Communication Process, Principles and Ethics

The process of communication

Two ways to view communication
Interactional Model Transactional Model

Considerations in the Interactional Model:

Speaker- source of the idea
- From whom?
Message- The idea being communicated
- What?
Listener- Intended recipient of the idea
- For whom?
Feedback- Reaction to the idea being communicated
- What now?
Noise

 Barriers in communication
 Physical noise (environmental sounds)
 Physiological noise (illness)
 Psychological noise (beliefs, behaviors)
 Semantic noise (different meaning)
 Cultural noise (wrong explanation or non-verbal communication)

Considerations in the Transactional Model:

Communicators – participants switch roles between being senders and receivers
Takes into account the social, relational and cultural contexts of the communicators
 Social Context
 Rules – learned explicitly through parental guidance and formal education
 Norms – social conventions picked up through trial-and-error in one’s social circles
 Relational Context
 Hierarchal – one person is given higher respect than the other
 Lateral – both sender and receiver are viewed as equals
 Cultural Context
 Race, nationality, ethnicity, gender, religion, socioeconomic class, level of ability
 Underprivileged cultures are not accorded the same respect and recognition as others
Principles of Communication
 Be aware of your communication with yourself and others.
 Self-Concept- The “you” that is always there
 Self-Awareness- The “you” that you see at this moment
 Engage in intrapersonal communication with your thoughts, emotions and perceptions.
 Be present when communicating.
 Choose how you will respond, instead of reacting based on your default patterns.
 Effectively use and interpret verbal messages.
 Choose appropriate symbols to form a message, and carefully interpret messages of others.
 Effectively use and interpret non-verbal messages.
 Words have power.
 7 Types of Non-verbal Communication
1. Kinesics
2. Personal Appearance
3. Physical Environment
4. Proxemics
5. Haptics
6. Vocalics
7. Chronemics
 Look at the situational and social context.
 Notice how your body responds to the messages you receive.
 Be intentional in choosing the appropriate non-verbal messages that you will communicate.
 Listen and respond thoughtfully to others.
 Allot 70-80% of your attention the speaker and 20-30% of your attention to yourself.
 Ask (but do not question) with clear intentions – to know or to clarify.
 Pause to digest their answer before delivering a carefully considered response.
 Appropriately adapt messages to others.
 Speak your truth with love. Find common ground or set healthy boundaries, not attack them.
 Use “I” statements to inform others of how we feel and what we need, instead of accusing them.

Communicating with others: Three Contexts

 Interpersonal communication
 Between two people
 May differ based on their relationship
 Group Communication
 Collection of people with a common goal, sense of belongingness, and mutual influence
 The bigger the group, the less influence each person has on the group and the greater the chance that
subgroups will emerge.
 Works best in teams, where each individual has clearly defined roles, duties and responsibilities
 Presentational Communication
 Addresses a gathering of people to inform, persuade or entertain
 Can be done live, or can be done through mass communication where a mediated message is sent out to
many people at the same time