Communication:

An Introduction - Seema Murugan

Overview
What is Communication ? Communication - Definition and Quotations The Importance of Communication Communication Skills Benefits of Effective Communication Types of Communication Modes, Forms and Channels of Communication

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Overview (Contd.)
Elements of Communication The Process of Communication The Basic Model of Communication Characteristics of Communication Communication Barriers Overcoming Barriers Axioms of Communication
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What is Communication ? ( 1 of 2 )
Face to Face Conversations Phone Conversations Memos and Letters Proposals and Reports Oral Presentations Correspondence and Junk Mail Gossip
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What is Communication ? ( 2 of 2 )
Communication springs from the Latin verb communicare , which means to make common. Communication is the deepest core of our human selves. We cannot not communicate.

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Communication : Definitions (1 of 3)
Communication is the process of sending and receiving messages. Communication is not just about words, paint on canvas, math symbols or the equations and models of scientists; it is the interrelation of human beings trying to escape loneliness, trying to share experiences, trying to implant ideas. - W.Marsteller (Advertising Executive)

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Communication : Definitions (2 of 3)
Whether clear or garbled,tumultuous or silent,deliberate or fatally inadvertent, communication is the ground of meeting.It is, in short,the essential connection. -Ashley Montague and Floyd Matson Communication is the deliberate or accidental transfer of meaning.

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Communication : Definitions (3 of 3)
Communication is a continuous stream in which everything is simultaneously a reaction and an instigation, an instigation and a reaction. - Deborah Tannen (Linguist) Thats Not What I Meant Communication is a process of coding and decoding messages.

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The Importance of Communication (1 of 3) Adults spend about two-thirds of their lives communicating. Communication is our connection to the past, the present as well as the future. Communication is truly our bridge to the future, our link to the rest of humanity, and the tool we rely upon the most as we make our way in the world.
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The Importance of Communication (2 of 3) Communication is the greatest single factor affecting a persons health and relationship to others. -Virginia Satir ,The New Peoplemaking Top executives from Fortune 500 companies rate communications skills as the most important quality for business leaders. - New York Times Business Section
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The Importance of Communication (3 of 3) There may be no single thing more important in our efforts to achieve meaningful work and fulfilling relationships than to learn and practice the art of communication.- The Art of Leadership Max De Pree , Author Im surprised how so many people struggle with communication. - Michael Rook, Production Manager Hewlett Packard, San Diego, CA
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Communication Skills ( 1 of 4 )
Certain Skills and Perceptions : 1. The ability to understand and communicate with yourself. 2. Knowledge of how and why you and those whom you relate see things the way you do. 3. An appreciation of the extent to which gender, culture ,the media and new technologies affect communication.
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Communication Skills ( 2 of 4 )
4. The capacity to listen and then process the information you receive. 5. Sensitivity to silent messages that you and other people send. 6. Knowledge of how words affect you and those whom you relate. 7. An understanding of how relationships develop.
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Communication Skills ( 3 of 4 )
8. An understanding of how feelings and emotions affect relationships. 9. The ability to handle conflict by learning how to disagree by without being disagreeable. 10. An understanding of the behaviors that contribute to successful group decisionmaking, leadership and team building.

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Communication Skills ( 4 of 4 )
11. An understanding of how beliefs ,values and attitudes affect the formulation and reception of messages and the development of speaker -audience relationships. We are much better communicators when we know more about ourselves, think about how and what we communicate and act according to the changes in our circumstance and environment. - Theo Theobald
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Benefits of Effective Communication

Achieves shared understanding Stimulates others to take actions to achieve goals Directs the flow of information to help people overcome barriers to open discussion Channels information to encourage people to think in new ways and to act more effectively

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Types of Communication (1 of 2 )
1. Intra-personal Communication 2. Inter-personal Communication 3. Group Communication Communication with the self The relationship level of communication Interaction with a limited number of persons
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Types of Communication (2 of 2 )
4. Public Communication Communication designed to inform or persuade audience members 5. Mass Communication The transmission of messages which may be processed by gatekeepers prior to being sent to large audiences via a channel of broad diffusion The building of relationships 6. Online or Machine assisted Communication using computers and the internet
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Communication : Modes
Verbal Vocal Visual

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Is Communication Verbal, Vocal or Visual?

Verbal 7%

Visual Vocal 38% Visual 55% Vocal Verbal

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Basic Forms of Communication

Nonverbal Less structured, harder to classify More spontaneous, less control Verbal More structured, easier to study Conscious purpose, more control
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TYPES OF NON-VERBAL MESSAGES

Body Language or Kinesics Clothing or Artifactual Communication Voice or Paralanguage Space and distance, or Proxemic factors Color Time, or Chronemics ; and Touch, or Haptics
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Usage of Communication Channels

Listening - 45% Speaking - 30% Reading - 16% Writing - 9%

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How Oral and Written Communication Differ ( 1 of 2 )

Written communication 1. is more likely to involve creative effort, 2. has longer cycles, and 3. usually has fewer cycles.

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How Oral and Written Communication Differ ( 2 of 2 )

Writing is thinking on paper. Anyone who thinks clearly should be able to write clearly about any subject at all.
-William Zinsser (Author) On Writing Well

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Who is a Communicator?
A communicator is a person who enters into a relationship with other people. Terminology : SENDER - RECEIVER SPEAKER - AUDIENCE ENCODER - DECODER

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Elements of Communication ( 1 of 2 )
1. Sender 2. Receiver 3. Message 4. Channel Person who formulates, encodes, and transmits a message Person who receives, decodes and interprets a message The content of a communicative act A medium through which a message is sent
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Elements of Communication ( 2 of 2 )
5. Noise Anything that interferes with or distorts the ability to send and receive messages The setting Information returned to a message source The communication outcome

6. Context 7. Feedback 8. Effect

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The Communication Process

Sender has an idea Sender encodes the idea Sender transmits the message Receiver gets the message Receiver decodes the message Receiver sends feedback
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Basic Model of the Communication Process

1 . A message sent by B arrives in Ms sensory world. 2 . Ms senses pick up the message, but may also pick up competing information. 3 . Bs message is filtered through Ms unique mind and is given meaning. 4 . The meaning given may trigger a response, which Ms unique mind forms. 5 . M sends the message to B. It enters her sensory world, and a second cycle begins.
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Characteristics of Communication
1. Communication is Dynamic. 2. Communication is Unrepeatable and Irreversible.

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Communication Barriers ( 1 of 3 )
1. Physical barriers Time,physical environment, physical medium of communication Cultures, subcultures and dominant cultures Ive been there

2. Cultural barriers

3. Experiential barriers

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Communication Barriers ( 2 of 3 )
4. Perceptual barriers Perceptions differ, Conclusions not intended may be drawn Mental inertia

5. Motivational barriers

6. Emotional barriers

The personal element

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Communication Barriers ( 3 of 3 )
7. Organizational barriers 8. Linguistic barriers 9. Nonverbal barriers 10. Competition barriers The NEED TEST Words as hammers or mirrors Negative Non verbal gestures Competition for the readers attention

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Overcoming Barriers
A. Adopt audience-centered approach B. Foster open communication climate C. Commit to ethical communication D. Create lean, efficient messages

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Functions of Communication
Helps develop understanding and insight Establish and build meaningful relationships - the need for inclusion - the need for control - the need for affection Influence and persuasion
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5 Axioms of Communication
1. You cannot not communicate. 2. Every interaction has a content dimension and a relationship dimension. 3. Every interaction is defined by how it is punctuated. 4. Messages consist of verbal symbols and nonverbal cues. 5. Interactions are either symmetrical or complementary.
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Axiom One : Strategies to not Communicate

Rejection Acceptance Disqualification Communication that rejects communication efforts Willingness to receive and respond to a message Communication that invalidates a message sent

The symptom as The use of an excuse as a reason for communication not wanting to communicate

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Axiom Two : Dimensions of Communication

Content Level The information or data level Relationship Level The level of interpretation Confirmation Rejection Disconfirmation Acknowledgement and acceptance of another Communication that rejects anothers self-concept Communication that shows a lack of interest in another person
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Axiom Three : Communication

Communication had no clearly distinguishable starting point or end point. It is extremely difficult to define what is stimulus and what is response. What is stimulus for one is response for the other. Communication is circular it is a continuous , ongoing series of events.
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Axiom Four : Two kinds of Messages

1. Digital : the word level of communication 2. Analogic : the continuous stream of non-verbal cues Content of a message more likely to be communicated through the digital system, whereas the relationship level of the message through the analogic system. While one may lie with words , the non-verbal signals one emits are likely to give one away.
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Axiom Five : Kinds of Interactions

Symmetrical interaction A relationship in which the behavior of one person mirrors the behavior of another person Communication in which interactants engage in opposite behavior A relationship in which individuals compete for control A relationship characterized by fixed, unchanging roles
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Complementary interaction

Symmetrical escalation Rigid complementarity

REFERENCES
Bovees Business Communication Today Prentice Hall Lesikars Basic Business Communication TMH Bell and Smiths Management Communication John Wiley Gamble and Gambles Communication Works - TMH
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Communication : An Introduction
THANK YOU

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