Page 57 - DENG102_COMMUNICATION_SKILLS_II

Communication Skills-II

notes 3.1.8 interview

An interview is a conversation between two or more people (the interviewer and the interviewee)
where questions are asked by the interviewer to obtain information from the interview.
Depending on the objective of the interviewer, the interviews can be of many types.

Examples: 1. Employment-related interview
2. Job interview
3. Case interview
4. Informational interview
5. Exit interview

6. Webcam interview
7. Cognitive interview
8. Stress interview
Out of all these, stress interview needs a special mention. As the name suggests, a stress interview
is conducted for assessing the ability of the interviewee to face high levels of strain or mental
pressure. Certain types of jobs, which are regarded as difficult assignments, do require the person
concerned to process relatively greater emotional and mental strength to deal effectively with
people and situations. Security forces dealing with border events, police personnel in responding
to violent mobs and arson, industrial relations personnel in organizations dealing with militant
unions, etc., are some examples of situations where an unperturbed and tactful response would
be desirable. In order to carry out the job effectively, the person concerned should be able to face
the situations boldly, keep cool even under extreme provocation, and not buckle under pressure.
This calls for a certain temperament and disposition. The members of the panel, conducting the
stress interviews are generally well versed in conducting such specialized interviews. They may
be curt and businesslike. They provoke, challenge and corner the candidate into submission or
accepting the unacceptable or find fault with the candidate’s actions.

3.1.9 Paralinguistic features

If you paid attention, while discussions, we have been referring to some paralinguistic features
every now and then. Closer to actual verbal (oral) communication, and always accompanying
body language, is paralanguage. It is non-verbal because it does not involve words. But without it
words do not convey their intended meaning, ‘Para’ means ‘like’. Hence, ‘para language’ literally
means ‘like language’ and ‘paralinguistic’ is the systematic study of how a speaker verbalizes his
words/speech. It is defined as “a type of non-verbal communication that includes articulation,
pronunciation, rate, pitch, volume, pauses and other vocal qualities”. While verbal communication
consists of the ‘what’ or the content of words, paralanguage involves the ‘how’ of a speaker’s
voice or the way in which the speaker speaks. On careful observation and analysis we find that a
speaker intentionally as well as unintentionally uses a vast range of hints and signals.
If someone asks his friend to go to movie or to a particular restaurant for dinner – one may
respond, ‘Yes, I would love to go’ but let his tone of voice betrays his words and convey that he
has little or no interest in going. The reaction of his friend to the response will communicate the
message is right direction. At times people mean to communicate a particular message through
the use of paralanguage. For example, the phrase “I would like to help you” can convey several
meanings, depending upon the para language employed. By changing emphasis on each of the
words of this sentence, different meaning may be drawn.

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