Author’s Preface
Introduction to Psychology, Communication, and the Canadian Workplace
This book has been created as a custom, companion resource for PSYC-6005: Communication Psychology. PSYC-6005 is a course offered by the School of Language and Liberal Studies at Fanshawe College and is a required course in the Advanced Communication for Professionals program.
In this Open Educational Resource (OER), students will learn about key topics related to professional communication using a psychological lens. Students will have the opportunity to examine how communication and workplace behaviours are influenced by individual differences in emotion motivation, learning, memory, decision-making behaviour, and personality. In the second half of the book, we explore how these individual differences impact our interactions with others in groups and how we lead. The final chapter of the book looks outward to society and discusses ethics from the perspective of individuals and organizations.
This resource also contains case studies that will allow students to hone their critical thinking skills and apply theory to real-world scenarios. In addition, students will have the opportunity to reflect on their own knowledge, skills, and abilities using self-assessments for each chapter.
Author Acknowledgements
I would like to acknowledge the many authors who generously made their work available under a Creative Commons licence. It’s been a privilege to adopt, adapt, and re-mix your work and to create a custom resource that fits the needs of my students.
I would like to give special thanks to Andrew Stracuzzi for his guidance, keen eye for aesthetic, and attention to detail throughout this project. I couldn’t have done it without you! Thanks to Shauna Roch for her support and encouragement, especially during the initial stages of the OER process. Thanks to Davandra Earle for her work creating the ancillary resources. Thanks to Robert Armstrong for his work on graphic design. Thanks to the rest of the OER Design Studio Team at Fanshawe College for funding this project and for their support behind the scenes throughout this entire initiative. Thanks to Holly Tunstill in the School of Language and Liberal Studies for her support. Finally, thanks to the past and present students in the Advanced Communication Program who inspired me to learn more about Open Educational Resources. I hope this resource/course will start you on a lifelong path of mindful self-reflection and continuous professional growth.
Laura Westmaas, BA, MSc
Professor, Fanshawe College
