Interpersonal Dynamics (31401-03) will be offered as an IN-PERSON class this Winter Quarter 2025, meeting at BL455, Room 140 (NBC Tower) Wednesdays 2-5 p.m.
Interpersonal Dynamics (31401-81) will be offered as a REMOTE class this Winter Quarter 2025 on Thursdays, 6 – 9 p.m. (selected classes 5:30-9:30 p.m.).
In this class, you will embark on a learning journey different from any you are likely to have experienced before. The class uses the well-established T-Group (or training group) method as originally developed at the National Training Lab over 70 years ago. Participating in a T-Group is not like attending a class in statistical methods or finance. Here you will engage in a form of experiential learning or learning by doing. While each class begins with a brief lecture and one or two short exercises, the primary learning takes place in the T-Group. T-Group is an interactive, small group with no set agenda beyond what the group dynamic, choices, and interactions between members dictate. The T-Group is composed of 12 students plus the instructor and a co-facilitator and will comprise most of each class period. In addition, there will be T-group meetings outside of the regular class time, including an intensive weekend experience.
If you are interested in Section 81 (Remote) you should know that Interpersonal Dynamics has been taught successfully using a virtual platform since 2020, as the era of remote meetings and learning has developed for academia and business. Even pre-pandemic, virtual meetings have been an increasingly important means of conducting business, especially internationally. Learning how to build and sustain relationships and how to give and receive feedback in a virtual setting will increase the influence you can bring to your current company and/or companies you will work for in the future.
The focus of this course is on enhancing interpersonal communication skills to foster more effective relationships. This leadership learning laboratory offers ample opportunity to test out assumptions, determine if you are having the impact you intend, and to practice giving and receiving feedback in a productive way. In the process of becoming the most effective communicator you can be, the course calls upon you to engage in deep and sometimes uncomfortable self-exploration. The extended goals of this course are:
• To learn to use interpersonal communication skills to build more open, effective, and rewarding relationships, even with people whom you may initially experience as difficult or who are different from you.
• To identify and pursue personal learning goals aimed at improving interpersonal communications.
• To learn how you are perceived by your colleagues and how you can shift in order to present yourself such that others’ perceptions more accurately reflect what you intend.
• To identify your emotions and utilize them as an important source of information and guide to your interpersonal choices.
• To navigate the emotions of others and learn how to be more aware of and sensitive to them.
• To be aware of the varied and valuable leadership roles that emerge in the life of a group, and to articulate your own personal leadership style within the context of a group.
Improving personal knowledge and abilities in these areas is crucial to becoming a more effective leader in today’s increasingly complex, diverse, international and exceedingly interdependent business climate.
Commitment
Because of the highly interactive nature of this course, it is essential that all students make a commitment to the course from the beginning and attend all sessions. While this class focuses on “soft” skills, it is not an easy class and requires personal and academic rigor. Please take current life stressors and struggles into consideration as you decide when or whether to apply. You're welcome to reach out to me if you'd like to discuss this or have questions about whether it is good for you to apply at this time.
Course shopping is actively discouraged. Failure to attend the first class will result in an automatic drop.
Scheduling Details
Section 03 IN-PERSON Schedule
Weekly class: Wednesdays 2:00-5:00 p.m. at BL455 (NBC Tower), Room 140. Attendance at each weekly class is required. NO class November 26 during Thanksgiving Break.
Weekend Intensive Retreat: off site at the Q Center in St. Charles IL, February 13-15. Friday session begins at 6:45 pm (allow for travel time, which means a Friday early-afternoon departure from Chicago); Sunday session ends at 12:30 pm. Attendance at this retreat, in its entirety, is mandatory and non-negotiable, including remaining at the retreat center for the weekend (i.e., no commuting back and forth between T-group sessions or overnight).
Small group meetings with fellow students throughout the quarter (up to four), scheduled at mutually agreeable times by the students.
Section 81 REMOTE Schedule
Weekly class on Zoom: Thursdays 6:00 - 9:00 p.m., with extended hours of 5:30 – 9:30 p.m. on January 8, and 22; February 5 and 26; and March 5. Attendance at each weekly class is required.
Weekend Intensive Retreat (mandatory in its entirety) on Zoom, February 20-22. Friday session runs 6:00 – 9:00 p.m.; Saturday sessions 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.; Sunday session 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Small group meetings with fellow students throughout the quarter (up to four), scheduled at mutually agreeable times by the students, including one meeting during the Weekend Retreat to be held between Saturday’s morning and afternoon sessions.
Enrollment in the course is by application
Apply online. The application period opens on Monday, October 27 9 a.m. and closes Monday November 10 11:59 p.m. You will be notified of your enrollment status no later than NOON Wednesday, November 12. The more sections you indicate you can commit to, the better your chances are at landing a spot. Please only apply to sections you can commit to in terms of the required schedule. While we have increased the number of sections of this course each year, the number of applicants for this class continues to far exceed the number of openings we have for students.
Format and Course Materials
The format of the class will include discussion, experiential exercises, small-group support meetings outside of class, and short lectures, in addition to T-Group and the weekend retreat. There is one recommended text for this class (see “Materials”), and links to all other course materials will be included in the syllabus.
Information Session
View recording of 2020 Info Session for an overview of the Interpersonal Dynamics course.
