Week 9: Interpersonal Communication — Personal Relationships (outline pending)
Week of Mon, Oct 12 · week closes Sun, Oct 18
This week's items
- Week 9 reading — Interpersonal Communicationpoints in Canvas
- Interpersonal Relationships projectpoints in Canvas
Exact due times are in Canvas.
Read this week
Know these cold
- Define interpersonal communication and distinguish it from impersonal communication.
- Describe Knapp's Relational Development Model — 10 stages from initiating to terminating.
- Explain Social Penetration Theory (Altman & Taylor) — breadth and depth of self-disclosure.
- Describe the costs and rewards framework in relationship maintenance.
- Define dialectical tensions — autonomy/connection, openness/closedness, predictability/novelty — and how partners manage them.
- Explain the role of trust, commitment, and responsiveness in healthy relationships.
- Identify productive vs. destructive conflict management strategies.
- Distinguish between assertive, aggressive, passive, and passive-aggressive communication styles.
Meerk's quiz — open the Week 9 gate
10 questions, no time limit. 85% on your first attempt in a 24-hour window opens the gate. Retakes inside the window are practice — they help you learn, they don't count. Work alone; the point is to know it, not to have seen it.
Stuck?
Raise your hand. Mr. James gets a message right away and can help you remotely. Nothing else is stored — just your last name, grade, and where you're stuck.
Dinner Table Question
Ask at home: Think of a relationship in your life that has deepened over time. What role did self-disclosure play in building that closeness?
En español: Piensa en una relación en tu vida que se ha profundizado con el tiempo. ¿Qué papel jugó la autorrevelación en construir esa cercanía?