Interpersonal communication exists along a continuum that ranges from impersonal to highly personal. Using your own contrasting examples, explain the distinctions between an impersonal relationship and an interpersonal one

Question

Please provide the best answer for the statement.

Answer 1

Answer: The three characteristics are role versus personal information, societal versus personal rules, and social versus personal messages. In impersonal relationships, we respond to roles and rules of society, while in interpersonal roles, we respond to others as unique individuals and follow personally established rules. In impersonal communication, we exchange little personal information, and in interpersonal relationships, we can exchange highly personal information. For example, one impersonal relationship is between a customer and a server. When you go to a restaurant, you would interact with your server as you would any other server, you would follow societal rules by maintaining a certain amount of distance between you and the server, and you would not walk away from the interaction having shared any personal information or having learned anything personal about the server. In contrast, an interpersonal relationship would be between spouses. You would interact with your spouse in a manner that you don’t interact with others, you would display physical closeness in the manner that you have established in your relationship, and you would discuss highly personal information during your conversations.