Concepts & Problems of Communication

8/6/2019 Concepts & Problems of Communication

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Concepts & Problems of

Communication

y No two people are EXACTLY alike

y No two countries are EXACTLY alike

y No two cultures are EXACTLY alike

Result

Problems with communication occur when thecommunicator filters are sharply different.


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CONCEPTS & PROBLEMS OF

COMMUNICATION

y Conventions of Meaning

y Perception of Realityy Values, Attitudes & Opinions

y Cultural Differences

y Mind as a Unique Filter

y Communication Barriers

i. Physical Barriers

ii. Psychological Barriers


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Conventions of Meaningy Synonymy

y Symbols and their Meaning

yAcronymsy Miscommunicated Instruction

y Reactions to Denotations, Connotations, andEuphemisms


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SYNONYMYy Protect and Save

yAnswer and Reply

y Good and well

Do you know the reply to question four?

Do you know the answer to question four?


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SYMBOLS & THEIR MEANINGyArbitrariness


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ACRONYMSy WMD: Weapons of Mass Destruction

y WMD: World Mothers Day


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Miscommunicated Instructiony Bimonthly

y Tenement

y To table a proposal


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DENOTATIONS, CONNOTATIONS, AND

EUPHEMISMS


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CONNOTATIONS Aconnotation is an implication of a word or a

suggestion separate from the usual definition.

House: Mansion, villa, home, cottage, firetrap, shack. Student: Bookworm, nerd, dropout, scholar,

researcher.

Efficient, gentle, prompt (Positive connotations)

Lazy, cowardly, delinquent (Negative connotations)

Cheap product and cheap price

The term bad in colloquial means its opposite.

Speed, grass, coke


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EUPHEMISM Aeuphemism is a mild or pleasant expression used

instead of an offensive or unpleasant one.

Old people: Senior citizens Dead people: Loved ones

Mentally abnormal: Special (School for SpecialChildren)

Tax collector: Revenue agent

Barber: Hairstylist

Graveyard: Memorial park

Poor countries: Developing countries


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Perceptions of Reality

y Unique reality of each individual

y Different sensory perceptions


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Communication Problems in

Perceptions of RealityyAbstracting: When we select some facts and omit

others, we are abstracting

yThe economic situation of Pakistan in 2006 was notgood, but now it is better.

y

y Necessary Desirable Abstracts


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Slanted Statements: Biased or prejudiced statements inreporting

A reported news reporter would not write: A small crowdof retards came to hear the Governors plan for 1997yesterday noon in that rundown hotel that disfiguresHong Kong central.

Instead the write-up might state: Between 250 and 350people heard an address yesterday noon by GovernorPatton in the auditorium at the Conrad Hotel atPacific Palace.


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Inferring: Conclusions drawn from evidence orpremises

Necessary, Desirable Inferences When we drop a letter in the mailbox, we infer that it

will be delivered to our intended reader.

When we land at a foreign airport, we assume we willbe treated hospitably.

When we enter an elevator in our building, we hope itwill take us to the desired f loor.

Risks of Inferences


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Values, Attitudes, and

Opinions

yA receivers attitude toward a message can determine

whether it is accepted, rejected, distorted, or avoided.


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ommun ca on ro ems

Involving Values, Attitudes, and

Opinionsy Favorable or Unfavorable Information

y Inadequate or Incorrect Information

y Closed Mindsy Senders Credibility

y Other Circumstances Affecting Attitudes,Opinions, and Responses


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Barriers In Communicationy The phenomenon of Communication is concerned

with transfer of message. The message should

reach the Decoder in order to gain a properFeedback. However, since no two people are same,so communication style varies from person toperson and in a broad perspective, from an

organization to organization, country to countryor culture to culture.


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y Each persons mind is a unique filter. The problems in Communication occurwhen the Communicators filters are sharply different. These problems arecalled Barriers as they hinder the smooth process of communication.

y There are a wide number of sources of noise or interference that can enterinto the communication process which prevent the achievement of the desiredresult, such as individual:

y Semantic Barriers

y Convention of meaning

y Physical Barriers

y Psychological Barriersy i- Emotional Barriers

y ii- Perceptual Barriers

y iii- Barriers involving values, attitudes etc.


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y Over-view of Communication Barriers:

y In a nutshell, most barriers can be classified into the following classes:

y Barriers to reception:1- Environmental stimuli2- The receivers attitudes and values

3- The receivers needs and expectations

y Barriers to understanding:1- Language and semantic problems2- The ability of the receiver to listen and receive, especially messages

which threatens his or her self concept.3- The length of the communication4- Status effects

y Barriers to acceptance:1- Prejudices2- Interpersonal conflicts between sender and receiver.

y


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y 1. *SemanticBarriers: since one of the principlesof communication is to use the symbols which

have same meaning for the sender and receiver.The

yway a symbol is perceived in a senders mind mightbe different from how it

y is perceived by the receiver. In such a situation,communication would fail

y and the desired result might not be gained, thus

creating a Barrier.


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y 3. Physical barriers: communication does not take place through wordsalone. Since 55% of communication is perceived or decoded through bodylanguage and facial expressions, so barriers might occur by the physicalappearance of communicators; the sender or the receiver, or the context of a

document and even the presentation of a document.

y In a message, the senders ideas, however well composed they are,might not bring considerable results due to physical barriers. In a writtenmessage the barriers might be: jammed or jagged margins, finger-prints orsmudges on paper, unclear photocopies, unreadable word-processor printout,stains of water or tea or oil etc.

y In apresentation, barriers might occur if the sender or speaker has poorverbal skills, is mumbling, not enunciating or describing in details, speakingtoo quickly or using accented style. There might be other sources of disruptionlike noise of hissing ventilations, ringing telephones, slamming doors,Environmental Disturbances like traffic noise, loud sound, passing train etc.


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y 4. Psychological Barriers: the world around us is constantly changing andthus people are becoming more conscious and they have more knowledge, theyare more aware and they think more. Therefore, every mind in this world isunique in itself. Every mind has a different mental filter so the perception of

reality is different for them. A person not only perceives through their sensoryexperience, but mental experiences also add to perception. Therefore, everyperson makes various abstractions, inferences and evaluations of the world.Thinking too much and forming a persons own idea can sometimes lead tobarriers to communication.

y Emotional Barriers: sometimes barriers occur due to our emotional state. Insuch situations we normally block our emotional dynamics. In unpleasantsituations or when the reaction is unknown to us we prefer to create thisbarrier. But this might give the wrong notion to the receiver, consequentlyresulting miscommunication.

y Perception of reality: human mind is involved in automatic activity ofabstracting and inferring. Its a healthy activity to increase mental capacity butat times it can lead to barrier in communication.


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y Barriers involving values, attitudes, opinions etc: sometimes barriers may occur in communication due todifference in opinions, values and attitude of communicators. Following are some of the problems which may causecommunication barriers:

y Cross-cultural differences: different cultures have different norms. A miscommunication can be caused ifthe communicators are unaware of each others norms. For instance, Muslim men do not shake hands with

women, however, it is considered impolite byWestern women if men would not shake hands with them. So,in such a situation where they come across there might be a miscommunication.

y Favorable or Unfavorable Information: the sender must always hold a positive attitude by giving thereceiver Favorable information from their point of view. If unfavorable information is given to the Receiverthis might cause an attitudinal barrier to communication

y Pre-conceived notions: People attend to stimuli in the environment in very different ways. We each haveshortcuts that we use to organize data. Invariably, these shortcuts introduce some biases intocommunication. Some of these shortcuts include stereotyping, projection, and self-fulfilling prophecies.Stereotyping is one of the most common. This is when we assume that the other person has certain

characteristics based on the group to which they belong without validating that they in fact have thesecharacteristics. In such a case, it becomes extremely difficult to communicate. Sometimes, these notions aredeveloped due to inadequate or incorrect information. This would certainly affect the success ofcommunication. The required feedback would be jeopardized.


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Images missing

communication barriersy System design faults refer to problems with the structures or systems in place in an organisation.

y Examples might include an organisational structure which is unclear and therefore makes it confusing to know who tocommunicate with.

y Other examples could be inefficient or inappropriate information systems, a lack of supervision or training, and a lackof clarity in roles and responsibilities which can lead to staff being uncertain about what is expected of them.

y

Attitudinal barriers come about as a result of problems with staff in an organisation.y 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 ofindividual employees which may be due to lack of motivation or dissatisfaction at work, brought about by insufficienttraining to enable them to carry out particular tasks, or just resistance to change due to entrenched attitudes and ideas.

y OTHER COMMON BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION INCLUDE:

y Psychological factors such as people's state of mind. We all tend to feel happier and more receptive to informationwhen the sun shines.

y Equally, if someone has personal problems like worries about their health or marriage, then this will probably affectthem.

y Different languages and cultures represent a national barrier which is particularly important for organisationsinvolved in overseas business.

y Individual linguistic ability is also important. The use of difficult or inappropriate words in communication canprevent people from understanding the message.

y Poorly explained or misunderstood messages can also result in confusion. We can all think of situations where we havelistened to something explained which we just could not grasp.

y Physiological barriers may result from individuals' personal discomfort, caused, for example, by ill health, poor eyesight or hearing difficulties.


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y OBSTACLES AND BARRIERS BEHAVIORSINGROUP DYNAMICS

y The following questions can used to self-debrief your behavior in settings where personal communications are used tobuild relationships -- at work, at home, in a church, with a spouse and about any place where two or more gather. Theseare the common barriers and you may think of others or variations. It is often helpful to do this evaluation in a group of5-7 people and exchange your views to enhance learning about yourself. The purpose of this exercise is to discover what

you may be doing to shut off communications and find ways to improve your behavior.

A second way to use these barriers is to just copy the heading and discuss each within a group. The number one barrierto communications is not listening. Different forms of this are at the end of the list. (jump to listening barriers)

y EXPECTATIONS:Are your expectations of others or organizations a barrier? Do others know your expectations or doyou just think they know them? Can you change your expectations or let go of them to be part of a group or arelationship? How would that feel? Did this in any way feel like giving up your "self" to be what the group wants you tobe?This is probably the number one barrier to communications. Expectations are often not expressed to others and it is asif the other is expected to have a crystal ball and know what you expect.

RISKING:What is a risk for you? How much do you risk in a communications setting? What keeps you from risking?Is it fear? If so, fear of what? Is it control? Control of what? Yourself or others or the group? Do you wish to risk more?What will it take to risk more? More trust?This is probably the top barriers in communicating authentically. Risk in communication often has this silent question:"IfIrisk myselfand this is allI've got, what will happen ifIam rejected?"Building communications with othersauthentically takes a degree of risk.

AVOIDANCE: What behavior do you use to avoid looking at yourself? Think about this hard. What was behind the


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y Overcoming barriers to communication:

y

y 1. If communication is oral, it must be clear and not heavily accented.

y 2. Words must be chosen in such a way that miscommunication is avoided.

y 3. People should be oriented to listen with attention and read with concentration.

y 4. If instruments are used they should be in proper working condition.

y 5. The communicator should try to reach the audience by speaking and writing from their point of view. The youattitude must be used on all occasions. Semantic noises must be avoided.

y 6. All communication should try to persuade and not rush or overwhelm people. Psychological barriers can be

effectively overcome through persuasion.

y 7. Proper arrangement must be made to obtain feedback. The sooner you obtain feedback the sooner will you be able tochange your mode and manner of communication and make it more effective.


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y 8. Make sure you are using the proper channel of communication whether it is through written, verbal or with visualaids.

y Action to be taken to overcome barriers of effective communication

y Sender should make note of the following:WHO : To whom should the message go ?WHY : Why am I communicating ? What are my motives?WHAT : Decide what to communicate. Be clear about what you need to communicate.WHEN : Choose the best time for optimum reception.HOW: Use language the receiver will understand and which unambiguous.WHERE : Choose a location which will not interfere with the reception, understanding and acceptance of the message.Keep checking with the receiver.

y

y Receiver should take care of the following:Be fully ATTENTIVE to sender

Listen ACTIVELY to the messages being sent.ASK for clarifications, reception where necessary.Keep checking with sender.

y TogetherRealize that misunderstandings are bound to occur, and be ALERT for all cues to this effect.LISTEN, listen, listen, and listen again.TEST your understanding of the message.Share OPINIONS, feelings and perceptions generated by the message.

y Conclusion:y The world around us constantly bombards us with sights, sounds, scents and other sensory experiences.


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y AVOIDANCE: What behavior do you use to avoid looking at yourself? Think about this hard. What was behind theavoidance? Fear of rejection? Fear of loss of control? Have you been part of an avoidance "project" to shift the subjectaway from yourself to enter a comfort zone? What does a group do to avoid doing what it needs to do? Did groupnorms facilitate avoidance?

Avoidance frequently is present when a person feels unsafe or is unsure if its safe. Many business meetings start withconsiderable avoidance and only in the last minutes does the group get to the real subject, and then often try a quick

fix. Avoidance can become a habit. Vunerability is a good way to build relationships with others, but it is often scaryand avoided. It takes risk to share your self

FIXING: Has anyone try to fix you? The group? How did that feel? Did you try to fix, heal or convert anyone or thegroup? Can you fix anyone other than yourself? How aware are you that this is often done, with good intentions and

well-meaning but usually not wanted and unaccepted 90+% of the time?What is your level of acceptance of people just as they are?

y Fixing is often trying to get the other to believe as you do or to do as you have done in a similar situation or to be morelike you so you will feel more comfortable.

y PROJECTS: Most individuals and groups are creative in making "projects" that have avoidance as its main purpose. Aproject is doing or saying or organizing to shift the subject of a discussion. An example might be to say,"its too hot in here to think. I need more air conditioning to go on with this discussion."Can you name a project you have done or one your group has done? What do pseudo-projects represent in a group?Sometimes projects are things, sometimes people and often it's something completely outside the group and the room.For example I once had a group talk about a former person that was part of the group but has been dead for 6 year. This

was pure avoidance of the work that this group needed to do. Projects can be a way of fooling ourselves and have manyof the characteristics of "organizing a group" and represent avoidance. They can be barriers to communications.Projects are sometimes necessary to help build safety and trust in groups. They can take the form of challenging the

norms of a group or the written rules.


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y PLACATING: Did you feel placated by anyone? Did you placate anyone? How does it feel to be placated?

CONFLICT AVOIDANCE (CHAOS) : Do you run from conflict or avoid it in some way instead of trying to go throughit? Do you leave a conversation when it gets too hot for you? (either actual or emotionally) How do you react to change?

Another word for conflict/chaos can be change. People find many ways to avoid talking about change as it usually feelsuncomfortable because of the unknown. Chaos can also mean conf lict and most people will do anything to avoid it.

Chaos is one of the most certain things in life and it is well to learn how to embrace it.

SILENCE: How comfortable are you with silence? Can you listen to yourself ? To your source of spirit? Do you recognizerespectful silence? Do you experience a silent time at home? What would it be like if you asked for some silence in your

workplace during a meeting?Silence is an unused tool that is very effective in all kinds of ways. "Silence is the primary key to finding what you needto let go of in your life to have a happier life."More than half of Beethoven's music is silence. Without the silence there is no music; there is only noise. Most peoplehave little true silence in their lives, yet it provides considerable peacefulness.

EXCLUSION: Did you feel excluded at any time? Did you exclude yourself? Did some person say anything that madeyou feel excluded? Was your feeling of exclusion accurate? Is this something that often happens to you? Did youexclude any person either by avoiding them, or emotionally tuning them out, or by making a judgmental statement?Did you later change the exclusion to inclusion?Think of how people are often excluded and why. It is often done as an unconscious act that may have been learned inthe family or work place.


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y BOUNDARY ORBARRIER:A boundary is often created for protection and should only be changed with considerablethought. A boundary "rule" is one you have originated that defines what is good or bad for you. A boundary may be abarrier to communication depending on what it is. Are you aware of any boundary you have that is a barrier tomeaningful communications? Are you aware of any boundary that you want to change? How will you do that and how

will you know if it is safe to change?Boundaries are accumulated during life for protection and become a learned method of existing. Boundaries need to

be changed slowly and may be replaced with another boundary that offers more freedom until it becomes safe to "takethe next step". Some people have few or almost no boundries and this often gets them into trouble. An example of thisis a person that regulary offers far more information that is asked for by people they talk to. This becomes a turnoff toothers and may result in other avoiding you.

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Concepts & Problems of Communication

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