DEFINITION OF COMMUNICATION

Communication is derived from the Latin word ‘communis’ meaning ‘common’ , and from the Latin term ‘communicare’ or ‘communico’ , both of which mean ‘to share’ . When we communicate we try to establish a commoness  with others. We try to share information, an idea or a concept in our interface or interaction with the other person. Communication is not merely the transmission of meaning from one person to another through symbols , it is a process of achieving understanding between people. Generally speaking

Communication has three basic goals:

1.             To ensure that the receiver understands the communication exactly as the sender intends it to be.

2.             To generate a response – some action or change in the knowledge and behavior of the receiver.

3.             To help build relationships between people.

Definition of Communications as offered by world renowned experts:

Robert Anderson:                                                Communications is interchange of thoughts, opinions or information by speech, writing

or signs.

Peter Little:                                            Communication is the process by which information is transmitted between

individuals and/or organizations so that an understanding response results.

W.H.Newman & C.F.Summer:          Communication is an exchange of facts, ideas, opinions or emotions by two or more persons.

George Vardaman:                             Effective Communication is purposive interchange resulting in workable understanding and agreement between the sender and receiver of a message.

The main objective of communications is to convey the ‘right message’ or information to the other person.

Misinterpretation will lead to misunderstanding and wrong responses or the development of an unfavourable image.

 

THE COMMUNICATION PROCESS

The whole process of communication can be divided into several divisions, each consisting of other elements. These have been identified as follows:

The two major parties in a communication:              

The Sender:          The party who initiates the communication message.

The Receiver:       The party who receives or is expected to receive the intended communication message.

The two major communication tools in a communication:

The Message:      The set of ideas or symbols, that is transmitted by the sender.

The Media:            The vehicle or any other communication channel through which the message is carried to

the receiver.

The four major activities in a communication:

The Encoding:      The process of converting the ideas, symbols or thoughts of the sender into a convertible

form, which will convey the intended message to the receiver.

The Decoding:     The process of converting the received information into meaningful message by the

receiver.

The Response:     The receiver’s reaction to the message transmitted by the sender. It could be verbal, non-

verbal or behavioral.

The Feedback:     It is the information conveyed to the sender indicating the type of response that was

displayed by the receiver on the receipt of the sender’s message (how it was received and

how it was perceived by the recipient.)                          

               

The Noise:            Any external factors like unplanned static, distortion, or distraction which can interfere with

the successful communication of the message resulting in its poor reception, misinterpretation and misunderstanding.                

 

TYPES OF COMMUNICATIONS

A person doesn’t need to speak to communicate with others. He can easily convey his feelings and his thoughts without uttering a single word through his eyes and facial expressions. There are three major types of Communications: Personal, Business and Mass Communications, which can take any or all of the three forms: Verbal, Written and Non Verbal.

2.

Verbal Communication:

Also known as Oral Communication, this form is used to inform, instruct, praise, satisfy one’s curiousity, appease, criticize, inquire, and a host of similar objectives. As with all communications, the aim of oral communication is to achieve understanding to get the desired response and action. In other words, the right results. Some of the most common oral communications are:

-                      Personal one-to-one conversations                                                -               Presentations/Talks

-                      Meetings                                                                               -               Interviews

-                      Telephone Conversations

Written Communication:

Unlike verbal communications, which to a greater or lesser extend is two way, written communication is in the first instance one way – from the sender to the receiver. The response to any written communication is later and slower than in a face-to-face meeting or telephone conversation. The writer can rarely be present to see the response of the reader directly, until the receiver responds (writes back).

Non Verbal Communication:

Non verbal communication means the use of media that supports or supplements oral and often written communications. The audio-visual aids, the advertisements in the print media, the banners, the billboards and other outdoor media are good examples of non verbal communications. Non-verbal communication also refers to “all external stimuli other than spoken or written words, and including body movements, gestures, facial expressions, eye-contact, stance, posture, characteristics of appearance, features of speech, use of space, etc.”

The Communication Process

As clarified earlier communication is a two way process wherein the sender and the receiver interact with one another to achieve common goals. The communication process consists of seven successive stages/phases that link the sender to the receiver and vice versa. These stages are:

Stage 1.         When the sender conceives an idea or a thought.

Stage 2.         The sender encodes a message to relay/share his idea or thought.

Stage 3.         The sender selects a communication channel and a medium to transmit his message.

Stage 4.         The receiver gets the message.

Stage 5.         The receiver decodes the message.

Stage 6.         The receiver responds verbally, or through action or written messages.

Stage 7.         The Feedback is conveyed to the Sender.

Communication Barriers

The forces or factors which can interfere with the successful implementation of the communication process are referred to as noise. As these elements will distort or obscure the intended message, they are referred to as communication barriers.

The most common barriers are as follows:

*              Distractions:                                                       Physical and emotional distractions.

*              Deceptive Methods/Tactics:                           Using deceptive means to mislead the audience.

*              Information Overload:                                       High quantity of messages received or sent.

*              Restrictive Environment:                                                Messages distorted, fragmented or blocked.

*              Perceptual & Language Differences:           Varying selective perception & language skills.

Guidelines to overcome the Communication Barriers

In order to be effective in communication, one must be fully aware of the communication barriers being confronted and try to overcome these obstacles by following simple guidelines which can be stated as:

*              Adopt an audience-centered approach

The focus should be on the audience’s needs and one should try to gather information about his audience members, their cultural background and other relevant facts.

*              Foster an open communication climate

By modifying the number of organization levels and by facilitating feedback, one can create an open climate. One should also encourage the employees to be honest and candid, and motivate them to contribute in the development of such open communication climate.

*              Commit to ethical communication

By generating true messages in every sense and by avoiding deceptive ones in every way, one can adopt an ethical communication.

*              Create lean and efficient messages

By minimizing distractions, by reducing the number of messages being sent, and by improving business communication skills, one can accomplish to generate lean and efficient messages.