Chapter

THE PROCESS OF COMMUNICATION

McGraw-Hill/Irwin Copyright © 2008, The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Introduction

 Communication is a process that involves steps or

sequences of activities to be followed in the exchange of
messages between senders and receivers.
 Communication is a process, and if the process breaks
down, communication will fail.

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 THE COMMUNICATIONPROCESS

Feedback

sender
Thought Encoding Message
Objective Channel receiver
Informing (Medium to Receiving Decoding
Persuading transits Message
Reminding message) Understanding (or Action)

Noise

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 2.2 Elements of the Communication Process

 People (Senders - Receivers): Communicators are the primary

elements in the communication process in an organization.
 Communication involves people, it involves the exchange of
interpersonal characteristics such as perceptions, their
speaking and listening skills, their nonverbal behaviors, etc.
 Communication is thus an interpersonal process.

 People or senders-receivers make communication two ways.

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 Cont…

 Each of these communicators has a message, an idea,

or information to transmit to someone or some group.
 Encoding: Within the communicator, an encoding
process must take place that translates the
communicator’s ideas into a systematic set of symbols
expressing the communicator’s purpose.
 The major form of encoding is language.

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 Count…

 Message: The result of the encoding is the message-either verbal

or nonverbal.
 Message is a meaningful idea that people want to share with
others. It is an encoded idea with some purpose.
 The message, then, is what the individual hopes to communicate,
and the exact form that the message takes depends to a great
extent on the medium used to carry it.
 Decisions relating to the two are inseparable.

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 Cont…

 Channel

 The channel is a path, route or medium through

which a message is transmitted.
 Organizations provide information for their
members by a variety of channels, including face-to-
face communication, telephone, group meetings,
rewards etc .

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Activity 2.1
What are the factors to be considered in
choosing between oral and written medium of
communication?
 Do you think the condition of the receiver
affects the choice of a channel? How?

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 Decoding
 For the process of communication to be completed, the
message must be decoded by the receiver.
 Decoding is the technical term for the thought processes
of the receiver. Thus, it involves interpretation .
 The closer the decoded message is to the intent of the
communication, the more effective is the communication .

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 Feedback

 One-way communication processes do not allow

receiver-to-communicator feedback.
 Two-way communication processes provide for such
feedback.
 It decreases the potential for distortion between the
intended message and the received message.

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 For effective use of feedback the following guidelines
are vital.
1. Tell people you want feedback
2. Identify the areas in which you want feedback
3. set aside time for regularly scheduled feedback sessions.
4. Use silence to encourage feedback
5. Watch for nonverbal responses
6. Ask questions.
7. Use statements that encourage feedback
8. Reward feedback
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 Guidelines in sending feedback

 In sending feedback make sure your own feedback

to others is :
• Directed toward behavior rather than toward the
person
• Descriptive instead of evaluative
• Involves sharing ideas instead of giving advice
• Includes only as much information as the person can
handle at one time
• Immediate and well time

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Cont...

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 count…

 Physical noise is unwanted sound created in the

external environment or in transmission.
 On the other hand, psychological noise is created in the
mind of senders-receivers.
 It generally refers to absent mindedness that may be
caused by pain, hunger, headache, and other factors
that preoccupy human mind.

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 2.3 Barriers to Communication

 Any factor that impedes the exchange of information

between a sender and a receiver is a barrier to
communication.
 The process of communication is not always smooth.

 Many obstacles or hindrances obstruct it. These are

referred to as barriers to communication.
communication
 It refers to these factors which cause disturbance either in the

mind of the communicator (sender) or the communicate (receiver).

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Activity 2.2

 If you have ever misunderstand other

people what do you think were the major
causes?

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 The following are some of the most common

barriers to effective communication.

1. Differing perceptions:
perceptions Perception is the process
by an individual receives information from the
environment through the use of his sense organs
and interprets them.

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 Contd.

2. Language Differences & poor Expressions

Language differences are often closely related to
differences in individual perceptions. For a message to be
properly communicated, the words used must mean the
same thing to the sender and the receiver.
 Further barriers to communication may result from the
use of poorly chosen words, omissions, poor organization
of ideas etc.
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3. Loss by Transmission and poor Retention

In a series of transmissions from one person to the next,

the message becomes less and less accurate when a
communication is being conveyed from the higher
management level to the lower level step by step.
Much of it is likely to be lost in transit and Most of the
time, this problem arises in oral communication.
4. Inconsistent of verbal and Nonverbal Communication
Even if language as the primary medium of communication, the
messages we send and receive are strongly influenced by non-
verbal factors like body movements, clothing, our posture,
gestures, facial expression, eye movements, and body contact.
A busy manager who does not want to be disturbed might respond
to a subordinate’s greeting without looking up from his her

work .

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 Cont…

5 Poor Listening and Pre-mature Evaluation

 Listening demands full attention and self-discipline.

 judge to approve or disapprove what is being said

rather than trying to understand the speaker’s frame of
reference.
Yet listening without making hasty judgments can make
the whole organization more effective and more efficient .

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6. Emotionality
Emotional reactions- anger, love, defensiveness, hate,
jealousy, fear, embarrassment-influence how we
understand other’s messages and how we influence others
with our own messages.
 Cont…

7. Noise, Distance and Time

Noise is a big menace to communication; it creates a great barrier to

communication.

Distance acts as barriers in the process of communication. If

the two parties are far from each other there will be difficulty
in communication.
 Telephone solves this difficult in many cases.

 The effectiveness of our communication may be reduced if

our timing is not right.
right
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 Cont…

 The effectiveness of our communication may be reduced if our

timing is not right. There fore, we must consider the time of the
day and time of convenience.
 We should not communicate with another person if he is pre-
occupied with other matters:
 Therefore, to be effective, we must communicate at the
appropriate time both by the clock and by opportunity.
8 The Medium and Method of Communication:-
Medium of the communication and the method must be
appropriate because most people are very sensitive.
Fore example, routine matters like the opening and
closing times of the canteen may be appropriately
conveyed by a notice on a notice board while bold
statement about lateness of staff members would be most
inappropriate on a notice board .
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9. Distrust/Lack of Credibility of the Source
Credibility refers to the confidence or thrust that the receiver has
on the actions and/or words of the sender.
The credibility of a message is a function of the credibility of the
sender in the mind of the receiver.
Distrust can be the result of inconsistent behaviors by the
superior. There fore, the loss of confidence in the superior will
drop the effect of the communication and needed a trust, which

facilitates open and honest communication.

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• In addition to the above most common barriers to
effective communication there are many others factors
like .
- Attitude of communicators
- Differences in status and power b/n the sender and the
receiver

- Information overload:
overload Too much information to process
- Unqualified assumptions
- Position awareness,
awareness etc

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 Types of Interpersonal communication

• Ideas and feelings can be shared only if they are

represented by symbols. Symbols are things that stand
for something else.
• 1. Verbal symbols – refer to the words in our language.

• 2. Nonverbal symbols – are anything we communicate

without using words, figures, or letters, such as facial
expressions, gestures, body movements, etc.

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• Interpersonal communication is a critical part of any
environment where you’re interacting with others.
• All of the elements that go into the process of
exchanging information, ideas, and feelings between
people.
• It includes: oral communication, written communication,
nonverbal communication, and listening.

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• Examples of interpersonal communication are phone calls, Zoom
meetings, text messages, class lectures, body language, facial
expressions, and written letters.
• Oral communication is any form of spoken communication that
two parties exchange their ideas or the message with the help of
words of mouth.

• It can be observed in the forms of communication such as

conferences, committee meetings, interviews, telephone

conversations, face-to-face talks etc.

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 Advantages of Oral Communication

• It provides for speedy interchange with immediate

feedback.
• In most cases, it is economical both in terms of time
and money.
• It brings people together, eliminates the gap between
the communicator and facilitates free discussion and
better understanding.

• It can be supported by non-verbal symbols .

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 Disadvantages Oral Communication

 It does not provide any proof. There is nothing on

record. One can forget completely what had been said.
 It does not provide for serious thinking as decisions are
to be taken immediately.
 It is not appropriate if there is a distance between the
communicator and the communicatee.
 It is not suitable if the message to be communicated is
quite lengthy

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 Written communication

 This includes all types of written verbal

communication: emails, reports, text messages,
PowerPoint presentations, cards, post-it notes, and
more.
 It is conveyed through a letter, reports, circulars,
memoranda, notices, etc.
 It is a very common form of communication in most
organizations and is suitable for many situations.
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 Advantages of Written Medium Communication

- It records for future references and serve as a legal

document.
- It provides enough time for serious thinking and
prepared carefully.
- It is useful when the message is lengthy and located at
a distance from the sender.

- Promote uniformity in policy and procedures .

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 Disadvantages of Written Medium Communication

• As compared to oral communication it is more

time and money consuming.
 There is less flexibility.
flexibility
 It will be difficult to keep a matter confidential if it is
considered necessary
 It may not provide an immediate feedback.

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 Non-Verbal communication

• Non-Verbal communication encompasses all the

communication cues that don’t involve any
actual words.
• This includes things like body language, hand
gestures, eye contact, facial expression, the tone
of your voice.

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 Channels of non-verbal communication

1. Facial expressions and eye behavior; A person’s eyes are

especially effective as a tool of communication. Used to
indicate attention and interest, to influence others, regulate
interaction and to establish dominance.

2. Gestures and Postures;

3. Vocal characteristic/tones

4. Personal/physical/ appearance

5. Use of time and space

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 Listening

 listening is a huge part of interpersonal communication

as well. Active listening involves being engaged with the

person speaking and displaying verbal and nonverbal
cues .It makes others more comfortable sharing with
you.

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 Some key interpersonal skills that are useful in the workplace
include:

- Body language - Openness

-Negotiation skills - Conflict resolution

- Assertiveness -Teamwork & collaboration skills

- Empathy - Flexibility - Self-awareness-

- Awareness of others - Patience

- Networking skills - Decision-making skills - Public speaking &

presentation skills 1-39
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