Professional Documents
Culture Documents
COMMUNICATION
Business Communication – Dr. Garamvölgyi Judit
Communication
■ The root of the word “communication” in Latin is communicare, which means to share,
or to make common (Weekley, 1967). Communication is defined as the process of
understanding and sharing meaning (Pearson & Nelson, 2000).
■ Process: A process is a dynamic activity that is hard to describe because it changes
■ Understanding: “To understand is to perceive, to interpret, and to relate our perception and
interpretation to what we already know.”
■ Sharing: Sharing means doing something together with one or more people.
■ Meaning: is what we share through communication.
Eight Essential Components of Communication
1. Source - imagines, creates, and sends the message
2. Message - the stimulus or meaning produced by the source for the receiver or audience
3. Channel - the way in which a message or messages travel between source and receiver
4. Receiver - receives the message from the source, analyzing and interpreting the message in ways both intended
and unintended by the source
5. Feedback - When you respond to the source, intentionally or unintentionally. composed of messages the
receiver sends back to the source
6. Environment - the atmosphere, physical and psychological, where you send and receive messages
7. Context - the setting, scene, and expectations of the individuals involved
8. Interference - anything that blocks or changes the source’s intended meaning of the message
The Communication Process
3
1 2 Sender
4 5
Sender selects Receiver Feedback
Sender has encodes channel, decodes returns to
idea
message transmits message sender
message
Types of communication
■ Messages carry far more than the literal meaning of each word.
■ Primary messages refer to the intentional content, both verbal and nonverbal. These are the
words or ways you choose to express yourself and communicate your message.
■ Secondary messages refer to the unintentional content, both verbal and nonverbal. Perceptions of
physical attractiveness, age, gender, or ethnicity or even simple mannerisms and patterns of
speech may unintentionally influence the message.
■ Auxiliary messages refer to the intentional and unintentional ways a primary message is
communicated, may include vocal inflection, gestures and posture, or rate of speech that influence
the interpretation or perception of your message.
Parts of a Message
■ Sexist language uses gender as a discriminating factor. Referring to adult women as “girls” or
using the word “man” to refer to humankind are examples of sexist language.
■ Racist language discriminates against members of a given race or ethnic group. While it may
be obvious that racial and ethnic slurs have no place in business communication, there can also
be issues with more subtle references to “those people” or “you know how they are”.
Mentioning racial and ethnic groups should be done with the same respect you would desire if
someone else were referring to groups you belong to.
■ Euphemism involves substituting/using an acceptable word for an offensive, controversial,
or unacceptable one that conveys the same or similar meaning. The problem is that the
audience still knows what the expression means and understands that the writer or speaker is
choosing a euphemism for the purpose of sounding more educated or genteel. Euphemistic
words are not always disrespectful, there are scenarios when it is the accepted form.
Language obstacles
■ Doublespeak is the deliberate use of words to disguise, obscure, or change meaning.
Doublespeak is often present in bureaucratic communication, where it can serve to cast a
person or an organization in a less unfavorable light than plain language would do.
Doublespeak can be quite dangerous when it is used deliberately to obscure meaning and the
listener cannot anticipate or predict consequences based on the (in)effective communication.
If the meaning was successfully hidden from the audience, one might argue that the
doublespeak was in fact effective. Learn to recognize doublespeak by what it does not
communicate as well as what it communicates.
Each of these seven barriers to communication contributes to misunderstanding and
miscommunication, intentionally or unintentionally. If you recognize one of them, you can
address it right away. You can redirect a question and get to essential meaning, rather than
leaving with a misunderstanding that impacts the relationship. In business communication, our
goal of clear and concise communication remains constant, but we can never forget that trust is
the foundation for effective communication.
Nonverbal Communication
Physical Body
Space Time
characteristics movements
Chronemics is the study of how we refer to and perceive time. The value of speed is highly
prized in some societies.
Across cultures the value of time may vary. Some Mexican American friends may invite
you to a barbecue at 8 p.m., but when you arrive you are the first guest, because it is
understood that the gathering actually doesn’t start until after 9 p.m. Similarly in France, an
8 p.m. party invitation would be understood to indicate you should arrive around 8:30, but
in Sweden 8 p.m. means 8 p.m., and latecomers may not be welcome.
Hall
■ Monochronic time means doing one thing at a time
■ Polychronic time parallel processing
Body Movements
Kinesics - the study of body movements. Four distinct ways of body movements that complement,
repeat, regulate, or replace your verbal messages.
■ Complement - Body movements can complement the verbal message by reinforcing the main
idea. Verbal and nonverbal messages reinforce each other.
■ Repeating - can also reinforce the message
■ Regulate conversations – nodding, holding up hand
■ Substitute or replace verbal messages - facial features communicate to others our feelings, but our
body movements often reveal how intensely we experience those feelings.
■ Hand and arm movements, leg movements, facial expression, eye contact and blinking, stance and
posture.
Touch