9/16/22, 12:40 PM The Nature and Elements of Communication-3: Group 42 GE-PC - PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION

The Nature and Elements of Communication-3

What is communication?
Communication is the process of transmitting information and common understanding from one person to another
(Keyton, 2011); an interdependent process of sending, receiving, and understanding messages (Dunn & Goodnight,
2011).  Further, it pertains to the exchange of information between two or more people, and it happens when one
encounters or observes a behavior (verbal or nonverbal) and gives meaning to it—a meaning ideally similar to what
is intended.

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As an interdependent process of sending, receiving, and understanding messages (Dunn & Goodnight, 2011), the
steps are interlinked, continuous, and dynamic, involving the following elements:

The sender is the encoder or the source of the message. This entity can be a person, a group of people, or an
organization with their own distinct characteristics in terms of age, race, gender, values, experiences, and other
traits.
The sender’s message refers to the ideas and feelings encoded. It may be in verbal form (words) or nonverbal
symbols (paralanguage, including pitch, tone, and volume; body language, including gestures and facial
expressions, posture, and eye movement; physical distance to the receiver, and appearance/clothing).
The receiver is the decoder or the recipient of the message who, likewise, has his or her own attributes.
The channel, also called medium, is a vehicle used in message conveyance. It is based on the form of delivery
(verbal or nonverbal) and the means used in delivering (face-to-face or technology-mediated).
Feedback pertains to the verbal or nonverbal responses to the sender’s encoded signals. It gives information on
how the message is interpreted.
Interference or noise relates to the factors that hinder the recipient’s ability to send or receive messages.
Serving as a barrier to communication, it can be external (physical environment, e.g., a loud party) or internal
(psychological/mental interference, e.g., biases and wandering thoughts; physiological, e.g., articulation problem;
semantic, e.g., jargon and abstract ideas).
Context is the situation and environment in which the communication occurs. Its dimensions are physical (place,
e.g., classroom), social (pertaining to the occasion and the people involved, e.g., students in a class), and
cultural (attitudes, beliefs, and the practices of the senders and receivers).
 

The following is a basic illustration of the communication process.

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Sources for the Images:

The best free team communication apps. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.tameday.com/best-free-team-communication-apps/
(https://www.tameday.com/best-free-team-communication-apps/)

Communication theory. (2007). Retrieved from  http://vivekbardhan.blogspot.com/2007/06/communication-theory.html

(http://vivekbardhan.blogspot.com/2007/06/communication-theory.html)

The process of communication. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://courses.lumenlearning.com/wm-organizationalbehavior/chapter/the-

process-of-communication/ (https://courses.lumenlearning.com/wm-organizationalbehavior/chapter/the-process-of-communication/)

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