Interpersonal Communication: Everyday Encounters
Category: Books,New, Used & Rental Textbooks,Humanities
Interpersonal Communication: Everyday Encounters Details
Review "I think the approach taken by the textbook is a good combination of communication theory and practical application of interpersonal communication principles. This makes the text easy to read and provides great examples and exercises to practice the concepts discussed so that students learn how to adapt their communication skills. … The instructor supplements also provide everything an instructor needs to develop and maintain their interpersonal communication course.""I think the approach to this book is conversational and theoretical, which enables students to clearly understand concepts while making them real to their everyday lives. This is what I want my students to do, which is why I chose to use this textbook. The previous book was too academic and dry and lacked the ability to give the concepts richness and usefulness.""The text breaks down a complicated subject into specific digestible chunks and teaches to competencies in those chunks. I think that this text does a great job with organization. This is a book I can take in order. It is a book that makes sense.""Julia Wood has quite a reputation so those who know her work might be tempted to adopt the book based on that alone. I also think people will appreciate Ms. Wood's open and honest approach. Her book is approachable and engaging and provides a very solid introduction to interpersonal communication that differs from other textbooks on the same topic." Read more About the Author Julia Wood joined the faculty at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill when she was 24. During her 37 years on the faculty, she taught classes and conducted research on personal relationships as well as gender, communication, and culture. She was named the Lineberger Distinguished Professor of Humanities and the Caroline H. and Thomas S. Royster Distinguished Professor of Graduate Education. In addition to publishing 25 books and 100 articles and book chapters, she has presented more than 100 papers at professional conferences and campuses around the country. Her accolades include 14 awards honoring her teaching and 16 awards recognizing her scholarship. She received her B.A. from North Carolina State University, her M.A. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and her Ph.D. from The Pennsylvania State University. Read more
Reviews
I generally don't comment much on textbooks because most are pretty formulaic and don't offer much in the way of engaging text. Woods' "Interpersonal Communication: Eveyday..." is an exception. Woods does a good job of explaining introductory communication concepts and terminology but, more than that, she also provides excellent context for readers to gain better insight into application of these terms and concepts t more than just a surface level. As an introductory text, a student (and professor) could do much worse than this by Woods. Even if a person just wants to learn a bit more but not get the usual, hokey and formulaic overview of interpersonal communication, this book is an excellent choice, assuming it can be had as a used book at a much lower price.The one drawback, and I don't know that it really is that much of one, is that in a couple of places it seemed there was not quite as much treatment of a topic as I might have liked. This, however, is likely due to the fact that this is an introductory text rather than an in-depth treatment of the larger subject matter.Incidentally, I have used this book at various times in my personal life when I encountered difficulty communicating with another person. As a reference guide, it helps me come up with ideas to work on and get past difficult (or sensitive) communication issues. Thus, I guess for me at least, it is a text that works well both in and out of the classroom setting. THAT is what text should do for its readers.
