1st Edition
Interpersonal Skills for Group Collaboration Creating High-Performance Teams in the Classroom and the Workplace
This lively and engaging text introduces readers to the core interpersonal and organizational skills needed to effectively collaborate on group projects in the classroom and the workplace.
Group projects are critical in preparing students for the realities of today’s workplace, but many college students despise group work—often because they have not been prepared with the necessary skills to effectively collaborate. This guide teaches core collaboration skills such as active listening, interviewing, empathy, and conflict resolution. It examines the research and theory behind these skills, and provides tangible ways to practice these skills both alone and in groups.
This guide can be used a supplementary text for any courses involving group projects, and will also be of interest to professionals in communication, business, and many other fields.
Introduction
Chapter 1: Engaging in Conversation
Chapter 2: Listening
Chapter 3: Conveying and Monitoring Nonverbal Cues
Chapter 4: Practicing Empathy
Chapter 5: Sharing ideas
Chapter 6: Employing Creativity
Chapter 7: Managing Conflict
Chapter 8: Developing Self-Awareness
Chapter 9: Making Your Meetings Productive
Appendix A — Which Shape Are You
Appendix B — Pre-Contract Teamwork Questionnaire
Index
Biography
Tammy Rice-Bailey is an Associate Professor of Technical Communication and User Experience at the Milwaukee School of Engineering, USA.
Felicia Chong is a UX Researcher with an academic background in rhetoric and technical communication.
"Successful group work is critical in both academia and workplaces. Interpersonal Skills for Group Collaboration is a practical and useful guide for anyone responsible for ensuring positive outcomes from group collaborations!" –– Jon Kaupla, President of the Wisconsin School of Business Center for Professional & Executive Development, University of Wisconsin-Madison
"Rice-Bailey and Chong have provided a thorough yet entirely accessible text on building effective collaboration teams. Although thoroughly researched, it doesn’t clutter the students’ reading experience by dragging them (usually kicking and screaming) through a pedantic explication of academic theories; instead, it distills those theories down into pragmatic, action-oriented strategies that they actually need." –– Tharon W. Howard, Professor and Usability Testing Facility Director, Clemson University
"Interpersonal Skills for Group Collaboration is a practical guide for those who are seeking advice and strategies to collaborate effectively and mindfully on teams made up of people with diverse backgrounds. Rice-Bailey and Chong provide an accessible set of best practices and recommendations for teamwork informed by research and professional experiences." –– Jason Tham, Texas Tech University. Co-author (with Joe Moses), Collaborative Writing Playbook and Writing to Learn in Teams
"Interpersonal Skills for Group Collaboration provides a clear roadmap for working productively with groups in multiple contexts. The many suggestions and explanations meet the timely challenges we are experiencing whether connecting in-person, in classes, in workspaces, or across distance." –– Lee-Ann Kastman Breuch, Professor of Writing Studies, University of Minnesota
