MASS COMMUNICATION

Types, elements and barriers

Mass communication
It is the transmission of messages from a sender to a large amount of people through
various types of media, e.g. newspapers, television etc.
the medium has to have the ability to reach a large audience.
 mass
Communication is the process of sending and
receiving information. It can be described as
an act of transmission of ideas, thoughts,
beliefs, knowledge and opinions, etc.
Now let us discuss types of mass
communication one by one
 1.Intra-personal communication
It is communication within ourselves. Intra-
personal is the basis of all other forms of
communication. For instance, when it rains,
our senses tells our brain to use an umbrella
or a raincoat. This is communication within.
Writing diaries, etc is all example of
intrapersonal communication
Communication within
 2. Inter-personal communication
It is a face to face communication. It’s
communication between two persons. This
type of communication includes most of the
informal, everyday exchanges that we engage
in from the time we get up until we go to the
bed.
Chit chatting among two people
Three basic characteristics of inter-personal
communication are:
1.
Both parties are in close proximity
2.
Both parties send and receive messages
3.
These messages include both verbal and non
verbal stimuli
 3. Group communication
Group communication occurs between three or
more persons who perceive themselves as
belonging to , or being identified with, a
group.
More than two person creates a group
 Let us discuss types of group

1. Primary groups:
This is the basic social unit to which we belong, e.g.
family

2. Casual or social groups:

It is in the company of adult friends, neighbors and
others with whom we socialize. While these
relationships may be short lived , their influence
on our thinking and behavior is often considerable.
 3. Learning or educational groups

When we come together to teach or learn something

about a given subject, e.g. seminars and
conferences.
4. Work groups:
Such types of groups have specific goals to achieve,
often within a context of a job.
5. Therapeutic groups:
These are groups whose members come together to
learn about themselves and to improve their
interpersonal relationships.
 4. Public communication
Public communication tends to occur within a
more formal and structured setting. In this
communication one person is designated as
the speaker or a leader and the rest are the
audience or the listeners. Public
communication occur in public and has an
agenda.
Public communication
 5. Mass communication

It is the process of delivering information, ideas

and attitudes to a sizable and diversified
audience by the use of different forms of
media.
Elements of communication
 Elements of communication
Information signal is given to the transmitter which then
transmits the message over the medium to the receiver.
Noise gets added up to the message in the channel. It
degrades the transmitted information.
• Transmitter:
• It has a collection of electronic components and circuits
which are designed to convert information signal into
electronic signals compatible with the medium.
• Receiver:
• It accepts the transmitted message and converts it back
into an understandable form.
• Communication channel:
It is the medium by which electronic signal is sent from one
location to the other.

Signals which have to be transmitted are converted into

electric and magnetic fields that propagate readily over
long distances. Also, the medium attenuates the signal
which results in the signal degradation. Finally the
amplitude of the signal received will be much lower than
original signal. Hence, the amplification of the signal
should be done both at the transmitter and the receiver.
Barrier of communication
 Types of barrier
Physical barriers
Physical barriers are often due to the nature of the environment.

Thus, for example, the natural barrier which exists, if staff are
located in different buildings or on different sites. Likewise,
poor or outdated equipment, particularly the failure of
management to introduce new technology, may also cause
problems.
• Staff shortages are another factor which
frequently causes communication difficulties
for an organization.
• Whilst distractions like background noise, poor
lighting or an environment which is too hot or
cold can all affect people's morale and
concentration, which in turn interfere with
effective communication.
System design
• System design faults refer to problems with the
structures or systems in place in an
organization.
Examples might include an organizational
structure which is unclear and therefore makes
it confusing to know who to communicate with.
• Attitudinal barriers
Attitudinal barriers come about as a result of problems with staff
in an organization.
These may be brought about, for example, by such factors as
poor management, lack of consultation with employees,
personality conflicts which can result in people delaying or
refusing to communicate, the personal attitudes of individual
employees which may be due to lack of motivation or
dissatisfaction at work, brought about by insufficient training
to enable them to carry out particular tasks, or just resistance
to change due to entrenched attitudes and ideas.
Psychological barrier:
Psychological factors such as people's state of mind. We all tend to feel
happier and more receptive to information when the sun shines.
Physiological barriers may result from individuals' personal
discomfort, caused, for example, by ill health, poor eye sight or
hearing difficulties.

Equally, if someone has personal problems like worries about their

health or marriage, then this will probably affect them.
Linguistic barrier
Different languages and cultures represent a
national barrier. The use of difficult or
inappropriate words in communication can
prevent people .
Poorly explained or misunderstood messages can
also result in confusion. We can all think of
situations where we have listened to something
explained which we just could not grasp.
Emotions
Emotions can cause people to not be receptive
to the words of another person, even if the
words are understood. That is a barrier. In
short, anything that interferes with a signal
sent to a receiver is a barrier to
communication.