Communication Skills Observation through Television Show

            The Television show that I chose to record and observe is the television show, “Orange is The New Black”, which is a Netflix premiere. I chose this particular show because I had been persuaded multiple times to watch this show, but never took into it. Therefore, I chose to use this show for my assignment.

            After the credits for the episode finished rolling, I muted my volume and began to watch. In this particular episode, I noticed a man and a woman sitting in a car together talking. Both parents looked sad as they were talking to one another. I assumed that the individuals were in a relationship. Next, the partners got out of the vehicle and walked up to a prison. The man continues to look sad as the woman begins to look around and over her shoulders with a nervous look on her face. Once they walk instead the prison, the man and woman were then stopped by a lady in a uniform, who looks very serious and stern, beckons for the lady to come forward and takes her to a room in the back. From the looks in this part of the scene, I believe that the lady is going to be searched by the officer. The lady turns around and looks at the guy, who I assume is her boyfriend, turns and looks and him while walking to the back.

            After rewinding and watching this part of the show over, I learned that the man and the woman were in a relationship, In fact, engaged to get married. The woman had gotten into some trouble years ago, which caused her to be forced to serve time in prison. The man and women were sitting in the car speaking with depressed looks on their faces because it was the day that the woman had to go to prison. The lady was nervous and afraid because she had never been to prison and didn’t know what to expect. The lady the met the man and women once they got inside, was a correctional officer of the prison and was there to take her clothing, check her body for any items that are prohibited to bring inside the prison and commanded that she changed into her prison jumpsuit. My assumptions were fairly correct in the episode and they were not difficult at all to determine the nonverbal communication at all.

 

I took the liberty of viewing the nonverbal communication, being that I was unable to hear and read the gestures and body language instead. From the five main categories of gestures and movements that convey meaning nonverbally (Ekman & Frisen, 1969), I believe that the “Affect displays” fit this particular scene perfectly. Through the facial expressions of the woman, ultimately displayed signs of “masking” from the time she was walking into the prison. “One common facial management technique is masking, replacing an expression that shows appropriate feeling for a given interaction.” (O'Hair, D., et al 2015 p104). It could possible that may assumptions would be more correct, had it been a show that I know well, simply because I have gotten to know most of the characters well and knowing their body language and facial expressions and what they usually portray when they display them.

            I learned that it is vital to be very attentive to the kinds of vides you may get from a person’s eye contact, facial expressions and body language and to not take them so personally. An “Aha” moment to my colleagues, Nonverbal communication can be tricky at times. When someone is displaying an act of sadness or frowning, it could be an act of sarcasm as well. Pay attention to all expressions of those involved to get a clearer understanding.

 

                                                                   References

O'Hair, D., Wiemann, M., Mullin, D. I., & Teven, J.  (2015). Real communication (3rd. ed). New York: Bedford/St. Martin's.