Interpersonal communication is defined as an exchange of information, feelings, and emotions between individuals. Through interpersonal communication, humans seek to achieve personal and relational goals, for which they use both verbal and non-verbal cues and techniques. Empathy, the ability to take another person’s perspective, and understanding the context of the situation are all factors that contribute to effective communication. People with excellent interpersonal communication skills are capable of building trust with others and working together. This field of psychology and communication studies is important as its practical implications may account for better cohesion in communities and mitigate conflict risks.
An interpersonal situation that made headlines a few years ago was the predicament in which Susan Fowler, a quality assurance engineer, found herself when working for Uber. Shortly after joining the company, Fowler started receiving suspicious messages from her manager who was allegedly sexually propositioning her. Unable to stop him from harassing her, she turned to the human resources department for help who also dismissed her complaints (Fowler, 2020). They gave her an ultimatum whether she leaves the team or stays but risks poor performance reviews because of whistleblowing.
What makes this interpersonal situation ethical is the violation of interpersonal and corporate boundaries that occurred. The interpersonal communication between Fowler and her manager did not comply with the principle of context. The manager did not account for the fact that the woman was his subordinate and he should not have acted on his desire to make advances. On the other hand, Fowler chose the right timing to complain about his behavior and understood the irreversibility of her actions.
The human resources management addressed the situation poorly as they made it Fowler’s responsibility to escape the predicament. They gave her a difficult choice where none of the options were favorable. By doing so, they did not attempt to use a dual perspective. Human resource managers cared about their own interests which were to retain the manager who was misbehaving but otherwise performing well. The dual perspective would also take into consideration Fowler’s feelings of safety and security in the workplace compromised by unwanted sexual attention.
Reference
Fowler, S. (2020). I spoke out against sexual harassment at Uber. The aftermath was more terrifying than anything I faced before. Time. Web.