Using People Styles for Interpersonal Competence

Encouraging Purposeful Reflection on Communication Behaviours

Authors

  • Tiffany Lee Smith University of North Carolina, Greensboro

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3138/cjpe.69576

Keywords:

competency, evaluator training, interpersonal skills, people styles, reflective practice

Abstract

This article revitalizes the idea of “soft skills” as an important part of evaluator training by reflecting on use of the People Styles Assessment Inventory as a reflective exercise in a course with Master’s- and PhD-level evaluation and measurement students. It provides an overview of recent literature surrounding interpersonal competency in evaluation, highlighting the need for, and lack of emphasis on, interpersonal skills in evaluation training; presents the teaching-practice context for engaging in the People Styles assessment and reflective activity; describes the People Styles model; and reflects on use of the model for training future evaluation practitioners.

References

Bolton, R. (1989). People skills: How to assert yourself, listen to others, and resolve conflicts. Simon & Schuster.

Bolton, R., & Bolton, D. G. (2009). People styles at work and beyond (2nd ed.). Amacom.

Canadian Evaluation Society (CES). (2018). Competencies for Canadian evaluation practice. https://evaluationcanada.ca/txt/2_competencies_cdn_evaluation_practice.pdf

Dewey, J. D., Montrosse, B. E., Schroter, D. C., Sullins, C. D., & Mattox, J. R. (2008). Evaluator competencies: What’s taught versus what’s sought. American Journal of Evaluation, 29(3), 267 – 287. https://doi.org/10.1177/1098214008321152

Galport, N., & Azzam, T. (2016). Evaluator training needs and competencies: A gap analysis. American Journal of Evaluation, 38(1), 80 – 100. https://doi.org/10.1177/1098214016643183

Hamington, M. (2018). Care, competency, and knowledge. In M. Visse & T. A. Abma (Eds.), Evaluation for a caring society. Information Age.

Krishnamurti, J. (1964). Think on these things. Harper & Row.

LaVelle, J. M., & Donaldson, S. I. (2015). The state of preparing evaluators. In J. W. Altschuld & M. Engle (Eds.), Accreditation, certification, and credentialing: Relevant concerns for U.S. evaluators. New Directions for Evaluation, 145, 39 – 52.

May, G. L., & Gueldenzoph, L. E. (2006). Th e effect of social style on peer evaluation ratings in project teams. Journal of Business Communication, 43(1), 4 – 20. https://doi.org/10.1177/0021943605282368

Merrill, D. W., & Reid, R. H. (1981). Personal styles & effective performance. TRACOM Corporation.

Peters, J. M., & Armstrong, J. L. (1998). Collaborative learning: People laboring together to construct knowledge. New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education, 79, 75 – 85.

Schön, D. A. (1983). The reflective practitioner: How professionals think in action. Basic Books.

Skolits, G. J., Morrow, J. A., & Burr, E. M. (2009). Reconceptualizing evaluator roles. American Journal of Evaluation, 30(3), 275 – 295. https://doi.org/10.1177/1098214009338872

Smith, T. L., Barlow, P. B., Skolits, G. J., & Peters, J. M. (2015). Demystifying reflective practice: Using the DATA model to enhance evaluators’ professional activities. Evaluation and Program Planning, 52(2015), 142 – 147.

Smith, T. L., & Skolits, G. J. (in press). Conceptualizing and engaging in reflective practice: Experienced evaluators’ perspectives. American Journal of Evaluation.

Stevahn, L., King, J. A., Ghere, G., & Minnema, J. (2005). Establishing essential competencies for program evaluators. American Journal of Evaluation, 26(1), 43 – 59. https://doi.org/10.1177/1098214004273180

Downloads

Published

2021-04-21

How to Cite

Smith, T. L. (2021). Using People Styles for Interpersonal Competence: Encouraging Purposeful Reflection on Communication Behaviours. Canadian Journal of Program Evaluation, 35(3), 403–412. https://doi.org/10.3138/cjpe.69576

Issue

Section

Research and Practice Notes