Interpersonal Skills

Interpersonal skill is concerned with is the ability to function harmoniously with multiple individuals (social intelligence) and building relationships within groups and organization. These skills usually encompass communication skills, listening skills, attitude and deportment. Good interpersonal skills are essential for any position in an organization. It includes our tolerance to not-so –pleasant situations and differences in opinions of people, our ability to manage others by mapping their mood and our willingness to make things  work in our personal and professional life.

Interpersonal skills is a combination of both one’s intellectual (cognitive) and non-cognitive skills.

 Characteristics  of Social or community quotient

1.       Humility – understanding oneself as a vital part of a whole. Humility naturally kills competition and consumption mind sets and encourages collaboration and giving.

2.       Purpose – an individual’s commitment to life, community and family. Purpose naturally kills apathy, laziness and depression.

3.       Empathy – understands oneself in a community mindset. Empathy kills individualism, destructive – competition and careless pain.

4.       Grace – empathy is a soil from which grace emerges.

5.       Service – mindedness – service naturally kills selfishness.

Theories of  interpersonal relationship

Social Exchange Theory was proposed by George Casper Homans in 1958. According to Social Exchange Theory “give and take” forms the basis of almost all relationships though their proportions might vary as per the intensity of the relationship.

Uncertainty Reductions Theory (URT)

Uncertainty Reductions Theory ( Berger and Calabrese,1975) explains the relationship between individuals who do not know each other much or are complete strangers. According to Uncertainty Reductions Theory, two unknown individuals meeting for the first time go through various stages to reduce the level of uncertainty between them and come closer to each other. Strangers must communicate well to know each other better and find out their compatibility level. This theory presumes that “the beginning of personal relationships are fraught with uncertainties” and that the  people want to reduce uncertainty in relationships through knowledge and understanding.

Social Penetration Theory (SPT) 

 This theory is about the development of “relational closeness.” Relational closeness can progress from superficial to intimate. Closeness develops through self-disclosure. Self-disclosure is sharing with someone information which helps him or her understand you.

Equity theory 

 The theory  attempts to explain relational satisfaction in terms of perceptions of fair/unfair distributions of resources within interpersonal relationships. The equity theory was first developed in 1963 by John Stacey Adams.