PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION

Chapter 1: Communication Processes, Principles and Ethics

By: Gold Fish Group

A. Definition of Communication
- Communication is all about getting information from one party to another.
Communication can be defined as the process or act of exchanging,
expressing or conveying information and ideas through writing, speaking
and gesturing.

B. Aspects of Communication
1. Communication is integrated in all parts of our lives
a. Academics – communication’s importance in academic settings.
b. Professional – can help you develop communication skills related to
your area of study or major.
c. Personal – our interpersonal relationships are formed, maintained and
ended through communication.
d. Civic – the civic part of our lives is developed through engagement
with the decision-making that goes on in our society at the small-group,
local, state, regional, national, or international level.
2. Communication meets needs – Information transfer is only one aspect of
communication. In ways that go well beyond the content of what we say, it
also influences our identities and interpersonal connections.
a. Physical Needs – our bodies and minds require physical necessities in
order to function.
b. Instrumental Needs – instrumental needs include those that enable us
to carry out our daily activities and accomplish our short and long-term
objectives.
c. Relational Needs – needs that support our ability to maintain social
ties and intimate connections are categorized as relational needs.
d. Identity Needs – our urge to exhibit ourselves and be perceived in
certain, desired ways is part of our identity requirement.
3. Communication is guided by culture and context – Communication is
guided by culture and context. It is anticipated by the kind of culture that
the setting demands.
4. Communication is learned – Most people have the ability to
communicate from birth, yet everyone communicates in a unique way.
This is due to the fact that communication can be learnt. As you’ve already
seen, communication styles vary depending on the situation and culture.
5. Communication has ethical implications – Another culturally and
situationally relative principle of communication is the fact that
communication has ethical implications.

C. Forms of Communication
 1. Intrapersonal Communication – it is a communication with one’s self
and that may include imagination, self-talk and visualization.
2. Interpersonal Communication – it is a communication wherein there are
two or more people exchanging information in a verbal or non-verbal form.
Under this form communication, there are two types and these are the
following:
a. Dyadic Communication – this refers to the quantitative quality of
communication relationship between two people.
b. Small Group Communication – refer to a communication consisting
of three or more that shares a common goal.
3. Public Communication – communication via broadcast, cable or satellite,
newspaper, magazine, outdoor advertising facility, mass mailing or
telephone bank to the general public or any other form of general public
political advertising. Its purpose is to advertise, inform and persuade.
There are two types of public communication and these are the following:
a. Speaker-Audience Communication – speaker-audience
communication- you communicate with the crowd and you expect a
response or feedback.
b. Mass Communication – the process of creating, sending, receiving
and analyzing messages for large groups of people using oral and
written media.

D. Models of Communication
1. Transmission Model – a linear, one-way process in which a sender
intentionally transmits a message to a receiver. (Ellis & McClintock, 1990)
2. Interaction Model – a two-way process in which participants alternate
positions as sender and receiver and generate meaning by sending and
receiving feedback within physical and psychological contexts.
3. Transaction Model – a process in which communicators generate social
realities within social, relational and cultural contexts. Under transaction
model, there are three types and these are the following:
a. Social Context – deals with the relationships between communicators
and the emotions that are presented.
b. Relational Context – the degree of depth you have with the other
person.
c. Cultural Context – refers to the values, beliefs, lifestyles and
behaviours of a group of people.

E. Types of Communication
1. Verbal Communication – the process of sending and receiving
messages with words, including writing. There are two types of verbal
communication and these are the following:
a. Oral Communication – spoken words are used. This involves an
exchange of information through face-to-face, audio and/or video
conferencing, etc.
 b. Written Communication – written signs or symbols are used to
communicate.
Factors that affect verbal communication:
a. Tone of Voice
b. Use of Descriptive Words
c. Emphasis on Certain Phrases
d. Volume of Voice
2. Non-Verbal Communication – the process of communicating without the
use of words. The communication takes place through signals. There are
types of non-verbal communication and these are the following:
a. Paralanguage – includes the non-language elements of speech, such
as your talking speed, pitch, intonation, volume and more.
b. Action Language – action language includes all gestures, posture,
facial expressions and movements that are not used exclusively as
substitutes for words.
c. Sign Language – sign language includes forms of oral speech where
numbers, punctuation and words have been supplanted by gestures.
d. Object Language – this refers to the display of material things – art,
objects, clothes, decoration of a room, physical appearance like
hairstyles and so on.
e. Tactile Language – tactile communication is communication that
oocurs via touch.
f. Space/Distance (Proxemics) – this refers to area of space and
distance that a person from a different culture, personality, age, sex
and status adopts and puts for another person.
g. Time – the use of time in a conversation, it tells you about how
punctual or disciplined a person is, or how serious the person is
regarding the matter.
h. Silence – silence serves as a type of non-verbal communication when
we do not use words or utterances to convey meanings.

F. The Communication Process

1. Sender – the sender is an individual, group, or organization who initiates
the communication. This source is initially responsible for the success of
the message.
2. Message – the information the sender is relaying to the receiver.
3. Channel – the method used to transmit a message.
4. Receiver – in the communication process, the receiver is the listener,
reader, or observer- that is, the individual to whom a message is directed.
5. Feedback – after receiving a message, the receiver responds in some
way and signals that response to the sender.
6. Adjustment – adjustment is a reaction to a miscommunication event,
whereby interlocutors attempt recovery by regulation or by correction of
the communication behaviour.
 7. Noise – noise essentially is anything that distorts a message by interfering
with the communication process.

G. Five Steps to the Communication Process in the Workplace

1. Creation – it is forming the communicative intent where the sender
generates the idea. This requires the individual who is sending the
message to decide what s/he wants to say and select a medium through
which to communicate this information.
2. Transmission – the transmission may be as simple as meeting with the
intended recipient of the message, and orally sharing the message or
calling the individual to communicate orally over the phone. If the message
is a print one, it may include distributing a paper memo or sending an
email.
3. Reception – after transmitting the message, the communication duties
change hands and fall upon the receiver of the message. The message is
obtained either from the written format the sender selected or by listening
carefully as the message is delivered orally.
4. Translation – once receiving the message, the recipient must translate
the message into terms that s/he can easily understand.
5. Response – this may be verbal and immediate, which is commonly the
case if communication is face-to-face.

H. Issues in Communication
1. Content – content refers to the information and experiences that are
provided to the receiver of the communication process. It is what the
receiver derives value from.
2. Process – refers to the way the message is presented or delivered.
3. Context – refers to the situation or environment in which your message is
delivered.

I. Principles of Effective Communication

1. Clarity – be clear of the format you want to say it in. Be clear about your
goal or purpose.
2. Attention – the principle of attention is about drawing your receiver’s
attention to your message.
3. Feedback – feedback helps understand if your receiver has understood
the meaning of the message you were trying to convey.
4. Informality – formal communication has a prominent place among the
channels of communication but informal communication is not less
important.
5. Consistency – states that communication should be consistent with an
organization’s plans, programs and policies.
6. Timeliness – good communication is time-bound. To show your message
is meaningful, you need to deliver it on time.
 7. Adequacy – the information you share with your receiver should be
complete and adequate in every respect.

J. Ethical Standards of Communication

1. Truthfulness and Honesty – truthfulness and honesty is the most core
principle of ethical communication. This means that speaking 99 percent of
the truth in a matter – while leaving out one percent of the facts – is not
ethical communication, as omitting any detail (intentionally) changes the
way that a listener will perceive an event.
2. Integrity – maintaining integrity in communication is an easy commitment
to make theoretically.
3. Fairness – fairness is the principle of communicating without judgement or
interruption and not assuming how the other person is going to respond.
4. Respect – this considered being aware of the consequences; it’s to
“respect other points of view and tolerate disagreement”.
5. Responsibility – as a communicator, you are responsible for being
prepared and being ethical.