In my original outline, I focused heavily on my personal communication skills. These are very important to me, but today I'm going to focus on how they affect the workplace at large. Many careers flat out REQUIRE good communication skills. I think that seeing examples of good or poor communication in a work environment can help refine your OWN skills for the future.
I picked a few articles on different types of workplace environments or other relevant topics. For instance, different occupations or levels of responsibility require different skills.
Managers aren't the only people who manage a group. For example, take a teacher and their students! A teacher is responsible for their class's development so they would need communication skills in many different areas.
A teacher's problem-solving skills are especially important for working through conflicts in a classroom, whether that be an actual conflict/fight between students or difficulty in understanding the material. Many students will face many different problems, so a teacher's ability to find the best solution to any given issue is critical[1]. Good communication skills from a teacher can improve students' performance, morale, understanding, and confidence.
Another article (this time surrounding nursing students) listed several examples of ineffective (sometimes called destructive) communication behaviors in the field. These include, but aren't limited to, lack of empathy, not listening, inappropriate tone, rude or dismissive language, and interrupting the other party[2]. On the other side, some positive behaviors are empathy, giving proper feedback and information, asking effective questions, sincerity, and not judging the other party[2]. (The full tables for both lists are included in the cited source. I think these in particular are worth a look.)
These behaviors are often unconscious reactions at first, and a person, especially in a field like this, has to train to control them.
Specific behaviors from a group to an individual may also have notable effects. In 2022, a study was published exploring the relationship between depressive symptoms in employees and social structures in a workplace. Unhealthy communication structures from coworkers or management can definitely worsen an employee's mental health, but this article delves into the relationship between them. Regardless of occupation, an employee will likely have lower levels of depressive symptoms when they frequently and actively interact with a close-knit group of people[3]. This is as opposed to isolation or just being present during surrounding interactions.
"...they suggest that the mental health of employees needs to be addressed systematically, not only individually."
To revisit my earlier point, this reinforced a few of my beliefs - how important communication is for work and life and how it can help refine your skills for the future. Knowing how other people react to your (possibly unconscious) behaviors and acting accordingly can help a lot to keep your relationships running smoothly. The mental health of yourself and others massively affects both parties' productivity and well-being. Whether you're a manager or an employee, keeping a healthy system by learning from other people's examples is helpful for everyone involved.
References
[1] Kavrayici, C. (2020). Communication Skills and Classroom Management Competency: The Mediating Role of Problem-Solving Skills. Journal of Teacher Education and Educators, 9(1), 125–137. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1254681.pdf
[2] Mercan, N. (2023). Examination of Nursing Students’ Communication with Life Examples: A Mixed Method Study. Journal of Education & Research in Nursing / Hemşirelikte Eğitim ve Araştırma Dergisi, 20(3), 232–240. https://doi-org.wwcc.idm.oclc.org/10.14744/jern.2021.21291
Lee, J.-H., Sato, N., Yano, K., & Miyake, Y. (2022). Universal association between depressive symptoms and social-network structures in the workplace. Scientific Reports, 12(1), 1–13. https://doi-org.wwcc.idm.oclc.org/10.1038/s41598-022-14366-9
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