Assignment:
Family and Gender Communication
As you will recall from the Changing Minds article on Genderlect, family and gender relationships often reflect a variety of elements that affect how communication is conducted. For assignment, you will take the opportunity to explore this by choosing from one of the two options below and preparing a two-page paper describing the impact of either family or gender on communication, as well as your own personal communication strengths and growth.
· Option 1: Family communication:
o Watch the video, The Power of Family: Types of Families and Family Development and reflect on your own family.
o Describe how your family has influenced your communication style.
o Explain how that communication style could influence your strengths and opportunities as a human service professional.
· Option 2: Gender communication:
o Complete the Open Sex Role Inventory test and reflect on the results.
o Describe your own gender beliefs based on the results of the inventory.
o Explain how the results of the inventory, your gender strengths, might influence your communication and practice in human services.
The Family and Gender Communication Assignment:
· Must be two double-spaced pages in length (not including title and reference pages) and formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.
Required Resources
Required Text
1. DeVito, J.A. (2016). The interpersonal communication book (14th ed.).
a. Interpersonal Relationship Types (pp. 251-282)
Article
1. Burrell, T. (2018). Don't interru.. New Scientist Archive, 237(3168), 34.
o The full-text version of this article is available through Ashford University's Proquest database. This article provides information about communication skills that will assist you in your assignment and discussions this week.
Multimedia
1. Rstafffordjr. (2012, April 26). Genderlect theory by Deborah Tannen [Video file]. Retrieved from
o This 4:42 minute YouTube video clip briefly describes Linguistics professor Deborah Tannen's Genderlect theory and examples of its application
o This video will be used to support second discussion for this week.
2. Jennings, J. (Writer & Producer), & Vandiver, P. (Director). (2008). The power of family: Types of families and family development.
o This 26 minute video can be accessed through the Films On Demand database in the Ashford University Library.
o This video discusses the power of family by presenting information on the types of families and related family development and supports the assignment for this week.
Websites
1. Personality Tests: Open Sex Role Inventory
o This website provides an interactive version of the Open Sex Role Inventory, a measure of masculinity and femininity modelled on the Bem Sex Role Inventory
o This website supports assignment Option 2.
2. Changing Minds. (n.d.). Genderlect
o This webpage provides a brief overview of Deborah Tannen's concept of Genderlect, to be used in Discussion 2.