Communication barriers

Lesson plan :
-Learning objectives.
1-Introduction.
2-communication barrier definition.
3-Communication barriers related to the communicator.
4-Semantic barriers.
5-Emotional or psychological barriers.
6-Organizational barriers.
7-Personal barriers.
8-Cultural barriers.
9-Syntactical barriers.
10-Physiological barriers.
11-Environmental barriers.
12-Physical barriers.
13-Overcoming Communication Barriers.
14-Conclusion

Learning Objectives : at the end of this lesson, you will be able to :

 Define communication barriers
 Classify the different types of barriers
1-Introduction :
Communication barriers can appear at every stage of the communication
process i.e from the sender, the message, the channel, the receiver, the feedback
and the context. It can have a bigger impact on people’s personal and
professional lives.
2-Communication barrier definition:
Communication barriers refer to anything that prevents or disables
communicators to deliver the right message to the right person at the right time,
or a receiver to get the right message at the right time.
‘A barrier to communication is something that keeps meanings from meeting.
Meaning barriers exist between all people, making communication much more
difficult than most people seem to realize. It is false to assume that if one can
talk he can communicate’ (Wangare Wambui, 2015: 17). Communication
barriers are the challenges to effective communication.
Communication barriers can be of different types:
3- Communication barriers (related to the communicator).
-Unwillingness to say things differently
-Unwillingness to learn new approaches
-Lack of self-confidence
-Lack of enthusiasm
-Voice quality
-Prejudice

Barriers to communication can lead to misunderstanding and confusion

 Language
Time Noise
Other people

Barriers to effective Distractions

Too many questions communication

Put downs
Distance Lack of interest

Discomfort with the topic disability

4-Semantic Barriers:
It refers to the meaning of language used such as:
-Symbols with different meaning.
-Badly expressed message.
-Faulty translation.
-Unclarified assumption.
-Specialist’s language.
5- Emotional or Psychological Barriers:
Some attitudes can also make communication difficult. We can cite:
-Great anger
-Sadness
-Inattention
-Loss of transmission.
-Distrust of communication.
-Attitude and opinion.
-Failure to communicate.
-Emotion and state of mind.
-Poor retention and inattentiveness.
6- Organization Barriers:
Poorly structured communication can prevent the receiver from correct
interpretation. Such problems and barriers can be related to:
-Organizational policy
-Organizational rules and regulations
-Complexity in organization
7) Personal Barriers:
*Barriers in Superior
-Attitude of Superior
-Fear of challenge of authority
-Lack of time
-Lack of awareness
*Barriers in Subordinates
-Unwillingness to communicate
8-Cultural barriers: stereotypical assumptions can cause misunderstanding.
9-Syntactical barriers: mistakes in grammar can hinder communication. For
example: subject verb agreement, changes in tenses…
10-Physiological barriers: may result from individual ‘s personal discomfort
such as deafness and poor eye sight.
11-Environmental barriers: it is the noise that physically disrupts
communication.
12-Physical barriers: such as social distancing, remote work…
13-Overcoming Communication Barriers:
Technology can play an important role in reducing many of the above
mentioned communication barriers. Moreover, technology is made to help
people build better relationships and drive more engagement.
Using the right communication technology, organizations can:
-Segment audiences to deliver personalized information.
-Schedule content delivery for optimal timing.
-Create personalized news feeds based on the audience’s preferences.
-Understand the audience ‘s favorite forms of communication and preferred
communication channels.
-Empower leadership to be more approachable.
-Reach the hard-to-reach audience with the right message at the right time.
14-Conclusion:
Barriers threats the effective communication, the communicator should take
some measures to overcome or reduce these barriers like language differences
and cultural misunderstanding to have a successful conversation.

Sources:
1-Tabitha, Wangare Wambui. (2015).Communication Skills vol. I. LAP
LAMBERT Academic Publishing.
2-Handbook on Communication Skills. Centre for Good Governance.
3-Kristina, Martic. (2023). Top 13 communication Barriers and How to Tackle
Them. https://haiilo.com/blog/communication-barriers/