I have always admired people who are a great communicator role model for the communities and their countries. These people understand the meaning of ethics, “the principles that guide our decisions about what is good or bad, right or wrong” (Dobkin & Pace, 2006). Therefore, the reason for this essay is to explain and understand why I admire several people as communicators, as well as the importance of ethics and academic integrity.
My communicator role model is my former college professor from my Sociology class. Logan Reid was the first college professor I ever had and I admired him ever since he gave his first talk. Professor Reid was a sociologist working for the State of Utah and wrote many articles about drug prevention among youth. He has degrees in Criminal Justice, Sociology, and Social Research Methods Theory.
One of the most important reasons for his class to be successful is the fact he lived in foreign countries before he became a professor. Consequently, Reid understood “communication must be civil, it must be value diversity, and it must be ethical” (Dobkin & Pace, 2006). Several of his students were form different countries and backgrounds; he valued diversity and included as well as acknowledged everybody who was different from the rest of the class.
Moreover, appropriateness, perspective-talking, and self-monitoring, are part of ethical communication. Professor Reid applied these three concepts in each class.
Appropriateness means addressing the expectations of others. The first day of class Reid asked the students what were their expectations of the class and him as a professor. In addition, he shared his expectations with the class, reinforcing the appropriate language and behavior for this class. Students and professor had to be respectful and use appropriate language when debating.
Perspective talking is the capacity to understand someone else’s point of view and their reaction to different subjects. Professor Reid understood well the concept of perspective talking when he told his story about his stay in a South American country. He explained the concept of wealthy was considerably different than the one in North America. For this reason, he found it rather easy to relate to me when I explained lifestyle and social classes in other countries I lived in.
Finally, self-monitoring is “the ability to see, think about, and act based on the consequences of your behavior” (Dobkin & Pace, 2006). Reid was great on perceiving nonverbal cues from students in his class. For instance, he would stop his lecture when he felt the students were not following what he was trying to say.
Furthermore, Professor Reid seemed to be following certain ethical communication guidelines stated by the NCA:
· We advocate truthfulness, accuracy, honesty, and reason as essential to the integrity of communication.
· We endorse freedom of expression, diversity of perspective, and tolerance of dissent to achieve the informed and responsible decision making fundamental to a civil society.
· We strive to understand and respect other communicators before evaluating and responding to their messages.
· We promote access to communication resources and opportunities as necessary to fulfill human potential and contribute to the well-being of families, communities, and society.
· We promote communication climates of caring and mutual understanding that respect the unique needs and characteristics of individual communicators.
· We condemn communication that degrades individuals and humanity through distortion, intimidation, coercion, and violence, and through the expression of intolerance and hatred.
· We are committed to the courageous expression of personal convictions in pursuit of fairness and justice.
· We advocate sharing information, opinions, and feelings when facing significant choices while also respecting privacy and confidentiality.
· We accept responsibility for the short- and long-term consequences for our own communication and expect the same of others (NCA, n.d)
A code of conduct similar to the Walden University code of conduct was expected from students and the professor himself. The Walden University Code of Conduct “addresses the university’s expectations of students in four area: nondiscrimination, no harassment, professional conduct, and academic integrity” (Walden University: Code of Conduct, 2010).
Nondiscrimination code does not tolerate discrimination against students or members of the community based on their race, color, gender, nationality, sexual orientation, age, religion, or marital status.
Nonharrassment code states Walden University does not tolerate an environment that is disrespectful and unwelcome communication or conduct. Sexual harassment can include sexual favors, inappropriate e-mails, harassing phone calls, or unwanted physical contact.
Professional Conduct code states all students conduct themselves in a professional manner with Walden staff, other students and when representing Walden University at events outside the institution.
Academic integrity is important for Professor Reid as Walden University. This code states all students and staff members agrees to respect and acknowledge the research and ideas of others in his or her work and to abide by those regulations governing work stipulated by the academic unit or academic program, and, in turn, the instructor”( Walden University: Code of Conduct, 2010).
Professor Reid checked all of his students’ papers for any evidence of plagiarism, using a database. Among academic violations, plagiarism is the use of another person’s intellectual material without acknowledge.
Another important way of plagiarized material is the student’s misuse of their own work. Reid taught several other classes that were related in so to speak. He also submitted his student’s essays to make sure they did not copy and paste old essays to the new one.
In conclusion, I have written this essay to share my understanding of my role model’s communicator and the characteristics he or she needs to have in order to be an efficient communicator. The intent of this essay was to explain the importance of ethics in communication. In order to be an efficient communicator, communication has to be civil, must respect and value diversity and it must be ethical. In addition, the communicator must understand the importance of listening and welcoming other people’s perspectives about subjects. Finally, a good ethical and effective communicator pays special attention to protect and acknowledge the intellectual work of others.
References
· Walden University. (2010). Walden University: Code of Conducts. Retrieved from Walden University, COMM 1001 website.
· NCA Credo for Ethical Communication. (n.d). Retrieved from http://www.natcom.org/Default.aspx?id=134&terms=credo%20for%20ethical%20communication
· Dobkin, B. A., & Pace, R. C. (2006). Communication in a Changing World (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Mc Graw- Hill.
