COMMUNICATION IN FOOD SERVICE

Communication in Food Service

Interpersonal Communication in Food service

Introduction

Interpersonal skills are the artifact of self concept and emotions. Communication behavior is influenced by the way people perceive themselves and the emotional states they experience. People's behavior with each other highly relies on their emotional states and self concept. Various researches have been undertaken to closely examine human behavior related to communication and interpersonal skills. These researches helped to a great extent in understanding the work place communication psychology which later was found prolific in improving Business Communication.

An individual's self concept is established into the subconscious through early interaction with family and friends. The belief about one self is more deeply programmed if the interaction is intense. An individuals' self perception rules his or her interaction with the world. Effective interpersonal communication is imperative in the workplace to prevent potential workplace conflicts, to make people better listeners and to deal with customers. Self concept is embedded into the subconscious through one's early interaction with other limited egos. The more intense or threatening the interaction, the more deeply 'programmed' the belief. Beliefs about self and the world control ones thoughts and feelings which negatively influence one's perception of threat - triggering imprinted methods for self-preservation. This paper is an account of the effect of emotions and self perception on interpersonal communication by addressing the way food service employees are communicated daily.

Discussion

Overview of Interpersonal Communication

Interpersonal communication can take place directly or indirectly. The indirect communication is referred to an individuals' body language i.e. gestures and postures, whereas the direct communication accredits one on one conversation. It arises basic questions for instance, is the decision of engaging into a communication reflects self concept? How people's self concepts affect their information seeking behavior? But before going into the detail of these questions, it is important to determine the concept of interpersonal communication. Interpersonal communication is defined as one on one interaction of people with each other depicting how and why people behave and interact. The way people communicate depicts their behavior and self perception. It is important to analyze the communication behavior that various personality types portray.

Interpersonal communication is the demonstration of self concept, emotions, attitude and behavior. Life experience and perception influence self concept, Psychological type, motivational level and gender are the elements that shape up one's self concept. It is extensively known that one should first understand oneself in order to communicate with others. For instance, in the communication process, self knowledge is revealed to others and affects how others react to it. (Wood, 2009)

Values of Interpersonal Communication

Interpersonal communication is complicated- Communication is not simple. An individual's beliefs and emotions make communication even more complicated. It is driven by needs, desire, philosophy of life and most significantly people's perception about the society. Communication is constantly received through these channels regardless of an individual's intent of not receiving it. Interpersonal communication is irrevocable- one cannot take back what is said. As an adage goes, “Once a word goes out of ...