposes and the search for a shared mission; consider the differences on the details as temporary, recoverable, and go in search of a common vision and what they have in common;
search for a win-win approach;
attitudes of openness and avoidance of the judgment of others (suspension of judgment until complete understanding).

For further information see:

L'articolo Role Theories and Communication of the Leadership Role proviene da Dr. Daniele Trevisani - Formazione Aziendale, Ricerca, Coaching.

Interpersonal Motivational Systems (SIM) and Intercultural Leadership

trevisani@studiotrevisani.it — Sun, 07 Feb 2021 14:32:52 +0000

Conversation Analysis and Negotiation Communication Climates

In each of the different communication moments that occur in the groups, different communication systems can be activated. The exchanges of messages that we observe between people or in a group are only the tip of the iceberg of stronger relational processes, the Interpersonal Motivational Systems (SIM).

Some of the most recognized SIMs are:

attachment;
seduction;
competitive spirit;
cooperation.

The conflict and the malfunctions of the groups therefore start from the system of communication observable in the dynamics of the group. Intercultural leadership consists in taking the reins of intercultural encounters, and being able to direct them with awareness and cultural tact.

It absolutely does not mean domination over the other, but it consists in an attempt to voluntarily manage communication flows, seen from above for greater awareness. For example, it is possible to recognize which of the Motivational Systems is being generated in the negotiation, and try to modify it. The principle of cooperation acts as the main glue of the group, but other systems can also be activated to increase its dynamism.

The Qualitative Analysis of Conversational States

We can recognize the type of communication in progress within a group by carefully reading the signals. With adequate training and high natural sensitivity, it is possible to grasp in a few words which are the “conversational states” that predominate a communication. By “conversational states” we mean here a sequence of communicative moves attributable to prototypes, for example:

confession,
seduction,
reciprocal jabs (creeping conflict),
the “locker room conversation”,
self-celebration,
seeking help,
self-victimization,
the offer of help,
the accusation,
the scientific analysis of a problem,
“let’s try to understand”,
the “gossiping of the absent”,
the outburst,
the “talk of trouble”,
the “daydream”,
the quarrel,
the interrogation,
the game,
the joke,
“talking among the like”.

Conversations are constantly moving from one state to another, and we can have conversations that start in terms of “confession” and then move into seduction, and slip into self-celebration, then again into accusation.

During an intercultural negotiation, the negotiator must be aware of the fact that certain conversational formats – such as play and joke – are difficult to translate between different cultures, so it is very easy to make gaffes, be humorous or forcibly “nice”. Other conversational formats, such as the scientific analysis of a problem, or “talking among similar people” (eg: confronting “family fathers”) can bring out cultural differences but with less room for error.

Each conversation (negotiation and otherwise) proceeds along one format anyway until another and different format takes hold. The role of conversational leadership is exactly to move formats and direct them where it is most productive. In the following diagram, we can visually grasp the concept of “layout of the conversational format”, which expresses a possible course of the conversation. What is productive, for intercultural negotiation, is therefore the ability to understand how the conversation is evolving along the path, and the ability to move the lines within more productive communication spaces.

For further information see:

L'articolo Interpersonal Motivational Systems (SIM) and Intercultural Leadership proviene da Dr. Daniele Trevisani - Formazione Aziendale, Ricerca, Coaching.