Josh's Journal Reflections

 Pluralistic Family In family dynamics, there are several different types of communication patterns. These determine how the family interacts with each other. All of these patterns are determined by how conversational the family is and its conformity. My family would be considered pluralistic. A pluralistic family is characterized by high conversation and low conformity. A pluralistic family may be more relaxed, but still values maintaining direct communication through conversation.            " Pluralistic families enjoy debating the issues of the day, and judge one another’s arguments on their         merit rather than on whether they mesh with other members’ attitudes." (Reflect & Relate, p.335)     My family fits the description of the pluralistic family, because we talk a lot, and have dinner together, but at the same time, my parents are usually pretty relaxed and let my sister and I be more independent. When my sister and I were young, my family aligned more with t

 Proximity After taking a love language test, I scored highest in quality time, which was what I expected. Part of the quality time that I enjoy is being close to the other person. Proximity just entails being near a loved one, regardless if you are doing anything, or simply just sitting next to each other. When I feel close to someone, all I need to do to enhance my love for this person is to simply hang out with them.      "Like Pat and Tiffany, you’re likely to feel more attracted to those with whom you have frequent                    contact and less attracted to those with whom you interact rarely" (Reflect & Relate, p.259) When I was in a relationship with my girlfriend at the time, we could just sit in the same room as each other, and we would enjoy each others presence. We didn't even need to talk, we just needed each other's company. Unfortunately, when we broke up, it was because of COVID. When we couldn't hang out with each other for all that time,

Downward Communication I work as a lifeguard at an indoor pool, operating all year, and I am a head guard, meaning I am in charge of the shift, and I have to make sure that my coworkers are all doing their jobs safely and efficiently. I also have to make sure that all of our chores are completed by the end of the shift. A large part of my duties as head guard is instructing my subordinates on how they should conduct themselves. I will also regularly have to ask them to go monitor chemicals and do other chores like emptying the trash or sweeping the bleachers.       "Having formal authority in an organization gives you freedom in the messages you use when                        interacting with subordinates, known as downward communication." (Reflect & Relate, p. 394)     I pride myself in being very efficient and respectful when communicating downward to my coworkers. I have had a lot of practice leading from my journey to Eagle Scout, and I think it has really made my co

 Avoidance Whereas in most situations in my daily life, I would first resort to accommodation, in a work environment I will usually practice avoidance. Avoidance is defined as opting-out from confrontation because it is relatively convenient, and is considered less emotionally draining. (Reflect & Relate, p.267) Though this doesn't solve any problems I experience, I believe it is better to preserve workplace relationships because it makes the job less stressful. Sometimes if a coworker is bothering me, I will sometimes display skirting.            "One common form of avoidance is skirting, in which a person avoids a conflict by changing the topic         or joking about it." (Reflect & Relate, p.267)         For example, I have steered clear of several political arguments with my coworkers by cracking a joke and then proceeding to ignore them if they discuss further. A lot of my coworkers have different political opinions, and I find that minimizing negative inter

 Affect Displays Affect displays are micro-expressions that we flash in a fraction of a second while communicating. These micro-expressions convey our true emotions and intentions to those we are communicating with. These function regardless of whether we want them to or not, and they show what is really going on inside our heads.       "Infants in the first few weeks of life instinctively and reflexively display facial expressions of distress,      disgust, and interest." (Reflect & Relate, p.248)     An example of a time where I was able to see and sort out an affect display was when I was playing the card game "Uno" with one of my friends. This friend in particular liked to try and cheat us during the game, because he thinks its funny to try and see what he can get away with. One time I thought I saw him hide one of his cards under his seat when he thought no one was looking, and when I asked if he hid any cards under himself, he replied "no," but h

Language Evolution As time goes on, the new generations will find new ways to express themselves verbally using vernacular and slang.       "Sometimes people create new phrases, such as helicopter parent, that eventually see wide use. Other         times, speakers of a language borrow words and phrases from other languages and incorporate them         into their own." (Reflect & Relate, p.206) Sometimes this can create a divide between generation z, and those from older generations. The reason why I believe slang is so jarring to the older generations, is due to how rapid new language is created, and dies. Because of how quick things can travel over the internet, as new words come into the picture, they spread like wildfire, and are soon used by millions of people across the globe. With this vernacular being used by so many people, so often, and so quickly, its usage becomes exhausted, and it's no longer common to use it.       When the older generations were at the a