Week 4: Lecture

Academic Writing (2)

Communication as a process
BUS100: PROFESSIONAL COMMUNICATION SKILLS
Week 4: Learning Focus
The communication process

Technology for communication

Context, form and purpose of communication

The audience
 Quite often, as communicators, we make assumptions
when we communicate and sometimes, we simply don’t
give enough through to the communication process itself.
There are some terms/phrases I use that I assume others
know what I mean.
Would you understand what I was talking about from the
following examples?

Communication • “Flats are quite expensive in Sydney compared to the

as a process UK”

• “A hamburger should always be served with chips!”

• “You alright?”

We can’t start to understand how to be a good

communicator until we understand how and why
language breaks down (Lawson, et al. 2019. p. 57)
The communication
process
The communication process consists of several elements.
For us to achieve communication competence, each element of the
process needs careful consideration. The elements are:

Ø Sender- the person sending the message

Ø Receiver – the person the communication is sent to
Ø Channel – the means by which the message is sent
Ø Message – the actual content to be communicated
Ø Noise – potential barriers to understanding
Ø Feedback – proof the message was received
The communication
process (continued)
Let’s consider the process with an example:

Imagine that you have a deadline for an upcoming assessment that

your unlikely to meet. You really want your tutor to give you an
extension. You contact your tutor to ask for an extension.

• Who is the sender and who is the receiver?

• What possible channel could be used to send the message?
• What would the message say?
• Could there be any potential noise?
• How would feedback be shown?
Technology for communication
More than half a century ago, the British writer JB Priestley had
this to say about the innovations of TV and communications
technology:

“Already we Viewers, when not viewing, have begun to whisper

to one another that the more we elaborate our means of
communication, the less we communicate” (Priestley 1957)

In other words, the quantity of channels of communications

may actually be diminishing the quality of our communication.
This may mean that people living in low-technology societies
and situations could have a richer experience of interpersonal
communication than people living in high-technology cultures.
This is Priestley’s paradox.

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA-NC

 1. Consider, by yourself or in discussion with others,
these questions.
• Is Priestley’s paradox convincing or farfetched?
• Have you ever used technology in order to avoid face-to-face
situations?

Your thoughts 2. Scenario: New scientific research demonstrates

conclusively that a new communication technology (e.g. LCD
on this… or touch computer screens, mobile phones or wireless
computing) emits cancer-inducing radiation. Would you now:
• avoid using the technology
• reduce your use of the technology
• continue using the technology at the level you have been
using it
• increase your level of use of the technology?
The challenges of context and
language in communication
Context can be a form of noise ( a barrier) in a communicative event.
Even though we might know the words, the meaning may be misinterpreted
because of the context of the situation or the circumstance.

Imagine that someone stops and asks

you for directions to The Rocks…

You could say ‘Oh yes, The Rocks is just

next to Circular Quay’

What could be potential noise with this response?

For complete understanding to be reached, all participants must share the
same context of the communication
Sarcasm to illustrate context
Sarcasm is an effective way of illustrating context. A sarcastic comment
is where we mean the opposite to what we say; it is where the sender
deliberately sends a conflicting message to a receiver.

Think about how you recognise sarcasm. The person’s tone of voice, a
wink or other body language, or the topic under discussion which are all
contextual. If the receiver did not fully understand the context, they
would misinterpret the message.

What do you think about sarcasm? Do you consider it the ‘highest

form of wit’ or rather ‘hostility disguised as humour’?

Considering the meaning of the word; derived from Greek origin This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed
under CC BY-SA
meaning ‘tearing of the flesh’.
Rather than humour, it could feel more like criticism!

SNL Sarcasm 101: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZW-AZ2mNeA

The communicative
purpose (the goal)
When we seek to communicate a message, there
is a reason (a purpose) for us to do so.
When the purpose is determined, it helps us to
select the appropriate message and channel to
suit the receiver and to ensure that the goal of
the communication event is achieved.

Can you think of any other purposes?

Can you think of any example texts belonging to
different purposes?
 The form of language
(the message)
Language forms deal with the grammatical structure of words and phrases as well as the
word themselves. Different forms include nouns, adjectives, verbs, modals, etc.…

The message does not just focus on the spoken or written words but also considers non-
verbal features (body language, intonation) and visual features (typography, pictogram-
emojis)

While the purpose focuses on what we do with language to achieve a certain goal, forms
are the language structures and vocabulary that are used to support the purpose.

Consider a text message to a friend, like the image on the screen. The actual words are
made up of various verbs and noun phrases and other visual features are used here too.

• What are these visual features?

• Why does the writer use them?
• Are they appropriate for the intended audience and the purpose?
 Communication medium (the channel)

• A medium in communication is a system or channel through which a speaker or writer addresses

their audience.
• It's an outlet that a sender uses to express meaning to their audience, and it can include written,
verbal or nonverbal elements and visual elements such as images or emojis.
• A communication medium can either be virtual or physical.
• It may contain more than one element and it may address either an individual or a group of people.
Communication medium
Meeting with an individual for a face-to-face, in-person
discussion may ensure that they receive your message and can
ask questions for clarity.

By comparison, sending an email may be better for a less urgent

communication context or if you're communicating with
someone remotely.

• What are the benefits of face-to-face communication and in

what scenario would you most likely choose this medium?

• What are the benefits of social media communication? For

what type of purpose would you use social media to
communicate to business professionals?
 Understanding the
audience
• The role of the audience in a communicative event is to decode
(interpret) the message which has been sent via a channel.
• How the audience decodes the message will depend on the
knowledge of the sender, the context of the message,. And the
audience members’ individual beliefs, experiences and culture.
• The audience plays an active role on the decoding process –
interpreting the message from their own perspective and acting on
that message with their own motivations and knowledge (Lawson,
et. al 2019)

PRIMARY AUDIENCE: the person or group of people who receive a

message deliberately from a sender
SECONDARY AUDIENCE: those people exposed to a message that is
not aimed at them
The relationship between the audience,
the message and the purpose
Consider the following
Now whatcommunicative
happens if you event :
change the Channel? How does this affect your message?
‘You are a new student and new to the Sydney area. You want to try and make friends with some
of yourifclass
What youmates and the
changed so you decide so
receiver to invite a couple
that they wereof athem to join
family you at a
member, local café,
rather thanafter
a student? How does
class’
this affect the channel or the message?
Consider the following elements:
• Sender: Who is sending the message? What is their status or relationship with the receiver?
• Receiver: Who is the communication sent to? Is it one person or a group? What is the
relationship between them and the sender?
• Channel: What medium is used to send the message? Why is this the best choice?
• Message: What is the form of the message? Which specific words would be used to convey key
information, express opinion, mood, politeness or formality?
• Noise: What potential barrier could their be to understanding the message?
• Feedback: What is the proof that the message is received? What is it you expect the audience to
do with the message?
Intention Relationships and roles
Do I want to be polite, rude, deferential, explicit, vague etc.? I If one party is more powerful than the other (in this setting)
can choose appropriately from: then different language is employed.
 Open the damn window! Asking someone to sit down could take the form of:

 Please open the window  Please sit there

 I wonder if you would mind if we had the window open?

 Sit down!
 I wonder if I could ask you to sit here
 It’s really hot in here, isn’t it?

Context and setting The medium

If someone asks for directions to the bank, it depends on how
much shared information is there:
 If we are standing opposite the bank, I can simply point and
say ‘there it is’
 If I know you know something of the area, I can say ‘It's on
the corner of the park’.
Am I speaking or writing? Is it spontaneous or planned? Is it
online or offline?
 If I'm writing, is it an email or a letter?
 Is this a formal lecture or a chat?
 Will I start with, Dear sir,?

 If you are a complete stranger, I'll have to be much more

 Do I need to introduce myself?
explicit
 A summary of key terms
The purpose of communication Language forms deal with the internal Context of communication: Context in
represents the use of language for a grammatical structure of words and phrases as language is what surrounds a word or
specific purpose. well as the word themselves. piece of text.

People use language in order to express
ideas, communicate with others, and show
understanding of content in a variety of
settings.
Purposes of communication can include to
entertain, to instruct, to persuade, to
argue, to inform etc.
The form focuses on the actual words we
choose to use – nouns, verbs, adverbs etc. and
how the message is structured
In order to understand what words mean,
we have to know something about the
situation where they are used.
Context may refer to any aspects in which
a speech-act takes place, including the
social setting and the status of both the
speaker and the person who's addressed.
Sometimes called social context.

It is important to understand the relationships between these features of communication

We need to decide on the correct form of language to suit the particular purpose and audience.
The context in which the communication takes place can also determine the form in which we use

Content adapted from: Butt, et al. (2012)

Coming up in this week’s
tutorial…
• Focus on assessment 1 and 2
• Email etiquette
• Writing for a purpose – to inform
• Creating academic paragraphs which
inform
• Developing academic paragraphs to
include evidence
 What is the difference
between form and purpose of
communication?
Final thought…
Can you give an example of
how you would change the
form of a message in order to
suit the reader?
References
Butt, D., Fahey, R., Feez, S., and Spinks S. 2012, Using functional grammar: an
explorer's guide. 3rd Edition. Palgrave and Macmillan, South Yarra.

Indeed 2022, Communication Mediums: 5 Types (Plus Choosing the Right One)
[online] Retrieved from:
https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/what-is-medium-in-co
mmunication
[Accessed: 18 October 2022]

Lawson, C., Gill, R., Feekery, A., Witsel, M., Lewis, M. and Cenere, P. 2019
Communication Skills for Business Professionals. 2nd edn. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press. doi: 10.1017/9781108594349.

Saturday Night Live, 2019, Sarcasm 101 – SNL [online] Retrieved from:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZW-AZ2mNeA [Accessed: 18 October 2022]