Communication

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For other uses, see Communication (disambiguation). Communication is the activity of conveying information. Communication has been derived from the Latin word "communis", meaning to share. Communication requires a sender, a message, and an intended recipient, although the receiver need not be present or aware of the sender's intent to communicate at the time of communication; thus communication can occur across vast distances in time and space. Communication requires that the communicating parties share an area of communicative commonality. The communication process is complete once the receiver has understood the message of the sender. Feedback is critical to effective communication between parties.
Contents
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1 Human communication

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1.1 Nonverbal communication 1.2 Oral communication 1.3 Written communication and its historical development 1.4 Barriers to effective human communication

2 Nonhuman communication

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2.1 Animal communication 2.2 Plants and fungi 2.3 Bacteria quorum sensing

3 Communication cycle 4 Communication noise 5 Communication as academic discipline 6 See also 7 References 8 External links [edit]Human

communication

Human spoken and pictoral languages can be described as a system of symbols (sometimes known as lexemes) and the grammars (rules) by which the symbols are manipulated. The word "language" also refers to common properties of languages. Language learning normally occurs most intensively during human childhood. Most of the thousands of human languages use patterns of sound or gesture for symbols which

enable communication with others around them. Languages seem to share certain properties although many of these include exceptions. There is no defined line between a language and a dialect. Constructed languages such as Esperanto, programming languages, and various mathematical formalisms are not necessarily restricted to the properties shared by human languages. A variety of verbal and non-verbal means of communicating exists such as body language, eye contact, sign language, paralanguage, haptic communication, chronemics, and media such as pictures, graphics, sound, and writing. Manipulative Communications was studied and reported by Bryenton in 2011. These are intentional and unintentional ways of manipulating words, gestures, etc to "get what we want", by demeaning, discounting, attacking or ignoring instead of respectful interaction. Sarcasm, criticism, rudeness and swearing are examples. Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities also defines the communication to include the display of text, Braille, tactile communication, large print, accessible multimedia, as well as written and plain language, human reader, and accessibleinformation and communication technology.[1]
[edit]Nonverbal

communication
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Nonverbal communication describes the process of conveying meaning in the form of non-word messages. Research shows that the majority of our communication is non verbal, also known as body language. Some of non verbal communication includes chronemics, haptics, gesture, body language or posture; facial expression and eye contact, object communication such as clothing, hairstyles, architecture, symbols infographics, and tone of voice as well as through an aggregate of the above. Speech also contains nonverbal elements known as paralanguage. These include voice lesson quality, emotion and speaking style as well as prosodic features such as rhythm, intonation and stress. Likewise, written texts include nonverbal elements such as handwriting style, spatial arrangement of words and the use of emoticons to convey emotional expressions in pictorial form.[citation needed]
[edit]Oral

communication

Oral communication, while primarily referring to spoken verbal communication, can also employ visual aids and non-verbal elements to support the conveyance of meaning. Oral communication includes speeches, presentations, discussions, and aspects of interpersonal communication. As a type of face-to-face communication, body language and choice tonality play a significant role, and may have a greater impact upon the listener than informational content. This type of communication also garners immediate feedback.

[edit]Written

communication and its historical development

Over time the forms of and ideas about communication have evolved through progression of technology. Advances include communications psychology and media psychology; an emerging field of study. Researchers divide the progression of written communication into three revolutionary stages called "Information Communication Revolutions".[citation needed] During the first stage, written communication first emerged through the use of pictographs. The pictograms were made in stone, hence written communication was not yet mobile. During the second stage, writing began to appear on paper, papyrus, clay, wax, etc. Common alphabets were introduced and allowed for the uniformity of language across large distances. A leap in technology occurred when the Gutenberg printing-press was invented in the 15th century. The third stage is characterised by the transfer of information through controlled waves and electronic signals. Communication is thus a process by which meaning is assigned and conveyed in an attempt to create shared understanding. This process, which requires a vast repertoire of skills in interpersonal processing, listening, observing, speaking, questioning, analyzing, gestures, and evaluating enables collaboration and cooperation.[2] Misunderstandings can be anticipated and solved through formulations, questions and answers, paraphrasing, examples, and stories of strategic talk. Written communication can be clear by planning follow-up talk on critical written communication as part of the normal way of doing business. Minutes spent talking now will save time later having to clear up misunderstandings later on. Then, take what was heard and reiterate in your own words, and ask them if thats what they meant.[3]
[edit]Barriers

to effective human communication

Communication is the key factor in the success of any organization. When it comes to effective communication, there are certain barriers that every organization faces. People often feel that communication is as easy and simple as it sounds. No doubt, but what makes it complex, difficult and frustrating are the barriers that come in its way. Some of these barriers are mentioned below. Barriers to successful communication include message overload (when a person receives too many messages at the same time), and message complexity.[4] Physical barriers: Physical barriers are often due to the nature of the environment. Thus, for example, the natural barrier which exists, if staff are located in different buildings or on different sites. Likewise, poor or outdated equipment, particularly the failure of management to introduce new technology, may also cause problems. Staff shortages are another factor which frequently causes communication difficulties for an organization. Whilst distractions like background noise, poor lighting or an environment which is too hot or cold can all affect people's morale and concentration, which in turn interfere with effective communication.

System design: System design faults refer to problems with the structures or systems in place in an organization. Examples might include an organizational structure which is unclear and therefore makes it confusing to know who to communicate with. Other examples could be inefficient or inappropriate information systems, a lack of supervision or training, and a lack of clarity in roles and responsibilities which can lead to staff being uncertain about what is expected of them. Attitudinal barriers: Attitudinal barriers come about as a result of problems with staff in an organization. These may be brought about, for example, by such factors as poor management, lack of consultation with employees, personality conflicts which can result in people delaying or refusing to communicate, the personal attitudes of individual employees which may be due to lack of motivation or dissatisfaction at work, brought about by insufficient training to enable them to carry out particular tasks, or just resistance to change due to entrenched attitudes and ideas. Ambiguity of Words/Phrases: Words sounding the same but having different meaning can convey a different meaning altogether. Hence the communicator must ensure that the receiver receives the same meaning. It would be better if such words can be avoided by using alternatives. Individual linguistic ability is also important. The use of difficult or inappropriate words in communication can prevent people from understanding the message. Poorly explained or misunderstood messages can also result in confusion. Interestingly, however, research in communication has shown that confusion can lend legitimacy to research when persuasion fails.[5][6] Physiological barriers: may result from individuals' personal discomfort, causedfor exampleby ill health, poor eyesight or hearing difficulties. Presentation of information: is also important to aid understanding. Simply put, the communicator must consider the audience before making the presentation itself and in cases where it is not possible the presenter can at least try to simplify his/her vocabulary so that majority can understand.
[edit]Nonhuman

communication

See also: Biocommunication (science) and Interspecies communication Every information exchange between living organisms i.e. transmission of signals that involve a living sender and receiver can be considered a form of communication; and even primitive creatures such as corals are competent to communicate. Nonhuman communication also include cell signaling, cellular communication, and chemical transmissions between primitive organisms like bacteria and within the plant and fungal kingdoms.
[edit]Animal

communication

The broad field of animal communication encompasses most of the issues in ethology. Animal communication can be defined as any behavior of one animal that affects the current or future behavior of

another animal. The study of animal communication, called zoosemiotics' (distinguishable from anthroposemiotics, the study of human communication) has played an important part in the development of ethology, sociobiology, and the study of animal cognition. Animal communication, and indeed the understanding of the animal world in general, is a rapidly growing field, and even in the 21st century so far, many prior understandings related to diverse fields such as personal symbolic name use, animal emotions, animal cultureand learning, and even sexual conduct, long thought to be well understood, have been revolutionized.
[edit]Plants

and fungi

Communication is observed within the plant organism, i.e. within plant cells and between plant cells, between plants of the same or related species, and between plants and non-plant organisms, especially in the root zone. Plant roots communicate in parallel with rhizome bacteria, with fungi and with insects in the soil. These parallel sign-mediated interactions are governed by syntactic, pragmatic, and semantic rules, and are possible because of the decentralized "nervous system" of plants. The original meaning of the word "neuron" in Greek is "vegetable fiber" and recent research has shown that most of the intraorganismic plant communication processes are neuronal-like.[7] Plants also communicate via volatiles when exposed toherbivory attack behavior thus warning neighboring plants. In parallel they produce other volatiles to attract parasites which attack these herbivores. In stress situations plants can overwrite the genomes they inherited from their parents and revert to that of their grand- or great-grandparents. Fungi communicate to coordinate and organize their growth and development such as the formation of mycelia and fruiting bodies. Fungi communicate with same and related species as well as with nonfungal organisms in a great variety of symbiotic interactions, especially with bacteria, unicellular eukaryotes, plants and insects through semiochemicals of biotic origin. The semiochemicals trigger the fungal organism to react in a specific manner, while if the same chemical molecules are not part of biotic messages, they do not trigger the fungal organism to react. This implies that fungal organisms can differ between molecules taking part in biotic messages and similar molecules being irrelevant in the situation. So far five different primary signalling molecules are known to coordinate different behavioral patterns such as filamentation, mating, growth, and pathogenicity. Behavioral coordination and production of signalling substances is achieved through interpretation processes that enables the organism to differ between self or non-self, abiotic indicator, biotic message from similar, related, or non-related species, and even filter out "noise", i.e. similar molecules without biotic content.[citation needed]
[edit]Bacteria

quorum sensing

Communication is not a tool used only by humans, plants and animals, but it is also used by microorganisms like bacteria. The process is called quorum sensing. Through quorum sensing, bacteria are able to sense the density of cells, and regulate gene expression accordingly. This can be seen in both gram positive and gram

negative bacteria. This was first observed by Fuqua et al. in marine microorganisms like V. harveyi and V. fischeri.[8]
[edit]Communication

cycle

Main article: Models of communication

Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication

Communication major dimensions scheme

Communication code scheme

Linear Communication Model

Interactional Model of Communication

Berlo's Sender-Message-Channel-Receiver Model of Communication

Transactional Model of Communication

The first major model for communication came in 1949 by Claude Shannon and Warren Weaver for Bell Laboratories[9] The original model was designed to mirror the functioning of radio and telephone technologies. Their initial model consisted of three primary parts: sender, channel, and receiver. The sender was the part of a telephone a person spoke into, the channel was the telephone itself, and the receiver was the part of the phone where one could hear the other person. Shannon and Weaver also recognized that often there is static that interferes with one listening to a telephone conversation, which they deemed noise. In a simple model, often referred to as the transmission model or standard view of communication, information or content (e.g. a message in natural language) is sent in some form (as spoken language) from an emisor/ sender/ encoder to a destination/ receiver/ decoder. This common conception of communication simply views communication as a means of sending and receiving information. The strengths of this model are simplicity, generality, and quantifiability. Social scientists Claude Shannon and Warren Weaver structured this model based on the following elements: 1. An information source, which produces a message. 2. A transmitter, which encodes the message into signals 3. A channel, to which signals are adapted for transmission 4. A receiver, which 'decodes' (reconstructs) the message from the signal. 5. A destination, where the message arrives. Shannon and Weaver argued that there were three levels of problems for communication within this theory. The technical problem: how accurately can the message be transmitted? The semantic problem: how precisely is the meaning 'conveyed'? The effectiveness problem: how effectively does the received meaning affect behavior? Daniel Chandler critiques the transmission model by stating: It assumes communicators are isolated individuals. No allowance for differing purposes. No allowance for differing interpretations. No allowance for unequal power relations. No allowance for situational contexts. In 1960, David Berlo expanded on Shannon and Weavers (1949) linear model of communication and created the SMCR Model of Communication.[10] The Sender-Message-Channel-Receiver Model of

communication separated the model into clear parts and has been expanded upon by other scholars. Communication is usually described along a few major dimensions: Message (what type of things are communicated), source / emisor / sender / encoder (by whom), form (in which form), channel (through which medium), destination / receiver / target / decoder (to whom), and Receiver. Wilbur Schram (1954) also indicated that we should also examine the impact that a message has (both desired and undesired) on the target of the message.[11] Between parties, communication includes acts that confer knowledge and experiences, give advice and commands, and ask questions. These acts may take many forms, in one of the various manners of communication. The form depends on the abilities of the group communicating. Together, communication content and form make messages that are sent towards a destination. The target can be oneself, another person or being, another entity (such as a corporation or group of beings). Communication can be seen as processes of information transmission governed by three levels of semiotic rules: 1. 2. Syntactic (formal properties of signs and symbols), Pragmatic (concerned with the relations between signs/expressions and their users) and 3. Semantic (study of relationships between signs and symbols and what they represent). Therefore, communication is social interaction where at least two interacting agents share a common set of signs and a common set of semiotic rules. This commonly held rule in some sense ignores autocommunication, including intrapersonal communication via diaries or self-talk, both secondary phenomena that followed the primary acquisition of communicative competences within social interactions. In light of these weaknesses, Barnlund (2008) proposed a transactional model of communication.[12] The basic premise of the transactional model

of communication is that individuals are simultaneously engaging in the sending and receiving of messages. In a slightly more complex form a sender and a receiver are linked reciprocally. This second attitude of communication, referred to as the constitutive model or constructionist view, focuses on how an individual communicates as the determining factor of the way the message will be interpreted. Communication is viewed as a conduit; a passage in which information travels from one individual to another and this information becomes separate from the communication itself. A particular instance of communication is called a speech act. The sender's personal filters and the receiver's personal filters may vary depending upon different regional traditions, cultures, or gender; which may alter the intended meaning of message contents. In the presence of "communication noise" on the transmission channel (air, in this case), reception and decoding of content may be faulty, and thus the speech act may not achieve the desired effect. One problem with this encode-transmit-receive-decode model is that the processes of encoding and decoding imply that the sender and receiver each possess something that functions as a codebook, and that these two code books are, at the very least, similar if not identical. Although something like code books is implied by the model, they are nowhere represented in the model, which creates many conceptual difficulties. Theories of coregulation describe communication as a creative and dynamic continuous process, rather than a discrete exchange of information. Canadian media scholar Harold Innis had the theory that people use different types of media to communicate and which one they choose to use will offer different possibilities for the shape and durability of society (Wark, McKenzie 1997). His famous example of this is using ancient Egypt and looking at the ways they built themselves out of media with very different properties stone and papyrus. Papyrus is what he called 'Space Binding'. it made possible the transmission of written orders across space, empires and enables the waging of distant military campaigns and colonial administration. The other is stone and 'Time Binding', through the construction of temples and the pyramids can sustain their authority generation to generation, through this media they

can change and shape communication in their society (Wark, McKenzie 1997). Bernard Luskin, UCLA, 1970, advanced computer assisted instruction and began to connect media and psychology into what is now the field of media psychology. In 1998, the American Association of Psychology, Media Psychology Division 46 Task Force report on psychology and new technologies combined media and communication as pictures, graphics and sound increasingly dominate modern communication.
[edit]Communication

noise

In any communication model, noise is interference with the decoding of messages sent over a channel by an encoder. There are many examples of noise: Environmental Noise: Noise that physically disrupts communication, such as standing next to loud speakers at a party, or the noise from a construction site next to a classroom making it difficult to hear the professor. Physiological-Impairment Noise: Physical maladies that prevent effective communication, such as actual deafness or blindness preventing messages from being received as they were intended. Semantic Noise: Different interpretations of the meanings of certain words. For example, the word "weed" can be interpreted as an undesirable plant in your yard, or as a euphemism for marijuana. Syntactical Noise: Mistakes in grammar can disrupt communication, such as abrupt changes in verb tense during a sentence. Organizational Noise: Poorly structured communication can prevent the receiver from accurate interpretation. For example, unclear and badly stated directions can make the receiver even more lost. Cultural Noise: Stereotypical assumptions can cause misunderstandings, such as unintentionally offending a non-Christian person by wishing them a "Merry Christmas". Psychological Noise: Certain attitudes can also make communication difficult. For instance, great anger or sadness may cause someone to lose

focus on the present moment. Disorders such as Autism may also severely hamper effective communication.[13]
[edit]Communication

as academic discipline

Communication and Leadership

No one would talk much in society if they knew how often they misunderstood others. Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe Communication is the exchange and flow of information and ideas from one person to another; it involves a sender transmitting an idea, information, or feeling to a receiver (U.S. Army, 1983). Effective communication occurs only if the receiver understands the exact information or idea that the sender intended to transmit. Many of the problems that occur in an organization are the either the direct result of people failing to communicate and/or processes, which leads to confusion and can cause good plans to fail (Mistry, Jaggers, Lodge, Alton, Mericle, Frush, Meliones, 2008). Studying the communication process is important because you coach, coordinate, counsel, evaluate, and supervise throughout this process. It is the chain of understanding that integrates the members of an organization from top to bottom, bottom to top, and side to side.

The Communication Process

Communication That is what we try to do Speak to those near us
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Thought: First, information exists in the mind of the sender. This can be a concept, idea, information, or feelings. Encoding: Next, a message is sent to a receiver in words or other symbols. Decoding: Lastly, the receiver translates the words or symbols into a concept or information that he or she can understand.

During the transmitting of the message, two elements will be received: content and context. Content is the actual words or symbols of the message that is known as language the spoken and written words combined into phrases that make grammatical and semantic sense. We all use and interpret the meanings of words differently, so even simple messages can be misunderstood. And many words have different meanings to confuse the issue even more. Context is the way the message is delivered and is known as paralanguage it is the nonverbal elements in speech such as the tone of voice, the look in the sender's eyes, body language, hand gestures, and state of emotions (anger, fear, uncertainty, confidence, etc.) that can be detected. Although paralanguage or context often cause messages to be misunderstood as we believe what we see more than what we hear; they are powerful communicators that help us to understand each other. Indeed, we often trust the accuracy of nonverbal behaviors more than verbal behaviors.

Some leaders think they have communicated once they told someone to do something, I don't know why it did not get done. I told Jim to do it. More than likely, Jim misunderstood the message. A message has NOT been communicated unless it is understood by the receiver (decoded). How do you know it has been properly received? By two-way communication or feedback. This feedback tells the sender that the receiver understood the message, its level of importance, and what must be done with it. Communication is an exchange, not just a give, as all parties must participate to complete the information exchange.

Barriers to Communication
Nothing is so simple that it cannot be misunderstood. Freeman Teague, Jr. Anything that prevents understanding of the message is a barrier to communication. Many physical and psychological barriers exist:

Culture, background, and bias We allow our past experiences to change the meaning of the message. Our culture, background, and bias can be good as they allow us to use our past experiences to understand something new, it is when they change the meaning of the message that they interfere with the communication process. Noise Equipment or environmental noise impedes clear communication. The sender and the receiver must both be able to concentrate on the messages being sent to each other. Ourselves Focusing on ourselves, rather than the other person can lead to confusion and conflict. The Me Generation is out when it comes to effective communication. Some of the factors that cause this are defensiveness (we feel someone is attacking us), superiority (we feel we know more that the other), and ego (we feel we are the center of the activity). Perception If we feel the person is talking too fast, not fluently, does not articulate clearly, etc., we may dismiss the person. Also our preconceived attitudes affect our ability to listen. We listen uncritically to persons of high status and dismiss those of low status. Message Distractions happen when we focus on the facts rather than the idea. Our educational institutions reinforce this with tests and questions. Semantic distractions occur when a word is used differently than you prefer. For example, the word chairman instead of chairperson, may cause you to focus on the word and not the message. Environmental Bright lights, an attractive person, unusual sights, or any other stimulus provides a potential distraction. Smothering We take it for granted that the impulse to send useful information is automatic. Not true! Too often we believe that certain information has no value to others or they are already aware of the facts. Stress People do not see things the same way when under stress. What we see and believe at a given moment is influenced by our psychological frames of references our beliefs, values, knowledge, experiences, and goals.

o o

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These barriers can be thought of as filters, that is, the message leaves the sender, goes through the above filters, and is then heard by the receiver. These filters may muffle the message. And the way to overcome filters is through active listening and feedback.

Active Listening
Hearing and listening are not the same thing. Hearing is the act of perceiving sound. It is involuntary and simply refers to the reception of aural stimuli. Listening is a selective activity which involves the reception and the interpretation of aural stimuli. It involves decoding the sound into meaning. Listening is divided into two main categories: passive and active. Passive listening is little more that hearing. It occurs when the receiver of the message has little motivation to listen carefully, such as when listening to music, story telling, television, or when being polite. People speak at 100 to 175 words per minute (WPM), but they can listen intelligently at 600 to 800 WPM. Since only a part of our mind is paying attention, it is easy to go into mind drift thinking about other things while listening to someone. The cure for this is active listening which involves listening with a purpose. It may be to gain information, obtain directions, understand others, solve problems, share interest, see how another person feels, show support, etc. It requires that the listener attends to the words and the feelings of the sender for understanding. It takes the same amount or more energy than speaking. It requires the receiver to hear the various messages, understand the meaning, and then verify the meaning by offering feedback. The following are a few traits of active listeners:

o o o o o o o o o o o

Spend more time listening than talking. Do not finish the sentences of others. Do not answer questions with questions. Are aware of biases. We all have them. We need to control them. Never daydreams or become preoccupied with their own thoughts when others talk. Let the other speakers talk. Do not dominate the conversations. Plan responses after the others have finished speaking, NOT while they are speaking. Provide feedback, but do not interrupt incessantly. Analyze by looking at all the relevant factors and asking open-ended questions. Walk others through by summarizing. Keep conversations on what others say, NOT on what interests them. Take brief notes. This forces them to concentrate on what is being said.

Feedback
When you know something, say what you know. When you don't know something, say that you don't know. That is knowledge. Kung Fu Tzu (Confucius) The purpose of feedback is to alter messages so the intention of the original communicator is understood by the second communicator. It includes verbal and nonverbal responses to another person's message. Providing feedback is accomplished by paraphrasing the words of the sender. Restate the sender's feelings or ideas in your own words, rather than repeating their words. Your words should be saying, This is what I understand your feelings to be, am I correct? It not only includes verbal responses, but also nonverbal ones. Nodding your head or squeezing their hand to show agreement, dipping your eyebrows shows you don't quite understand the meaning of their last phrase, or sucking air in deeply and blowing it hard shows that you are also exasperated with the situation. Carl Rogers listed five main categories of feedback. They are listed in the order in which they occur most frequently in daily conversations. Notice that we make judgments more often than we try to understand:

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Evaluative: Making a judgment about the worth, goodness, or appropriateness of the other person's statement. Interpretive: Paraphrasing attempting to explain what the other person's statement means. Supportive: Attempting to assist or bolster the other communicator. Probing: Attempting to gain additional information, continue the discussion, or clarify a point. Understanding: Attempting to discover completely what the other communicator means by her statements.

Imagine how much better daily communications would be if listeners tried to understand first, before they tried to evaluate what someone is saying.

Nonverbal Behaviors of Communication

To deliver the full impact of a message, use nonverbal behaviors to raise the channel of interpersonal communication:

Eye contact: This helps to regulate the flow of communication. It signals interest in others and increases the speaker's credibility. People who make eye contact open the flow of communication and convey interest, concern, warmth, and credibility. Facial Expressions: Smiling is a powerful cue that transmits happiness, friendliness, warmth, and liking. So, if you smile frequently you will be perceived as more likable, friendly, warm and approachable. Smiling is often contagious and people will react favorably. They will be more comfortable around you and will want to listen more. Gestures: If you fail to gesture while speaking you may be perceived as boring and stiff. A lively speaking style captures the listener's attention, makes the conversation more interesting, and facilitates understanding. Posture and body orientation: You communicate numerous messages by the way you talk and move. Standing erect and leaning forward communicates to listeners that you are approachable, receptive and friendly. Interpersonal closeness results when you and the listener face each other. Speaking with your back turned or looking at the floor or ceiling should be avoided as it communicates disinterest. Proximity: Cultural norms dictate a comfortable distance for interaction with others. You should look for signals of discomfort caused by invading the other person's space. Some of these are: rocking, leg swinging, tapping, and gaze aversion.

Vocal: Speaking can signal nonverbal communication when you include such vocal elements as: tone, pitch, rhythm, timbre, loudness, and inflection. For maximum teaching effectiveness, learn to vary these six elements of your voice. One of the major criticisms of many speakers is that they speak in a monotone voice. Listeners perceive this type of speaker as boring and dull.

Speaking Hints
Speak comfortable words! William Shakespeare

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When speaking or trying to explain something, ask the listeners if they are following you. Ensure the receiver has a chance to comment or ask questions. Try to put yourself in the other person's shoes consider the feelings of the receiver. Be clear about what you say. Look at the receiver. Make sure your words match your tone and body language (nonverbal behaviors). Vary your tone and pace. Do not be vague, but on the other hand, do not complicate what you are saying with too much detail. Do not ignore signs of confusion.

On Communication Per Se a few random thoughts

Mehrabian and the 7%-38%-55% Myth
We often hear that the content of a message is composed of:

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55% from the visual component 38% from the auditory component 7% from language

However, the above percentages only apply in a very narrow context. A researcher named Mehrabian was interested in how listeners get their information about a speaker's general attitude in situations where the facial expression, tone, and/or words are sending conflicting signals. Thus, he designed a couple of experiments. In one, Mehrabian and Ferris (1967) researched the interaction of speech, facial expressions, and tone. Three different speakers were instructed to say maybe with three different attitudes towards their listener (positive, neutral, or negative). Next, photographs of the faces of three female models were taken as they attempted to convey the emotions of like, neutrality, and dislike. Test groups were then instructed to listen to the various renditions of the word maybe, with the pictures of the models, and were asked to rate the attitude of the speaker. Note that the emotion and tone were often mixed, such as a facial expression showing dislike, with the word maybe spoken in a positive tone. Significant effects of facial expression and tone were found in that the study suggested that the combined effect of simultaneous verbal, vocal and facial attitude communications is a weighted sum of their independent effects with the coefficients of .07, .38, and .55, respectively.

Mehrabian and Ferris caution their readers about the limitation to their research, These findings regarding the relative contribution of the tonal component of a verbal message can be safely extended only to communication situations in which no additional information about the communicator/addressee relationship is available. Thus, what can be concluded is that when people communicate, listeners derive information about the speaker's attitudes towards the listener from visual, tonal, and verbal cues; yet the percentage derived can vary greatly depending upon a number of other factors, such as actions, context of the communication, and how well the communicators know each other.

Paul Ekman
In the mid 1960s, Paul Ekman studied emotions and discovered six facial expressions that almost everyone recognizes world-wide: happiness, sadness, anger, fear, disgust, and surprise. Although they were controversial at first (he was booed off the stage when he first presented it to a group of anthropologists and later called a fascist and a racist) they are now widely accepted. One of the controversies still lingering is the amount of context needed to interpret them. For example, if someone reports to me that they have this great ideal that they would like to implement, and I say that would be great, but I look on them with a frown, is it possible that I could be thinking about something else? The trouble with these extra signals is that we do not always have the full context. What if the person emailed me and I replied great (while frowning). Would it evoke the same response?

Emotions
Trust your instincts. Most emotions are difficult to imitate. For example, when you are truly happy, the muscles used for smiling are controlled by the limbic system and other parts of the brain, which are not under voluntary control. When you force a smile, a different part of the brain is used the cerebral cortex (under voluntary control), hence different muscles are used. This is why a clerk, who might not have any real interest in you, has a fake look when he forces a smile. Of course, some actors learn to control all of their face muscles, while others draw on a past emotional experience to produce the emotional state they want. But this is not an easy trick to pull off all the time. There is a good reason for this part of our emotions evolved to deal with other people and our empathic nature. If these emotions could easily be faked, they would do more harm than good (Pinker, 1997). So our emotions not only guide our decisions, they can also be communicated to others to help them in their decisions... of course their emotions will be the ultimate guide, but the emotions they discover in others become part of their knowledge base.

On Discussing Communication
Trying to speak of something as messy as communication in technical terms seems to be another form of the 'math and science' argument, that is, math, science and technology are the answer to all of our problems. Anonymous But what forms of human behavior are not messy? Learning is not antiseptic, yet it is discussed all the time we do not leave it to the academics, such as Bloom, Knowles, Dugan, or Rossett. Leadership and management seems to be even messier, yet we categorize it, build models of it, index it, chop it and slice it and dice it, build pyramids out of it, and generally have a good time discussing it. But when it comes to communication, we call it too messy to play with and leave it up to Chomsky, Pinker, and others to write about so that we can read about it. Yet we all communicate almost every single day of our lives, which is much more than we will ever do with learning or leadership.

Communication is defined as a process by which we assign and convey meaning in an attempt

to create shared understanding. This process requires a vast repertoire of skills in intrapersonal and interpersonal processing, listening, observing, speaking, questioning, analyzing, and evaluating. Use of these processes is developmental and transfers to all areas of life: home, school, community, work, and beyond. It is through communication that collaboration and cooperation occur. Fundamental Beliefs About Curriculum and Assessment - If there is one unifying theme that crosses all disciplines, it is communication. Communication is our window to basic literacy and academic excellence. Reaching levels of excellence and accuracy of expression mandate mastery of formal English. These are the capabilities that cultivate the potential in each student and the possibilities for our future.

The History of Communication

3500 BC to 2900 BC

The Phoenicians develop an alphabet. The Sumerians develop cuneiform writing - pictographs of accounts written on clay tablets. The Egyptians develop hieroglyphic writing. Greeks use a phonetic alphabet written from left to right. Oldest record of writing in China on bones. The first encyclopedia is written in Syria. The very first postal service - for government use in China. First recorded use of homing pigeons used to send message - the winner of the Olympic Games to the Athenians. The Greeks start the very first library. Papyrus rolls and early parchments made of dried reeds - first portable and light writing surfaces.

1775 BC 1400 BC 1270 BC 900 BC 776 BC

530 BC 500 BC to 170 BC

200 BC to 100 BC

Human messengers on foot or horseback common in Egypt and China with messenger relay stations built. Sometimes fire messages used from relay station to station instead of humans.

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Romans establish postal services. Heliographs - first recorded use of mirrors to send messages by Roman Emperor Tiberius. First bound books Tsai Lun of China invents paper as we know it.

100 105 BC 305

First wooden printing presses invented in China - symbols carved on a wooden block.

1049 First movable type invented - clay - invented in China by Pi Sheng. 1450 1455 1560
Newspapers

appear in Europe. invents a printing press with metal movable type.

Johannes Gutenberg Camera Obscura

invented - primitive image making.

newspaper

1650 First daily

- Leipzig.
typewriter.

1714 Englishmen, Henry Mill receives the first patent for a 1793
Claude Chappe

invents the first long-distance semaphore (visual or optical) telegraph

line. 1814 1821 1831

Joseph Nicphore Nipce Charles Wheatstone Joseph Henry

achieves the first photographic image.

reproduces sound in a primitive sound box - the first microphone.

invents the first electric telegraph.

Morse code.

1835 Samuel Morse invents 1843

Samuel Morse

invents the first long distance electric telegraph line. Alexander Bain patents the first fax machine.

1861 United States starts the Pony Express for mail delivery. Coleman Sellers invents the Kinematoscope - a machine that flashed a series of

still photographs onto a screen. 1867 American, Sholes the first successful and modern
typewriter.

1876 Thomas Edison patents the mimeograph - an office copying machine. Alexander Graham Bell patents the electric telephone. Melvyl Dewey writes the Dewey Decimal System for ordering library books. 1877 patents the phonograph - with a wax cylinder as recording medium. invents high speed photography - creating first moving pictures that captured motion.
Thomas Edison Eadweard Muybridge gramophone

1887 Emile Berliner invents the over and over again. 1888 1889 1894
George Eastman Almon Strowger

- a system of recording which could be used

patents Kodak roll film camera. patents the direct dial telephone or automatic telephone exchange. improves wireless telegraphy.

Guglielmo Marconi

1898 First 1899

telephone answering machines.

invents the first magnetic recordings - using magnetized steel tape as recording medium - the foundation for both mass data storage on disk and tape and the music recording industry. Loudspeakers invented.
Valdemar Poulsen

1902 Guglielmo Marconi transmits radio signals from Cornwall to Newfoundland - the first radio signal across the Atlantic Ocean. 1904 First regular 1906
Lee Deforest comic books.

invents the electronic amplifying tube or triode - this allowed all electronic signals to be amplified improving all electronic communications i.e. telephones and radios.
talking motion picture.

1910 Thomas Edison demonstrated the first

1914 First cross continental telephone call made. 1916 First radios with tuners - different stations. 1923 The television or iconoscope (cathode-ray tube) invented by Vladimir Kosma Zworykin - first television camera. 1925
John Logie Baird

transmits the first experimental television signal.

1926 Warner Brothers Studios invented a way to record sound separately from the film on large disks and synchronized the sound and motion picture tracks upon

playback - an improvement on Thomas Edison's work. 1927 NBC starts two radio networks. CBS founded. First television broadcasts in England. Warner Brothers releases "The Jazz Singer" the first successful talking

motion picture.

1930 Radio popularity spreads with the "Golden Age" of radio. First television broadcasts in the United States. Movietone system of recording film sound on an audio track right on the film invented. 1934 invents the first tape recorder for broadcasting - first magnetic recording.
Joseph Begun Television

1938

broadcasts able to be taped and edited - rather than only live.

television

1939 Scheduled

broadcasts begin.

1944 Computers like Harvard's Mark I put into public service - government owned - the age of Information Science begins. 1948 Long playing record invented - vinyl and played at 33 rpm. Transistor invented - enabling the miniaturization of electronic devices. 1949 Network television starts in U.S. 45 rpm record invented. 1951
Computers

are first sold commercially.

1958 Chester Carlson invents the photocopier or Xerox machine. Integrated Circuit invented - enabling the further miniaturization of electronic devices and computers. 1963
Zip codes

invented in the United States.

fax machine.

1966 Xerox invents the Telecopier - the first successful 1969

ARPANET

- the first Internet started.

1971 The computer floppy disc invented. The microprocessor invented - considered a computer on a chip. 1972 HBO invents pay-TV service for cable. 1976 home computer invented. First nationwide programming - via satellite and implemented by Ted Turner.
Apple I cellular phone

1979 First

communication network started in Japan..

1980 Sony Walkman invented. 1981 first sold. First laptop computers sold to public. Computer mouse becomes regular part of computer.
IBM PC

1983 Time magazines names the computer as "Man of the Year." First cellular phone network started in the United States. 1984 released. IBM PC AT released.
Apple Macintosh

1985

in cars become wide-spread. CD-ROMs in computers.

Cellular telephones

1994 American government releases control of internet and WWW is born - making communication at lightspeed.

History of Communication - Inventions Writing Instruments Printing Typewriter Photography Telephone The Telegraph and Telegraphy Fiber Optics History of Modems Radio Television Motion Pictures Computers and Internet

History of Communication - Related Timelines Timeline of Computers Timeline of Photography Timeline of Significant Dates in Post Office History Timeline of Telecommunications Dates in the History of Cultural Technologies Timeline of Communication History History of Communications Infrastructures Media Timelines The Future of Media

Different Types of Human Communication

Most animals communicate with each other in some way. Dogs bark at those they perceive as a threat in order to communicate their hostility and in some cases the threat that they will attack if provoked; bees have a pouch in which they carry the scent of their hive so as to identify themselves as members of the community. However, it is only in humans that communication breaks off into different types of communication: verbal and non-verbal, and formal and informal.

Verbal communication is just what one would expect from the name: communication using words, and in some cases written characters. There are subcategories for verbal communication, depending on who is at the receiving end of the communication. The main division is between interpersonal communication, in which one person speaks directly to another person, and public or group speaking, in which one person speaks to a large group. From here, the intention of the person speaking breaks it down into still further categories depending on whether they are trying to persuade the listener or listeners to think or act in a certain way, to convey information in the clearest manner possible, or even to entertain. However, in many cases, the intentions of the speaker will overlap: speakers may want to persuade, inform, and entertain their audiences all at the same time. Sometimes, they may even be unaware of what their true intentions are themselves. Non-verbal communication is the type that is more similar to what the dogs and bees mentioned above do. Non-verbal communication includes all the information we convey to others, whether consciously or subconsciously, without actually using any words. Probably the most ubiquitous example of non verbal communication is that of facial expressions. For example, when a person rolls their eyes at someone, they are expressing skepticism about what the speaker said. They are not using any words to convey this message, but using their understanding of the non-verbal cues they can send that message without having to explicitly say, I really find what you are saying unbelievable. Not all facial expressions are so calculated though: there are those like smiles that come naturally when someone is happy, and indicate this to others. Beyond these more explicit examples, there are more subtle instances of non-verbal communication. For example, clothing: just as the male peacock uses a vibrant display of his colorful feathers to signal to a potential mate that he is a desirable choice, people use clothing in order to send messages about themselves (whether they are true or not). In this vein, a man going to a job interview will usually wear a suit and tie in order to convey the idea that he is a very professional person. Unlike facial expressions, this kind of non-verbal communication is more like verbal communication because it is arbitrary there is no intrinsic reason why a suit and tie should convey the idea of professionalism any more than a Japanese kimono would. It is simply that it has become a cultural norm that a suit and tie is what a professional person wears, and as such it becomes a symbol and a means of non-verbal communication.

Formal communication is more strongly associated with large and small group speaking. It is more rule bound, and is more centered on the speaker getting some kind of result. For example, speaking to a board room full of business executives in order to convince them to accept a marketing strategy is an example of formal communication: what is said and how it is said is rulebound to what is considered appropriate for the setting, and it is directed toward the specific end of getting the executives to accept the ad campaign. Furthermore, their are instances of symbolic non-verbal communication, such as the wearing of business attire in order to appear professional. Informal communication is associated with interpersonal communication. While it is still rule bound by the social norms of the those communicating, there is much more room for the speaker to be free in what he or she says. Informal communication is also much less tied to specific ends: in many cases, it takes place simply for the speaker to express what they think and feel about anything in particular, and the speaking is undertaken as an end it itself. It is a much more emotionally involved form of

communication, in large part because there is less emphasis on symbolic non-verbal communication and more emphasis on saying what one really feels. Although these various types of communication are very different, they are all indispensable tools for communicating with and understanding others. In order to be able to look at others and truly appreciate what they are trying to convey and whether what they are saying has any value, one needs to have a thorough understanding of all types.

WHAT IS EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION?

45 COMMENTS

Apr 26, 2011 | By Barbara Brown

Photo Credit Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of rochelle hartman Communication is the process of sharing information, thoughts and feelings between people through speaking, writing or body language. Effective communication extends the concept to require that transmitted content is received and understood by someone in the way it was intended. The goals of effective communication include creating a common perception, changing behaviors and acquiring information.

COMPONENTS
The act of communication begins with internal processing about information or feelings you want to share with someone else (called encoding). After encoding, the message is sent through either spoken or written words, which completes encoding. At the other end of communication is receiving and interpreting what was sent (called decoding). The recipient can and should confirm receipt to the sender to close the communication loop.

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CONTEXT

Considering the context of communication improves its effectiveness. Context takes into consideration the age, region, sex and intellectual abilities of the recipient. It is also useful to assess receptivity and the emotional state of the sender and receiver at the time of communication. For example, when speaking to an elementary school child about the importance of brushing teeth, you should choose different words and examples than you would when talking to a teenager or an adult.

BODY LANGUAGE
Also called nonverbal communication, body language includes posture, position of hands and arms, eye contact and facial expression. Children learn to read body language as a way to enhance understanding of the speaker's intent. Body language that is consonant with the verbal content improves understanding. Body language that is inconsistent with content creates a question in the mind of the listener about the real message. For example, someone may be saying, "I really want to hear your opinion on this." However if the person is looking away, has his arms folded or is typing a text message at the same time, his body language communicates an entirely different message. Effective communication requires that content and body language give the same message.

INTERFERENCE
Emotions can interfere with effective communication. If the sender is angry, his ability to send effective messages may be negatively affected. In the same way, if the recipient is upset or disagrees with the message or the sender, he may hear something different that what was intended by the sender. Considering emotions, language and conceptual barriers is essential to effective communication.

ACTIVE LISTENING
Effective communication is a reciprocal process that includes listening. Successful listening requires eye contact, objective processing and feedback to the speaker. Active listening may involve asking clarifying questions or restating what was heard to assure that the intent of the message sent was correctly received. Active listening becomes particularly important when the communication includes emotional content. For example, if your teenage son says, "My English teacher hates me," an active listening response might ask for examples or paraphrase the emotional content by saying, "Sounds like you are having a tough time in English class."

Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/69309-effective-communication/#ixzz1sZT8uF4w

Communication Barrier #1 Lack of Enthusiasm

Do you really believe your product is better than the competitions? Do you look as confident as yousay you are? The benefits of your product will not be believable if you dont communicate your passion, enthusiasm, and commitment through your facial expressions.

How to Avoid This Barrier: Show Some Enthusiasm

Begin paying attention to the type of facial expressions you use and when you use them. You may not be aware of when you frown, roll your eyes, or scowl.

Make sure your facial expressions are appropriate based on your topic, listeners and objective. When youre smiling while communicating a serious or negative message, you create a discrepancy between your facial expression and your message. The same discrepancy applies when youre communicating a positive message without facial expressions.

Once you have increased your awareness of facial expressions, practice the skill of incorporating them into your message, matching the appropriate expression to each situation. You wouldnt want to have a stone-cold look on your face when you are expressing your passion for your companys products.

Communication Barrier #2 Distracting Gestures

The majority of individuals I work with fidget with their fingers, rings, pen the list goes on. If they dont fidget, then they unconsciously talk with their hands. Their elbows get locked at their sides and every gesture looks the same. Or theyve been told they talk with their hands so they hold their hands and do nothing. Throughout the day, notice how you and others use gestures.

Do you talk with your hands or gesture too often? If youre constantly using gestures, youre not able to think on your feet and youre creating static.

Do your gestures have purpose? Ask for constructive feedback from friends, family and co-workers: When I gesture do I look like Im talking with my hands? Do I use gestures too often or not enough?

How to Avoid This Barrier: Use Gestures for Emphasis

Confident speakers use gestures to add emphasis to their words. To gesture with purpose, avoid locking your elbows at your sides or creating the same repetitious gestures. Instead, expand your gestures from your sides and let your hands emphasize and describe your message. Add variety to your gestures by relaxing your arms back to your sides after you complete a gesture.

Static is created when what you say is inconsistent with how you say it.
Benefits include:

When your gestures create a visual for your listeners, theyll remember more information and will remember your message longer.

Gestures will grab your listeners attention.

Gestures add energy and inflection to your voice and channel your adrenaline and nervous energy.

Communication Barrier #3 Lack of Focus

The more you add information that isnt necessary, the greater the risk your listeners will misinterpret your point.

How to Avoid This Barrier: Stay Focused

1. When you begin to say too much and feel like a train about to derail, put the brakes on and get yourself back on track PAUSE! 2. Keep your objective in mind. Think in terms of what your listener needs to know about what you want them to do, not what you want to tell them. 3. 4. 5. Put thought into your words. Focus your message on three significant points. Pay attention to your listener. Are they hanging on your every word or are they dazed? Are they attentive or fidgeting?

Communication Barrier #4 Using PowerPoint as a Crutch

The more you add information that isnt necessary, the greater the risk your listeners will misinterpret your point.
PowerPoint isnt designed to serve as your notes. The purpose of visual aids is to enhance and support your message through pictures and illustrations.

How to Avoid This Barrier: Design VisualAids, not Wordy Slides

How you design your visual aids will determine your ability to stay connected with your listener.

Create PowerPoint slides with more pictures and fewer words. Ask yourself, Why am I using this PowerPoint slide? Identify how your PowerPoint slide best supports your message based on the following criteria: Listener expectations and needs. Listener experience and knowledge level.

Objectives. Time frame. Number of participants. Save details for handouts. Your listeners will appreciate a conversational approach with interaction accompanied by take-aways they may use as a resource.

Stay away from software overkill. If youre clicking the mouse every few seconds, your visual aids are the message and you are the backup.

If youve been using the same PowerPoint design for more than six months, its time to make a change! Stop disconnecting with your listener by talking to your visual aids. Only speak when you see eyes! Pause when you refer to your visual aids and stay connected with your listener.

Communication Barrier #5 Verbal Static

Um what perception like do you create you know when you hear um a speaker usinguh words that clutter you know their language? Knowledgeable, credible and confident are labels which probably dont come to mind. As I travel the country, the number one challenge individuals need to overcome to increase their influence is the ability to replace non-words with a pause. We use non-words to buy ourselves time to think about what we want to say. These words are distracting and your listener misses your message.

How to Avoid This Barrier: Eliminate Filler Words

PowerPoint isnt designed to serve as your notes. The purpose of visual aids is to enhance and support your message through pictures and illustrations.
Benefits for you:

Think on your feet. Get to the point and avoid rambling. Take a relaxing breath. Hold your listeners attention. Gain control over your message. Benefits for listener:

Hear, understand and respond.

Act on what you say.

Communication Barrier #6 Lack of Eye Connection

The only way to build a relationship is through trust. When you forget what to say, you will look at the ceiling, floor, PowerPoint slides or anywhere away from your listener. When you disconnect youll say: uh um so and, etc.

How to Avoid This Barrier: Keep Your Eyes On Your Audience

When speaking to more than two individuals, connect with one individual for a complete sentence or thought. Take a moment to pause as you transition your eyes from one individual to another. When rehearsing, ask your listener to immediately give you feedback when you look away from them while youre speaking.

Types of Communication
There are several types of communication to define and discuss. The purpose of communication is to transfer information between two or more different parties, and is most successful when it is a two-way process between sender and receiver. This transfer can occur in many ways and those can be categorized along several lines. Interaction and exchange with those around us a fundamental component of maintaining a healthy lifestyle. One of the primary benefits of communication is collaboration and cooperation between parties, allowing for idea team building and idea building. Allows individuals to work together towards a common objective more effectively. The context in which communication is taking place is often the primary driver of which communication type is used. Verbal Communication Verbal communication is the most common and most important form of communication, and is associated with the transmittance of language or words between two or more parties. This type of interaction is primarily comprised of spoken words and written words however it also includes any interaction that results in words being communicated. For verbal communication to be effective the sender and receiver must share the same language and, less importantly, the same syntax. In some cases the interacting parties will share the same root language but have difficulty communicating due to differences in accent, grammatical structure, or use of slangs. Verbal communication can vary in form; for instance it can be formal or informal, or personal or impersonal. Oral Communication Speaking is considered the best way to coherently and quickly communicate information, yet problems can still exist with orally transmitted messages unless effective speaking skills are developed. When speaking the sender must be mindful of tone, pitch, volume, diction, and

annunciation. It is quite possible that the receiver may misunderstand or misinterpret what was said unless particular care is taken. Of course, the importance of the information being transmitted dictates the level of emphasis the sender should place on its effectiveness. When speaking there are also nonverbal elements that may an integral role in how effectively the message is transmitted, including voice quality, pitch, volume, and intonation. These elements are known collectively as para-language. Written Communication Using written language or words to convey a message is another prevalent type of communication. The prehistoric use of pictographs, prior to the creation of alphabets, is the earliest known form of written communication. The adoption of standardized alphabets allows for consistency and uniformity in written communication. Like the oral type there are formal and informal forms of written communication; for example, a curriculum vitae constitutes formal use of written language, while SMS-texting is a prevalent example of informal written communication. Sign Language Sign language is another form of verbal communication because of its use of words to convey a message. While no words are spoken or written, individual signs are assigned to a specific words in a language, and then signed appropriately to convey structured, coherent information. Advantages Uniformity of meaning when utilizing a common language Fast and typically inexpensive Specific to speaking: direct and immediate feedback Dis-advatanges There are sometimes cultural differences in what certain words in a common language mean. Certain cultures apply additional meanings to some words, which becomes prevalent and dominant associations. Nonverbal Communication Nonverbal communication is the process of transmitting wordless signals between two or more parties. Despite not using words and in some cases sound, nonverbal communication can result in an immediate connection between sender and receiver. Examples of nonverbal communication include a) reading facial impressions including eye contact, b) body language including posture, stance, and movement, c) gestures and touch, handshakes, high fives, d) grunts, sighs, sounds used to convey a meaning, e) para-language, and f) Space and time language; the concept that we can communicate something without writing it, speaking it, or showing it. for instance, buying a big house communicates social status. Advantages A large proportion of non-verbal communication is universal across different cultures. For example, facial gestures expressing feels of anger, fear, and happiness are almost universal throughout the world. Develops intimacy with other parties beyond the standard message being conveyed; demonstrates interest in the interaction Disadvantages Nonverbal cues can sometimes contradict the intended meaning of the verbal communication It is difficult to conceal at times when the individual would like to disguise it In most of its forms it can only be used if those individuals you are communicating with can see you

Difficult if not impossible to convey complex ideas Other Communication Visual Communication The conveyance of a message and information in forms that can be seen by the eye, primarily involving two-dimensional images. Visual communication is a powerful accompaniment to text or spoken word when attempting to convey a message. Studies have shown that individuals respond more positively when visual communication is combined with other forms of verbal communication, and are more likely to be educated or influenced by the message. The most common examples of visual communication are typography and illustration. An interesting concept within the visual communication type is the use of clothing and sense of style to communicate a statement, feeling, or sentiment.