Communication is the process of sharing information and expressing thoughts and emotions. How you communicate determines the quality of relationships you have with people in your environment. It can affect how you feel about yourself and others and can even contribute to your success at school or on the job. Often, how you say something is equally as important as what you say. There are four broad types of communication: passive, aggressive, passive-aggressive, and assertive. Assertive communication is the most desirable form of communication. Assertive communicators are open and honest. They are clear and direct when trying to get their point across. Unlike aggressive communicators, they respect the rights of all parties involved in a discussion. Assertive communicators stay focused on issues, not people, and they do not assess blame. They persuade people in a respectful way and create win-win situations for everyone involved. Use assertive communication when speaking with others, and expect the same from them.

Yet, communication is much more than the words you speak. Nonverbal communication can be just as important in expressing your attitudes and emotions. Nonverbal communication is the body language you use to convey meaning during interpersonal discussions. It includes your gestures, facial expressions, patterns of behavior, and posture. Read more about nonverbal communication.

Another aspect of communication is persuasive speech. Whenever you try to get people to do something or change their beliefs or behaviors, you’re engaging in persuasive communication. Most everyone uses persuasive speech in their daily lives. Because persuasive speech is almost second nature, you might not even notice that you’re speaking any differently. Read more about persuasive speech; then, work through the activity that follows.

Think about the types of conversations you’ve had in the past two to three weeks or a memorable conversation you had in the past. Then, fill in the table below as if you were writing in a journal. For each type of communication—assertive, nonverbal, persuasive—provide an example of a civic or governmental issue that you think would require this kind of communication.