SPC1017 Aaron Begazo 1st Blogger Post Group Presentations

Aaron Begazo SPC1017

Before making and seeing the presentations, I never truly thought about how many factors affected the way we communicate with others. Many of the groups covered just how many different things come into play when talking and interacting with people, such as race, age and generation, disabilities, leadership, and culture. My group in particular discussed intercultural communication, and something I quickly realized was how closely this topic connected with the other groups presentations on communicating in groups along with leadership and problem solving. Together, the presentations showed how communication is influenced by both our upbringings, culture and environment we lived in. 

The topic I was tasked with discussing as part of my group was socioeconomic status, otherwise known as SES, which refers to a person or family’s social and economic position in society. While researching this topic, I realized how strongly things such as income, education, and a person’s job can affect the way people interact with others. People who grow up in different financial situations can have completely different experiences and opportunities, which may also affect their confidence and the way they talk with others. Something else that stood out to me was how quickly society can judge people based on their financial status alone. This topic felt especially relevant since so many people today experience financial stress, inflation, and even pressure regarding what type of job they have, all of which can affect how people talk and interact in their relationships. 

Another topic I covered with my group was age and generation. Before researching it, I honestly didn’t realize how much a person’s generation can affect the way they communicate with others. Technology has changed so much over the years that younger and older generations sometimes talk and interact in completely different ways. Things like texting, social media, gaming, and talking online have become normal for younger generations, while older generations may still prefer to have face to face interactions and conversations. I also thought it was interesting how different generations tend to value different things. Younger people today often focus more on mental health and a healthy work life balance, while older generations were usually taught to focus on working hard and having income for your family. This topic had actually reminded me of instances and even moments in shows where the age gap created misunderstandings with older people which I could relate to as well.

The disability section was probably one of the most important topics to me because it highlighted how differently people can experience society and interactions with others. Disabilities can come in many forms, including physical, emotional, mental, and cognitive disabilities, and not all disabilities are immediately noticeable. Something I found important during this topic was discussing how media, movies, and advertisements have slowly improved representation and awareness surrounding disabilities over time. Society has thankfully become more accepting and understanding, although there is still always room for improvement. While looking for images to use in my presentation, I also thought it was important to include discussions about inclusion in education and accessibility for people who need it, because those things can greatly affect a person’s everyday life. 

The other groups' presentations also connected incredibly well with our chapter. The group discussing communication in groups talked about how teamwork and conflict can affect the way people interact with one another. Since almost everyone has experience working in groups either in school, online, or at work, I could relate to that as with the presentations, they were done in groups and with people who I knew nothing about before beginning to work on it. I especially found the discussions about online groups and conflicts interesting because so much of our interactions today are now happening online through texts, games, social media, and video calls. Although people cannot always see facial expressions or hear the tone of someone’s voice through texts or calls, misunderstandings can happen much more easily. 

The final presentation focused on leadership and problem solving, and I thought it connected so well with many of the communication topics discussed throughout the presentations. Their presentation highlighted how leaders are not simply people in charge, but people who help keep discussions organized and help groups work through problems together. The discussion about shared leadership stood out to me because most group projects rely on multiple people contributing in different ways. The parts about meetings and resolving problems were especially crucial because talking about problems is one of the biggest factors in whether a group works well together or not. This presentation helped show how these ideas could actually apply in real life scenarios along with group situations. 

Overall, the presentations helped me better understand how complex communicating and interacting with others can actually be. Before this chapter and all of the presentations, I mostly viewed interactions and discussions as simply talking and listening, but the presentations showed how deeply our culture, upbringing, generation, leadership, and social experiences can influence the way we interact with one another. Even though every group focused on different topics, many of the ideas connected together naturally under the same idea that communication is important in our everyday lives. Many of the situations discussed throughout the presentations are things people have experienced before, which can help us better understand and solve problems that come with communicating with others. I personally think that these topics are important because understanding communication better can help people become more respectful, understanding, and open minded towards others. 

The last thing I enjoyed about these presentations was that many of the topics were interesting and enjoyable to listen to. Even though the presentation slides came from our textbooks, a lot of the ideas connected to situations people experience almost every day. A lot of the topics we discussed were things people genuinely deal with in everyday life. Things like generational differences, online interactions, leadership in group projects, and accessibility are all situations people experience both in school and outside of it. I think that’s what made the presentations easier to stay focused on because it felt less like studying textbook material and more like talking about actual situations people run into all the time, especially when working together.