Contexts of communication

The context within which the communication takes place is critical to the meaning that
is constructed.
By now, you should have come to realize that effective communication goes beyond the
words we hear or see. As humans, we communicate more than the words we use to
encode that message; likewise, as a receiver, we understand more than the words we
receive.
In order for an individual to become an effective communicator they need to be able to
distinguish which types of exchanges-whether verbal or non-verbal are acceptable in a
specific place, at a specific time, with a specific audience. We also need to understand our
role during these exchanges.

Learning Outcomes

At the end of the week you should be able to: -

1. Give examples of the different contexts of communication.

2. Discuss the differences. between the different contexts of communication
3. Recognise the relationship between forms and contexts of communication.

Yes, there must be some kind of circumstance to warrant one to

communicate. Communication does not happen in a vacuum. The
circumstances within which communication takes place is known as the contexts of
communication.
Within any context of communication are several factors. Two of these factors are the
nature and style of communication. These aspects vary according to the context.
The different contexts within which communication takes place include:
 Intrapersonal context
 Interpersonal context
 Small group context
 Organizational/Business context
 Academic context
 Intercultural context
 Mass Media
 Government
Intrapersonal Context

Intrapersonal refers to what happens within a person.

The intrapersonal context involves a person’s self or mind. Therefore, intrapersonal
communication is the communication that takes place with one’s self. It involves the
inner thoughts of an individual.
It involves the thoughts, feelings and the way we look at ourselves.
The individual has a double role of sender and receiver.
The message will be your thoughts and feelings;
the channel is your brain-what you are thinking or feeling.
The feedback maybe you talking to yourself, or you discarding certain ideas and
replacing them with others.
Within this context, the individual analyzes situations, clarifies ideas, reflects upon and
appreciates something.
There are several forms of intrapersonal communication:
 Daydreaming
 Nocturnal dreams
 Speaking aloud to oneself
 Writing one’s thoughts or observations, writing notes to aid in memorizing
 Making gestures while thinking
 Making sense of maps, texts, signs or symbols
  Interpreting non-verbal communication
 Communication between body parts

We must remember, retrieve, information from memory, and create messages.

Sometimes we find it easier to do this when we think aloud or talk to ourselves.

Interpersonal Context
Interpersonal communication refers to communication that takes place between two or
more persons. The individuals are either face to face or in close proximity to each other.
The people who operate within that context are usually acquainted with each other.

There are four principles of interpersonal communication:

 it is inescapable- we as human beings must communicate. Even when we
ignore someone we are communicating something.

 it is irreversible- ‘you can’t call back those words’; one cannot rewind and
delete the words spoken

 it is complicated-it is inevitable that, if there are two or more personalities

involved, there will be misunderstanding and misinterpretation; we know that
we are not always clear in what we say ‘ therefore the other party’s understanding
is based on what he/she has heard and internalised

 it is contextual

There are several aspects of interpersonal communication. These include:

 Speech
 Nonverbal communication
 Unconscious communication-transfer of information unconsciously between
humans. We especially transfer information through body language but we are
often unconscious of doing so.
 Summarising- restating the other person’s ideas in a shortened form thus testing
the accuracy of your understanding
 Paraphrasing- restating the other person’s comments in order to clarify your
understanding.
 Turn taking-alternating opportunities of dialogue
 Listening-paying close attention to what the other person is saying
 Questioning- asking questions.
Having good interpersonal communication skills is important in both one’s private life
and career. Each day we engage in a number of interpersonal interactions both at
school/work and socially. Good interpersonal communication skills help in the
following relations and situations:
 Parenting
 Intimate relations
 Management
 Selling

Interpersonal communication can be affected by many things such as shyness, mental

incapacity, sensory deprivation, arrogance or even a communication disorder such as
stuttering.

Interpersonal communication can also be broken down into various styles.

According to Bateman and Zeithaml (1990) there are six styles of interpersonal
communication in the workplace. These include:
 Controlling-a one way type of communication where directives are given; this
style of communicating is one where you do not want feedback but you want the
compliance of the receiver; this style is often seen in parent/child relationships;
the controlling style is of benefit in certain situations like times of crisis and also
useful in schools or other institutions where a leader must control large groups;
used in the wrong circumstances, this style may lead to poor interpersonal
relations.

 Egalitarian- opposite of the controlling style as it encourages receivers to

feedback their ideas thereby coming to some mutual understanding; this style is
seen as more effective, especially in the work environment, where cooperation is
imperative; generally, people who use this style do so to encourage cooperation
and to give others the feeling that their ideas are valued

 Structuring- is associated with business and perhaps school situations; this

style is characterized by references to rules and regulations and is used to
establish or impose schedules; decisions and instructions are usually based on
set guidelines and there is little room for deviations from the norm
  Dynamic- is associated with energy and enthusiasm; in this case the sender
uses pleas to motivate the receiver; the use of persuasive techniques is
characteristic of this type of communicator; this style can be counterproductive
if the receivers do not have enough knowledge to take the action needed; in
addition, receivers may feel overwhelmed and confused

 Relinquishing- as the name implies gives over to the other party; this style
allows the receiver to take control of the decision-making process; in the
workplace the manager may well allow his/her staff to come up with a solution
to a problem rather than impose a directive on them; in the classroom, the
teacher may lay out the objectives of the lesson and let the students determine
the activities they would like to pursue in order to achieve the lesson goals; this
style assumes a certain level of competence in the receivers

 Withdrawal-is one here there is little effort made by the participants; in the
workplace, the manager may avoid making decisions and give the impression of
a lack of interest in the organization and the decisions that must be made;
organisations where this is the preferred managerial style are often referred to
as being on ‘autopilot’; there is usually a sense of absence of leadership

These styles of communication can also impact on personal relationships, leading to

either a poor or enriching personal relationship depending on the styles of
communication used. In interpersonal communication the receiver must be a good
listener as this helps in the interpretation of the message. According to the
Encyclopedia of Small Business, there are several techniques that encourage
good listening. These are:
 Reflection or attempting to repeat and clarify the other person’s message
 Keeping an open mind
 Seeing relevance to your life
 Resisting distractions
 Being prepared for the encounter
 Taking notes
It is important to have strong interpersonal skills in order to succeed in life, since most
of our daily activities involve some type of interaction with other communicators.
Small Group Context

According to Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, small group communication refers

to the nature and style of communication that occurs in groups of between two and
twelve individuals. This type of communication takes place in different contexts and
mixes interpersonal with social clustering. Small group communication take place
almost every day in our lives in many different contexts.
Context of small group communication
 Group discussion in the classroom
 A particular group of students who sit together at lunch time
 A chat room online
 Audio or video conferencing
 Discussion boards and list servers
Small group communication often takes place in situations other than face to
face-whenever you sit at your computer and use instant messenger you are
communicating with someone, but you also have the option of adding a third
party in the conversation. This is one context of small group communication.
Also, when you enter a chat room you are involved in small group
communication. Chat rooms are defined by the American Heritage Dictionary of
the English Language as sites on a computer network where online conversations
are held in real time by a number of users. Video conferencing is another
 means of small group communication. In this situation a closed circuit television
may be used so that you can see the participant in the group with whom you are
conferencing. Audio conferencing depends on listening and talking-there is no
visual contact with the speaker. Another context of small group discussion is the
list server. This is a mailing list that automatically sends mail to every-one on a
specific list. The message is available only to persons on the list.

The discussion board

In recent years the meaning of small group discussion has changed to

accommodate the use of technology. The effectiveness of small group
communication could previously be analysed by looking at the cultural make-up
of the group. It was generally believed that similar cultural identity led to less
conflict in the small group’s ability to function but now the small group can
comprise individuals from everywhere in the world. geographical boundaries no
longer exist where communication is concerned and thus it is critical that
communicators be aware of the differences in values, beliefs, and ways of viewing
the world. For instance, all cultures do not share the same attitudes to leadership
styles, rules governing conversations nor ways of reasoning. There must be some
recognition of these things in order that effective communication can take place.

Organizational /BusinessContext
Organizational communication is communication within an organizational context
which includes various work environments. Schools, colleges banks, the post office, the
supermarket, the electric company, the water company are all examples of an
organizational context.
Organizational communication is said to be:
 Central-which is of great importance to the running of the company

 Pervasive-meaning there is a significant amount of communication taking place

 Complex-there are several patterns of communication all taking place at the

same time

It also has specific patterns:

 Downward-refers to directives or other information coming from management
to employees

 Upward-describes information that is passed up the management chain

  Horizontal-the sharing of information across the levels of the organization/
institution

 Grapevine-is the informal passage of information in the office or organization;

the grapevine is sometimes deliberately used in order to pass new information

There are formal and informal means of communicating in the organization. Both these
types of communication are appropriate in certain circumstances. Every communication
in the workplace does not have to be documented and sometimes verbal means are used
to share information.
However, in some cases staff need to be formally given notice of information. A change
in company policy or action to be taken in light of an impending hurricane are situations
where staff may need to revert to the written document.
In this way more formal means of communication may be used. Some companies make
use of the world wide web to pass on these messages using the employee’s choice of e-
mail address, but other companies create an intranet that services their company. The
employees automatically have an e-mail with their name and the company’s name
making up their e-mail address. Some formal means of communicating include:
 Email (Internet and intranet)
 Memos
 Newsletters
 Policy documents
 Job descriptions

Some informal methods would include:

 Face to face
 Grapevine
 Telephone

Written correspondence is more often considered formal communication while spoken

is often considered informal.
Communication may be directed at an individual, a small group or all employees.
Therefore, the appropriate channels must be used. Information can be
communicated through:
 Briefings
  Staff meetings
 Project meetings

Academic Context

Academic communication comes in various forms. Aural, oral, and written

communication are all part of the genre of academic communication. Student
academic communication includes:
 Listening attentively
 Taking good lecture notes
 Asking productive questions
 Working in groups for formal and informal class projects
 Presenting clear summaries
 Writing thorough lab reports
 Writing clear and concise essay exams
 Developing convincing project proposals-oral and written
 Preparing effective progress reports-oral and written
 Delivering convincing and thorough project reports-oral and written

Academic communication focuses more on explaining and clarifying than on expressing

emotions making it expository in nature. Academic communication is not used only by
students but by lecturers as well. Lecturer academic communication includes:
 Lecturer notes
 Lectures (with or without the use of media such as PowerPoint)
 Course outlines
 Academic research papers
 Books
 Professional/scholarly journals
Within the world of academia, communication is vitally important as it is the means by
which we pass on and receive knowledge.

Intercultural Context

In the intercultural context, also known as crosscultural context, people from different cultural
backgrounds endeavor to communicate.
For communication within this context to be effective, the participants must understand the
differences in the cultures that they are working with. This understanding helps to reduce
conflicts/barriers that can arise.
By nature, human beings tend to be culturally-biased’ refusing to be anything but ethnocentric
and this makes it difficult to acknowledge and remember these differences.
Within communities that are ethnically and culturally diverse, the recognition of differences and
sameness is more acute than in monocultural situation.
Cross cultural communication has been greatly influenced by the new technologies including the
internet. It is often said that the world has been reduced to ‘a global village’ because of the
technology. As a result, if communication in an intercultural context is to be effective, there
needs to be greater acknowledgement of cultural diversity and greater attention paid to the
social skills that could reduce cultural misunderstandings.
Knowing symbols and their cross cultural meanings can protect the communicator from
committing a cross cultural faux pas.
Mass Media

Mass media communication refers to the transmission of messages from an individual, an

organization, or a group of people to a large audience. It is known as a ‘one-to-many’ form of
communication.
Mass media communication relies on channels of communication that can disseminate that
message to a large group of diverse people who are unknown to each other.
Mass communication is facilitated by media or technology driven channels.
The channels of communication include electronic media such as television and radio, and print
media such as newspapers and magazines.
With the advent of technology, the internet can be considered as mass media as it reaches
audience worldwide.
Mass media communication is common among business organizations and social groups to
advertise and market products and services, and for public relations.
Political organizations also access mass media for public relations and political communication.
Mass media provides entertainment through music, sporting, acting and reading programming.
video and computer games also belong to that category.
Public service announcements (PSA’s)are a social responsibility of the mass media.
Traditional technologies of mass media such as radio, television and the cinema had a great
influence on culture, politics, education and lifestyle.
Right now, internet technologies such as infrared, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi have been known to
reduce the world to a global village connecting individuals and communities across the globe.
Mass communication differs from the other contexts of communication in the following ways:

 mass communication takes place when a media channel is used to convey a message to
a large audience
  mass communication involves an audience which is distant, diverse, and varies in size
dependent on the medium and message.
 the goal of mass communication is making a profit
 feedback during mass communication is limited
 mass communication is impersonal; therefore, participants are not equally present
during the communication event/process.

Government Communication

Citizens need to be informed about government’s actions, policies and objectives. The degree to
which the citizens ‘buy into’ these policies and actions is largely dependent on the quality of its
communication with the citizens.
Government communication functions primarily to: -
Inform citizens-this means giving the population access to information through government
departments and through media releases.
Advocate -in democratic societies governments must also advocate (persuade the public)
regarding policies. These policies may be new ones or policy reforms. Issues in health,
education, housing, employment, and crime affect all citizens. Governments need to
communicate with the public through meetings, public service announcements (psa’s), etc. to
get the citizens to buy into its initiatives.
Engage the citizenry -citizens must be given the opportunity to participate in the decision-
making of the country. Policies can be debated by the public. Bills can be debated by various
interest groups such as NGOs (non-governmental organisations), religious bodies, social justice
organisations and other interest groups before they are passed as law.

Governments communicate through:

 public announcements in the media

 public announcements through loudspeakers
 media briefings and conferences
 town hall meetings
 public debates and symposia (singular: symposium)
  regional and international summits
 literature, such as billboards, posters, brochures, stickers
 websites, such as official government websites, Facebook and Twitter

Governments need to inform citizens of their rights.

Government communication must not only be controlled and disseminated through state media.
An absence of this control can give rise to distrust and a government that is engaging in
propaganda.

Propaganda often presents facts selectively to encourage a particular action or uses loaded
messages to produce an emotional rather than rational response to the information presented.

Conclusion
There are a number of settings in which people communicate. These settings are referred to as
the contexts of communication. Contexts play a critical role in how messages are conveyed and
how they are received. Effective communication requires that individuals pay attention to the
setting or context in which they are communicating as the context determines the type of
communication one engages in as well as the form that the communication takes. The nature of
the context, the culture of the society in which the communication takes place, and the social
orientation of the individuals all play a part in determining how people relate to each other.

References
Lord, L., Dee-Hosein, M.,Habib, E., & Lee, S. (2012).Cape Communication Studies. England:
Pearson
Simon, V., Osborne, S. (2009). Communication Studies For Cape Examinations. Oxford:
Macmillan