Chapter 4

Active Listening

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 Agenda
• Meaning
• Reason for poor listening
• Traits of a good listener
• Listening modes
• Types of listening
• Barriers to effective listening

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 Meaning
• Listening is a process of:
 receiving
 interpreting
 reacting to a message from the speaker

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 Importance
A good listener:
• develops a good rapport with the speaker
• understands the emotions, biases and
prejudices of the speaker
• is tolerant of the views of other people

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 Reasons for poor listening
• Listening training is unavailable
• Speed of thought is more than speed of speech
• Inefficient listener
• Poor listening habits

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 Poor listening habits
• Listening but not hearing
• Rehearsing
• Interrupting
• Hearing what is expected
• Feeling defensive
• Listening for a point of disagreement

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 Poor listening habits (cont’d)

• Labelling the subject matter uninteresting

• Critisising the delivery or appearance of
the speaker
• Becoming over-stimulated
• Listening only for facts
• Trying to outline everything that is being said

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 Traits of a good listener
• Being non-evaluative
• Being able to paraphrase what is said
• Reflecting on implications
• Reflecting hidden feelings
• Inviting further contributions
• Responding non-verbally

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 Listening modes
Listening modes depend on:
• Mood
• Mindset
• Topic
• Time of day
• Relevance
• Importance

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 Active vs passive listening
Effective listening is possible only if the
listener listens to the compete speech by:
• Paying attention
• Dealing with distraction
• Ignoring noise

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 Effective listening
Do:
• Be mentally prepared to listen, as you can use
the context to understand the meaning
• Evaluate the speech, not the speaker’s clothing
and accessories
• Be unbiased towards the speaker by
depersonalising your feelings

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 Effective listening (cont’d)
Do:
•Fight distractions by blocking off sound sources
•Be open-minded
•Ask questions to clarify and confirm thoughts
•Paraphrase from time to time
•Send appropriate non-verbal signals from time
to time

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 Effective Listening (cont’d)
Don’t:
• Place too much emphasis on the vocabulary
• Prepare your responses while the speaker is speaking
• Hold preconceptions and prejudices
• Get distracted by outside influences
• Concentrate too hard
• Interrupt too often
• Show that you are bored

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 Global versus local listening
For global listening, be aware of differences in:

 culture
 politics
 demography
 non-verbal cues

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 Types of listening
• Appreciative listening
• Empathetic listening
• Comprehensive listening
• Critical listening
• Superficial listening
• “You” viewpoint

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 Barriers to effective listening
• Content • Language
• Speaker • Listening speed
• Medium • Feedback
• Distraction • Cultural barriers
• Mindset

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 Content
• Listener knows too much or too little
 Remedies:
 Do not sit back passively and allow sound to
enter ears.
 Develop a positive attitude towards the
message.
 Anticipate the importance of the message
 Find areas of interest in the message.
 Remind yourself that something of value
can be learned.
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 Speaker
• Factors relating to speaker:
 Delivery
 Emotions and appearance
 Attitude toward speaker

 Remedy:
Concentrate on the “what” of the message,
not the “who” or “how”.

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 Medium
• Distance and circumstances

 Remedy:
• Realise the potential for better understanding
and increase listening effort

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 Distractions
• Extraneous stimuli
 Remedies:
 Identify and remove distraction(s).
 If distraction cannot be eliminated, increase
concentration.
 Free yourself from preconceptions,
prejudices and negative emotions.

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 Mindset
• Attitudes
 Remedies:
 Do not let own bias interfere with comprehension.
 Respect the values and beliefs of others.
 Accept that attempting to understand another’s
viewpoint is not necessarily agreeing with it.
 Realise that there may be more than one
acceptable point of view.

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 Language
• Ambiguity
• Misinterpretation

 Remedies:
 Realise that different words may have different
meanings for different people.
 Evaluate the context in which the word is used.
 Remember that meaning is in the mind, not in
the word.

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 Listening speed
• Rate and thinking time
 Remedies:
 Use excess time to outline message
 Identify the purpose and how it is supported
 Evaluate logic integrate with existing
knowledge
 Maintain eye contact to observe non-verbal
signals
 Ask questions to enhance understanding and
provide feedback
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 Feedback
• Inappropriate feedback
Remedy:
 Supportive feedback through eye contact,
nodding, leaning forward, etc.

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 Cultural barriers
• Choice of words
• Accents
• Pronunciation

 Remedy:
 Pay extra attention when listening to a person
from another region or culture

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 Note-taking
When taking notes, write down:
• Name of the speaker
• Topic
• Date of the speech

Tips
• Use fixed short forms
• Read notes soon after lecture

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