Organizational Behavior in Hospital Setting

Unit 6 Communication
Definitions for communication
Communication is vital to organizations—it’s how we coordinate actions and achieve goals.
It is defined in Webster’s dictionary as a process by which information is exchanged between
individuals through a common system of symbols, signs, or behavior.
There are and have been various general definitions of communication: Beattie & Ellis
(2014) defines communication as the human language that is used to transmit information,
whilst the World Book Dictionary (1980) defines it as “a giving of information or news by
speaking or writing“(1980: 420). Beals & Hoijer (1953) state that communication has the
main function of bolstering ideas and beliefs (1953: 548) and Hellriegel & Slocum (2002)
define communication as that instrument which leaders use to direct the activities of others.
Communication is often described as the, social glue “that holds the organization together
(Alvesson, 2002) and, the nervous system“(Davis, 1953) of any organized group. Bavelas &
Barrett (1951) argue that communication is the most fundamental activity in an organization
and it is the basis of all the functions of an organization (1951: 253). As such, organizational
activities cannot be coordinated without communication among the various departments or
parts of the organization.

Major categories of communication those are especially relevant to the study of

organizational behavior.
On the one extreme is the increasingly important electronic (i.e., Internet) communication
media and information technology, and on the other extreme is relatively simple nonverbal
communication.
The middle ground is occupied by interpersonal approaches (both electronically mediated and
face-to-face), which represent the personal perspective. The growing importance of the role
that electronic media and information technology plays in communication is certainly
recognized by organizational behavior research and application. There is also considerable
research interest in areas such as virtual teams.
However, more directly relevant to the personal perspective taken here are the areas of non-
verbal and interpersonal communication.

Communication Process
The communication is a dynamic process that begins with the conceptualizing of ideas by the
sender who then transmits the message through a channel to the receiver, who in turn gives
the feedback in the form of some message or signal within the given time frame. Thus, there
are Seven major elements of communication process:

Sender: The sender or the communicator is the person who initiates the conversation and has
conceptualized the idea that he intends to convey it to others.

Encoding: The sender begins with the encoding process wherein he uses certain words or
non-verbal methods such as symbols, signs, body gestures, etc. to translate the information
into a message. The sender’s knowledge, skills, perception, background, competencies, etc.
has a great impact on the success of the message.
Message: Once the encoding is finished, the sender gets the message that he intends to
convey. The message can be written, oral, symbolic or non-verbal such as body gestures,
silence, sighs, sounds, etc. or any other signal that triggers the response of a receiver.

Communication Channel: The Sender chooses the medium through which he wants to convey
his message to the recipient. It must be selected carefully in order to make the message
effective and correctly interpreted by the recipient. The choice of medium depends on the
interpersonal relationships between the sender and the receiver and also on the urgency of the
message being sent. Oral, virtual, written, sound, gesture, etc. are some of the commonly
used communication mediums.

Receiver: The receiver is the person for whom the message is intended or targeted. He tries to
comprehend it in the best possible manner such that the communication objective is attained.
The degree to which the receiver decodes the message depends on his knowledge of the
subject matter, experience, trust and relationship with the sender.

Decoding: Here, the receiver interprets the sender’s message and tries to understand it in the
best possible manner. An effective communication occurs only if the receiver understands the
message in exactly the same way as it was intended by the sender.

Feedback: The Feedback is the final step of the process that ensures the receiver has received
the message and interpreted it correctly as it was intended by the sender. It increases the
effectiveness of the communication as it permits the sender to know the efficacy of his
message. The response of the receiver can be verbal or non-verbal.

Note: The Noise shows the barriers in communications. There are chances when the message
sent by the sender is not received by the recipient.

Barriers to Communications
The communication barriers may prevent communication or carry incorrect meaning due to
which misunderstandings may be created. Therefore, it is essential for a manager to identify
such barriers and take appropriate measures to overcome them. The barriers to
communication in organizations can be broadly grouped as follows:
1. Semantic Barriers
These are concerned with the problems and obstructions in the process of encoding and
decoding of a message into words or impressions. Normally, such barriers result due to the
use of wrong words, faulty translations, different interpretations, etc.
For example, a manager has to communicate with workers who have no knowledge of the
English language and on the other side, he is not well conversant with the Hindi language.
Here, language is a barrier to communication as the manager may not be able to communicate
properly with the workers.
Language
Even when we’re communicating in the same language, words mean different things to
different people. Age and context are two of the biggest factors that influence such
differences. Our use of language is far from uniform. If we knew how each of us modified
the language, we could minimize communication difficulties, but we usually don’t know.
Senders tend to assume the words and terms they use mean the same to the receiver as to
them. This assumption is often incorrect.
Silence
It’s easy to ignore silence or lack of communication, precisely because it is defined by the
absence of information. However, research suggests silence and withholding communication
are both common and problematic. Employee silence means managers lack information
about ongoing operational problems. And silence regarding discrimination, harassment,
corruption, and misconduct means top management cannot take action to eliminate this
behavior. Finally, employees who are silent about important issues may also experience
psychological stress. Managers must make sure they behave in a supportive manner when
employees voice divergent opinions or concerns, and they must take these under advisement.

2. Psychological Barriers
Emotional or psychological factors also act as barriers to communication. The state of mind
of both sender and receiver of communication reflects in the effective communication. A
worried person cannot communicate properly and an angry recipient cannot understand the
message properly.
Thus, at the time of communication, both the sender and the receiver need to be
psychologically sound. Also, they should trust each other. If they do not believe each other,
they cannot understand each other’s message in its original sense.

Communication Apprehension
These people experience undue tension and anxiety in oral communication, written
communication, or both. They may find it extremely difficult to talk with others face-to-face
or may become extremely anxious when they have to use the phone, relying on memos or e-
mails when a phone call would be faster and more appropriate.
Studies show oral-communication apprehensive avoid situations, such as teaching, for which
oral communication is a dominant requirement. But almost all jobs require some oral
communication. Of greater concern is evidence that high oral-communication apprehensive
distort the communication demands of their jobs in order to minimize the need for
communication. So be aware that some people severely limit their oral communication and
rationalize their actions by telling themselves communicating isn’t necessary for them to do
their job effectively.

Information Overload
Individuals have a finite capacity for processing data. When the information we have to work
with exceeds our processing capacity, the result is information overload. They tend to select,
ignore, pass over, or forget when individuals have more information than they can sort and
use . Or they may put off further processing until the overload situation ends.

Emotions
You may interpret the same message differently when you’re angry or distraught than when
you’re happy. People in negative moods are more likely to scrutinize messages in greater
detail, whereas those in positive moods tend to accept communications at face value. Extreme
emotions such as jubilation or depression are most likely to hinder effective communication.
In such instances, we are most prone to disregard our rational and objective thinking
processes and substitute emotional judgments.

Lying
The final barrier to effective communication is outright misrepresentation of information, or
lying. People differ in their definition of what constitutes a lie. For example, is deliberately
withholding information about a mistake you made a lie, or do you have to actively deny
your role in the mistake.
Evidence also shows that people are more comfortable lying over the phone than face-to-face
and more comfortable lying in e-mails than when they have to write with pen and paper.
Moreover, most people who lie take a number of steps to guard against being detected, so
they might deliberately look a person in the eye when lying because they know that direct eye
contact is (incorrectly) assumed to be a sign of truthfulness. The frequency of lying and the
difficulty in detecting liars makes this an especially strong barrier to effective communication
in organizations.

3. Organizational Barriers
The factors related to organizational structure, rules and regulations authority relationships,
etc. may sometimes act as barriers to effective communication. In an organization with a
highly centralized pattern, people may not be encouraged to have free communication. Also,
rigid rules and regulations and cumbersome procedures may also become a hurdle to
communication.
Cultural Barriers
Researchers have identified a number of problems related to language difficulties in cross-
cultural communications.
First are barriers caused by semantics. Words mean different things to different people,
particularly people from different national cultures. Some words don’t translate between
cultures.
Second are barriers caused by word connotations. Words imply different things in different
languages.
Third are barriers caused by tone differences. In some cultures, language is formal; in others,
it’s informal. In some cultures, the tone changes depending on the context: People speak
differently at home, in social situations, and at work. Using a personal, informal style when a
more formal style is expected can be embarrassing.
Fourth are differences in tolerance for conflict and methods for resolving conflicts.
Individuals from individualist cultures tend to be more comfortable with direct conflicts and
will make the source of their disagreements overt. Collectivists are more likely to
acknowledge conflict only implicitly and avoid emotionally charged disputes. They may
attribute conflicts to the situation more than to the individuals and therefore may not require
explicit apologies to repair relationships, whereas individualists prefer explicit statements
accepting responsibility for conflicts and public apologies to restore relationships.

4. Personal Barriers
The personal factors of both sender and receiver may act as a barrier to effective
communication. If a superior think that a particular communication may adversely affect his
authority, he may suppress such communication.
Also, if the superiors do not have confidence in the competency of their subordinates, they
may not ask for their advice. The subordinates may not be willing to offer useful suggestions
in the absence of any reward or appreciation for a good suggestion.
Filtering
Filtering refers to a sender’s purposely manipulating information so the receiver will see it
more favorably. A manager who tells his boss what he feels the boss wants to hear is filtering
information.
The more vertical levels in the organization’s hierarchy, the more opportunities there are for
filtering. But some filtering will occur wherever there are status differences. Factors such as
fear of conveying bad news and the desire to please the boss often lead employees to tell their
superiors what they think they want to hear, thus distorting upward communications.

Selective Perception
We have mentioned selective perception before in this book. It appears again here because
the receivers in the communication process selectively see and hear based on their needs,
motivations, experience, background, and other personal characteristics. Receivers also
project their interests and expectations into communications as they decode them. An
employment interviewer who expects a female job applicant to put her family ahead of her
career is likely to see that in all female applicants, regardless of whether they actually feel
that way.

Making Communication Effective

Effective communication may contribute to organizational success in many ways. It:

 Builds employee morale, satisfaction and engagement.

 Helps employees understand terms and conditions of their employment and drives
their commitment and loyalty.
 Educates employees on the merits of remaining union-free (if that is the organization's
goal).
 Gives employees a voice—an increasingly meaningful component of improving
employees' satisfaction with their employer.
 Helps to lessen the chances for misunderstandings and potentially reduces grievances
and lawsuits.
 Improves processes and procedures and ultimately creates greater efficiencies and
reduces costs.

Two-Way Communication
HR professionals may initially think of communication mainly in the context of delivering
messages to employees about business issues, policies and procedures, but two-way
communication plays an essential role in a comprehensive communication strategy. Listening
to employee issues and concerns builds loyalty and drives improved productivity.
Organizational leaders can learn through listening about issues or concerns before they
become formal grievances or lawsuits. They can also discover potential employee relations
issues and learn about attitudes toward terms and conditions of employment.

Some of the ways to make communication more effective within your organization are as
follows:
 Clarity and Competence
 Proper Language
 Sound Organizational Structure
 Orientation of Employees
 Empathetic Listening and Avoid Premature Evaluation
 Motivation and Mutual Confidence
 Consistent Behavior
 Use of Grapevine
 Feedback
 Gestures and Tone
1. Clarity and Completeness: In order to communicate effectively, it is very essential to know
the ‘audience’ for whom the message is meant. The message to be conveyed must be
absolutely clear in the mind of the communicator because if you do not understand an idea,
you can never express it to someone. The message should be adequate and appropriate to the
purpose of communication. The purpose of communication, itself, should be clearly defined.
2. Proper Language: To avoid semantic barriers, the message should be expressed in simple,
brief and clear language. The words or symbols selected for conveying the message must be
appropriate to the reference and understanding of the receiver.
3. Sound Organization Structure: To make communication effective, the organizational
structure must be sound and appropriate to the needs of the organization. Attempt must be
made to shorten the distances to be travelled for conveying information.
4. Orientation of Employees: The employees should be oriented to understand the objectives,
rules, policies, authority relationships and operations of enterprise. It will help to understand
each other, minimize conflicts and distortion of messages.
5. Empathetic Listening and Avoid Premature Evaluation: To communicate effectively, one
should be a good listener. Superiors should develop the habit of patient listening and avoid
premature evaluation of communication from their subordinates. This will encourage free
flow of upward communication.
6. Motivation and Mutual Confidence: The message to be communicated should be so
designed as to motivate the receiver to influence his behavior to take the desired action. A
sense of mutual trust and confidence must be generated to promote free flow of information.
7. Consistent Behavior: To avoid credibility gap, management must ensure that their actions
and deeds are in accordance with their communication.
8. Use of Grapevine: Grapevine or the informal channels of communication help to improve
managerial decisions and make communication more effective. Thus, formal channels of
communication must be supplemented with the use of grapevine.
9. Feedback: Communication is not complete unless the response or reaction of the receiver
of the message is obtained by the communicator. The effectiveness of communication can be
judged from the feedback. Therefore, feedback must be encouraged and analyzed.
10. Gestures and Tone: The way you say something is also very important along with the
message for gestures such as a twinkle of an eye, a smile or a handshake, etc., convey
sometimes more meaning than even words spoken or written. Thus, one should have
appropriate facial expression, tone, gestures and mood, etc., to make communication
effective.