In OHS and EHS academic programs technical knowledge, skills, and abilities are covered in depth and detail. These are often referred to as "hard skills," but what about the so-called "soft skills" such as interpersonal communication (IPC)? The study's "inspiration" was based on the following observations:
The authors observed that they most frequently used their IPC skills (more frequently than their technical skills).
They wondered if others did so, too.
Their IPC education and skill development was entirely after their technical academic degrees.
They speculated if others received IPC skills education in their technical degree programs.
This paper will discuss the following aspects of our study:
Disclosures
Questions, requests, etc.
Learning objectives
Hypotheses
Study overview
Objectives/goals
Methodology
Results
Discussion
Limitations
Concluding thoughts