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LISTENING

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Listeningasthe process of receiving, constructing meaning from, and responding to spoken and/or nonverbal messages. - The International Listening Association

The word Listen derives its roots in the Germanic language from the word Hlysnan which means to pay attention. The first communication skill we engage in the moment we are born is listening. It is how we learn and acquire language.THEPROCESS HEARING

THE SENSORY PERCEPTION OF SOUND

ATTENDING A MENTAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFORT WHICH INVOLVES CATEGORISATION & PRIORITISATION OF MESSAGES.

COMPREHENDING REMEMBERING, UNDERSTANDING, INTERPRETING AND GRASPING THE MESSAGE.

EVALUATING ANALYSING THE INFORMATION AND DRAWING THE CONCLUSIONS.

RESPONDINGACKNOWLEDGEMENT, REACTION, FEEDBACK THROUGH GESTURES, SMILES, NODDING ETC.,

TYPES OF LISTENINGDISCRIMINATIVE LISTENING It is the first and foremost type of listening in which we learn to discern the difference in sound. The best example of discrimnative listening as a phenomenon is the way a child learns to speak. For example: - Singling out a single noise from a noisy crowd. INFORMATIVE LISTENING Listeners primary concern is to understand the message. Listeners are successful when the meaning they assign to messages is as close as possible to that which the sender intended. E.g; Listening to lectures

APPRECIATIVE LISTENING

When the listener gains pleasure/satisfaction from listening to a certain type of music, poetry or even the stirring words of a great leader.

Appreciative sources might also include:Particular charismatic speakers or EntertainersCOMREHENSIVE LISTENING Comprehensive listening is what the message means to the listeners and how they understand it in different ways.

Listening comprehension involves:Speech decoding (sound, word, accent recognition)Comprehending (identify central theme, concentrate and understand, deduce incomplete information, decode unfamiliar words).Oral discourse(critical skills, attitude analysis, inferential skills).

Critical ListeningCritical listening is that type of listening where listeners have to evaluate the message.

Listeners have to critically respond to the message and give their opinions.

This form of listening involves analysis, critical thinking as well judgment Empathetic Listening It focuses on spoken message and the emotions of the individual.

It includes understanding the non-verbal cues.

Involves listening to other person by putting oneself in the physiological position of that other person .

ACTIVE AND PASSIVE LISTENING A way of listening and responding to another person that improves mutual understanding.

A way of paying attention to other people that can make them feel that you are listening them.ACTIVE LISTENINGBEHAVIORAL PATTERNS OF AN ACTIVE LISTENER13

Listening without responding.

Interest in understanding what the other person is saying.

The speaker is not interrupted in any way..PASSIVE LISTENING

PRINCIPLES OF LISTENINGSTOP TALKINGDon't talk, listen. When somebody else is talking listen to what they are saying, do not interrupt, talk over them or finish their sentences for them. Stop, just listenPREPARE YOURSELF TO LISTENRelax.

Focus on the speaker.

Put other things out of mind

17Put the speaker at ease

Help the speaker to feel free to speakNod or use other gestures or words to encourage them to continue Maintain eye contact but dont stareRemove distractions Focus on what is being said.

Avoid unnecessary interruptions

Empathize..Try to understand the other persons point of view. Let go of pre-conceived ideas.By having an open mind we can more fully empathise with the speaker.

Be PatientA pause, even a long pause, does not necessarily mean that the speaker has finished. Be patient and let the speaker continue in their own time, sometimes it takes time to formulate what to say and how to say it.

19Avoid personal prejudice Try to be impartial. Don't become irritated.Focus on what is being said and try to ignore styles of deliveryListen to the toneA good speaker will use both volume and tone to their advantage to keep an audience attentiveIt helps you to understand the emphasis of what is being said.

20sListen for ideas-not wordsThe most difficult aspects of listening is the ability to link together pieces of information to reveal the ideas of others.You need to get the whole picture not just isolated pieces and bits.

Wait and watch for non verbal communication

21TECHNIQUES OF LISTENINGListen with an open mindBe ready to hear and consider all sides of an issue..Avoid defensiveness

Listen to the entire message without judging or refuting Biases and prejudices prevent from listening fully . Listen , then judge or respond.When you are the listener, you cant simultaneously be the judge.

23Determine the concepts and central ideas of the messageThe best gauge to know whether you are listening or just hearing is whether or not you are actively looking for the central idea of what is being said.Learn to adapt to the speakers Appearance, Personality and DeliveryDont judge a book by its cover.Not every one is blessed with dashing looksBeyond appearance ,we should also spend some time coming to peace with the fact that there are different personalities, styles and levels of abilities.

Curb and overcome distractionsIt takes very little to jerk our attention away from the work of listeningObstaclesExternal noises.Psychological activity (worry, self consciousness, preoccupation)Physical conditions ( temperature ,odour ,light , visual distractions etc)Semantic distractions ( dialects , accents , vocabulary)Technological distractionsShow the speaker you are listening . Head nods

Leaning forward

Making eye contact Stop trying to Jump in and Talk

IMPORTANCE OF LISTENING

Listening is the most powerful form of acknowledgment

a way of saying, You are important.27Listening builds stronger relationships..

Creates a desire to cooperate among people because they feel accepted and acknowledged.Listening creates acceptance and openness

Conveys the message that I am not judging you.

Listening is critical in conflict resolution

Much conflict comes from the need to be heard. Successful resolution depends on being anon- anxious presence.

29IMPROVING LISTENING SKILLS Listening is a far more complex process that most people think {THILL and BOVEE }

Most of us listen at or below a 25% efficiency rate, remember only about half of what is said during a 10 minute conversation, and forget half of that within 48 hours. . Resisting Distractions

Distractions at physical or mental level.

We have a pace of thinking faster than speaking, our attention begins to wander while we listen to someone. Make conscious effort to bring our mind back.

Be alert to the speakers message that is to be transmitted.

Dont be distracted by physical appearance and mannerisms of the speaker.Concentrate on the message that the speaker tries to convey.

Focus More On the Manner Of Listening than on the Matter Of Listening

Skilled listeners focus on listening more to the message than to the matter of listening. Each speech contains a limited number of points. Our adapting to a right manner of listening makes us identify these points which, together convey the main message.

32 DELAYING EVALUATION

Give speaker adequate time to say.

Do not jump to conclusions.

Premature judgment hampers effective listening.

Remember a good listener keeps his/her mind open for ideas or information and his/her eyes keen to how they are uttered TAKING NOTESLearn how to record what we listen.

Learning to take notes to keep a track of the speakers message should be the main thrust of the listener.

How a listener drives the main thrust of the speakers message home is also very important

Note taking technique is to acquire main points by writing the key words used by he speaker.

Be alert to your Body Language What you do with your hands, eyes, face and postures sends out signals as to whether you are or arent listening to and understanding what the other person is saying. These includeYawning, sighing ,FrowningCrossing arms at chest etc In conversations consider the following mannerisms Smiling frequently, looking into your eyes, keeping eyes wide open indicates that the person shows interest in you and what you are saying.

Acknowledging the Speaker

In addition, the active listeners usually acknowledge the speaker verbally by comments such as Umm, I see, Really? Listen to someone by paying attention..is the greatest compliment we can give to another person.

35BARRIERS TO LISTENINGNoise: Interior, Semantic Situational

Information overload

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All this information can weigh on our ability to take in or receive and adequately process and evaluate what we take in through our sensory channels.

Speaker Perception Sometimes we label the speaker as uninteresting, not a good speaker, boring or we can look beyond the perceptions we may have of the speaker. Self Perceptions and Personal Biases

Self perceptions and personal biases can include:EgocentrismEthnocentrismPersonal biasesKnow-it-all attitude

38HEARING VS LISTENINGDifference between Hearing and Listening HEARING LISTENINGHearing is the process of perceiving sound produced by any source in the environment.Hearing is merely the ability of ear to sense sound around oneListening is the process of deriving meaning from organized sounds.Listening is more complex than merely hearing as it consists of four stagesSensing, Attending, Understanding Interpreting, Remembering and RespondingListening is more of conscious effort to interpret the sounds requiring concentration of the mind.

When you are quiet, people will think you are listening. But in order to hear what the other person is saying, you have to stop thinking about anything else and focus your attention on what is being said.You can actually listen without hearing. There are several reasons for this. If you are planning your response while the other person is talking, there is no way you will hear what they are saying.

Or you may daydream while another person is talking. This happens when you are not that interested in what someone is talking about. Again, you won't be able to hear what is being said while your mind is preoccupied

Another issue is when you don't want to hear what is being said. In this case your hearing actually shuts down so you don't have to listen to something you don't want to. This can also happen when you don't agree with the person.

Effective communication can only occur when each person is interested in hearing what the other is saying. Both people have to make the effort to be good listeners. This requires patience, respect, and courtesy. Productive interaction takes intention and effort on the part of everyone involved.

Effective communication There are two distinct processes involved in listening comprehension.

1.Top-down: In this process prior knowledge is employed to understand the meaning of a message.2.Bottom-up: In this process linguisticKnowledge is used to understand the meaning of a message.