MODELS OF COMMUNICATION

• A model is a pictorial presentation to show the structure of communication process in which various elements are linked.

• It is an abstracted representation of a reality• A good model comes as close to reality as clearly

possible. • But being an abstraction, a model is not a reality ,

it only represents the reality of communication for better understanding of the process of communication

• Most of the models are linear, i.e one directional

• Aristotle, a great philosopher initiative the earliest mass communication model called “Aristotle’s Model of Communication”.

• He proposed model before 300 B.C who found the importance of audience role in communication chain in his communication model.

• This model is more focused on public speaking than interpersonal communication.

• Aristotle Model of Communication is formed with 5 basic elements

• (i) Speaker, (ii) Speech, (iii) Occasion, (iv) Audience and (v) Effect.

• Aristotle advises speakers to build speech for different audience on different time (occasion) and for different effects.

• Speaker plays an important role in Public speaking. The speaker must prepare his speech and analysis audience needs before he enters into the stage. His words should influence in audience mind and persuade their thoughts towards him.

• In a political meeting, the prospective leader delivers speech to the audience urging for more votes from the constituency. He tries to convince the crowd in the best possible way he can so that he emerges as a winner. What is he actually doing ?

• He is delivering his speech in a manner that the listeners would get convinced and cast their votes only in his favour, or in other words respond in the same manner the speaker wanted to. Here the leader or the speaker or the sender is the centre of attraction and the crowd simply the passive listeners

• According to this model, the speaker plays a key role in communication.

• He is the one who takes complete charge of the communication.

• The sender first prepares a content which he does by carefully putting his thoughts in words with an objective of influencing the listeners or the recipients, who would then respond in the sender’s desired way.

• No points in guessing that the content has to be very impressive in this model for the audience or the receivers to get convinced. The model says that the speaker communicates in such a way that the listeners get influenced and respond accordingly.

Example:

• Alexander gave brave speech to his soldiers in the war field to defeat Persian Empire.

• Speaker - Alexander• Speech - about his invasion• Occasion - War field• Audience - Soldiers• Effect - To defeat Persia

SMCR model

• The berlo’s model follows the smcr model this model is not specific to any particular communication.

Berlo’s model lives a number of factors under each of the elements :

• Source: The source is were the message originates.Communication skills – It is the individual’s skill to

communicate (ability to read, write, speak, listen etc…)Attitudes – The attitude towards the audience, subject and

towards one self for e.g. for the student the attitude is to learn more and for teachers wants to help teach.

Knowledge- The knowledge about the subject one is going to communicate for e.g. whatever the teacher communicates in the class about the subject so having knowledge in what you are communicating.(It is not talking about the general knowledge it is all about the knowledge of the subject, so it is the familiarity of what you are communicating.)

Social system – The Social system includes the various aspects in society like values, beliefs, culture, religion and general understanding of society. It is were the communication takes place. For e.g. class room differs from country to country like behaviors, how we communicate etc.

Culture: Culture of the particular society also comes under social system.All to this model, only if you have the above in the proper or adequate proportion v can communicate.

• Encoder: The sender of the message (message originates) is referred as encoder, so the source is encoding the message here

• MessageContent – The beginning to the end of a message comprises its content for

e.g. From beginning to end whatever the class teacher speaks in the class is the content of the message.

Elements – It includes various things like language, gestures, body language etc, so these are all the elements of the particular message. Content is accompanied by some elements.

Treatment – It refers to the packing of the message. The way in which the message is conveyed or the way in which the message is passed on or deliver it.

Structure- The structure of the message how it is arranged, the way you structure the message into various parts.

Code- The code of the message means how it is sent in what form it could be e.g. language, body language, gestures, music and even culture is a code. Through this you get/give the message or through which the communication takes place or being reached.

• Channel- It is nothing but the five senses through this only we do. The following are the five senses which we use• Hearing• Seeing• Touching• Smelling• Tasting• Whatever communication we do it is there either of these channels.

Hearing: The use of ears to get the message for e.g. oral messages, interpersonal etc.

Seeing: Visual channels for e.g. TV can be seen and the message is delivered.Touching: The sense of touch can be used as a channel to communicate for

e.g. we touch and buy food, hugging etc.Smelling: Smell also can be a channel to communicate for e.g. perfumes,

food, charred smell communicates something is burning, we can find out about which food is being cooked etc.Tasting : The tongue also can be used to decipher e.g. Food can be tasted and communication can happen.

• Decoder : Who receives the message and decodes it is referred to as decoder.

• Receiver: The receiver needs to have all the thinks like the source.

This model believes that for an effective communication to take place the source and the receiver needs to be in the same level, only if the source and receiver are on the same level communication will happen or take place properly. So source and receiver should be similar

For e.g. Communication skills on source side is good then the receiver should equally have good listening skills.

We cannot say the entire message passed doesn’t reaches the receiver has it is because the receiver may not good in listening, so only for the effective communication the source and the receiver to be in the same level.

Criticism of berlo’s smcr model of communication:

• No feedback / don’t know about the effect• Does not mention barriers to communication• No room for noise• Complex model• It is a linear model of communication• Needs people to be on same level for communication

to occur but not true in real life• Main drawback of the model is that the model omits

the usage of sixth sense as a channel which is actually a gift to the human beings (thinking, understanding, analyzing etc).

• The Shannon–Weaver model of communication has been called the "mother of all models.

• For them the channel was telephones and radio waves

• This theory enabled them to approach the problem of how to send a maximum amount of information along a given channel ,

• And how to measure the capacity of any one channel to carry information.

Problem in the model of communication

• Level A how accurately can the symbol (technical) of communication be

transmitted ?• LEVEL B how effectively and preciesly

(semantic) symbols convey the desired meaning?

• LEVEL C effect of the received symbols (effectiveness) in the desired way?

• This model tackel level A problems, and the assumption seems to be that to sort out of the technical problems

• Improving the encoding will increase the semantic barrier too

Acc to this model

• Source decides which message is to send out of many messages,

• Selected message is then changed by the transmitter into signals which is sent through the channel to the receiver.

• For a telephone the channel is a wire, the signal is the electric current in it, and the transmitter and the receiver are the telephone handsets.

• This model is important as it introduces the concept of noise.

• NOISE, whether it originates in the channel, the audiences, the sender, or the message itself, always confuses the intention of the sender and thus limits the amount of desired information that can be sent in a given situation in a given time.

• Entropy: the measure of uncertainty in a system of information to the receiver. Example of a coin and the probability of coming head or tail.

• Redundancy (Not needed): the degree to which the information is not unique to the system. Those items in the message which adds no information in the message is redundant.

• Noise: the measure of information not related to the message.

• Channel capacity: the measure of maximum amount of information a channel can carry.

LASWELL MODEL OF COMMUNICATION, 1948

Schramm’s Model of communication, 1954Also known as Osgood’s model of communication

• Wilbur L. Schramm was a forefather in the development of a basic model of communication. His model is a derivation of the Shannon-Weaver transmission model of communication. The Shannon-Weaver model proposed six elements of communication:

• Source• encoder• message• channel • decoder • receiver

• Wilbur Schramm's 1954 model expands on this thinking by emphasizing the process of encoding and decoding the message.

• Schramm envisioned this process as a two-way circular communication between the sender and receiver.

• Where the Shannon-Weaver model is a more mathematical and technological one, Schramm incorporates the study of human behavior in the communication process.

• In addition to the six elements above, Schramm has included these concepts:

• Feedback - information that comes back from the receiver to the sender and tells him how well he is doing.

• Field of Experience - an individual's beliefs, values, experiences and learned meanings both as an individual or part of a group.

• Dr. Schramm suggests that the message can be complicated by different meanings learned by different people.

• Meanings can be denotative or connotative. • Denotative meanings are common or dictionary meanings

and can be roughly the same for most people. Connotative meanings are emotional or evaluative and based on personal experience.

• A message can also have surface and latent meanings. Other characteristics of messages that impact communication between two individuals are: intonations and pitch patterns, accents, facial expressions, quality of voice, and gestures.

• Schramm's model of communication also allows for the process of interpreting the message.

• This process is influenced by the presence of both physical (phone, tv, sirens, etc.) and semantic (distractions, age, attitudes, etc.) noise.

New Comb’s Model of Communication

• It is a triangular model of communication.• And it represents briefly interpersonal

communication.• It tries to introduce the role of communication

in a society or a social relationship.• Acc to this the communication maintains

equilibrium within the social system.

• Theodore Newcomb (1953) see communication from the social psychology view. This model also known as ABX model. This model draw that someone (A) sending information to the other one (B) about something (X). That model assume that A's orientation to B and to X is depend to each other. And three of them is a system which content four orientation.

1. A to X orientation2. A to B orientation3. B to X orientation4. B to A orientation

In this model, communication is a normal and effective way which make people can orient their self to their environment. It's a intentional communication act model of 2 people.

• A and B are the communicator and receiver.• They may be individuals or management and

the union or the government and the people.• ABX is a system which is in an equilibrium• If A changes, B and X will change as well.• or if A changes the X, B will also get change.• It shows the interdependence of the A, B, X

with each other

Westley’s and MacLean(1957)

• Bruce Westley and Malcolm MacLean’s model of extension of Newcomb's model and specifically adapted for the mass media.

• They introduced the element C, which is in the process of deciding what and how to communicate