Ch. 1 Human Communication: What and Why

Types of communication  Intrapersonal  Interpersonal  Small Group  Public  Mass communication

Intrapersonal vs. Interpersonal  Intrapersonal- communicating with oneself  Interpersonal- communication that takes place between two people Dyad- two persons interacting

Small group communication  Communication that takes place between more than two members  Group members usually communicate equally

Public communication  Communication that takes place in a large group  Too large for all members to communicate equally

Mass communication  Consists of messages that are transmitted in large quantities to several people at one time  Transmitted through several sources: electronic, print, television, radio, magazines, etc.  No personal contact between sender and receiver

What needs are satisfied in your life by communicating with others?  Physical needs  Identity needs  Social needs  Practical needs

Physical needs  Communicating with others benefits our physical health/well-being

Identity needs  We define who we are through communication with others  Impressions of who we are, are formed according to the ways in which others respond to us

Social needs  Several social needs are met through communication: Pleasure Escape Affection Relaxation Inclusion Control

Practical Needs Communication is used in order to achieve our everyday needs -to get where we need to go -to accomplish what we need to accomplish -to better understand our environment and what is expected of us

What is communication competence?  The ability to communicate effectively What is effective communication?  Communication that maintains or enhances the relationship in which it occurs

Why should we want to become more competent communicators?  More satisfying relationships  In order to satisfy our human needs  To get more out of life

Some interesting findings… ***Several studies show that married couples that were identified as effective communicators report more satisfying relationships than husbands and wives who are less skillful communicators ***Other studies have found that college students’ G.P.A. was positively related to their communication competence.  Studies show that even a small amount of training can greatly affect communication ability

How might you become a more competent communicator?  By taking this class  By wanting to become a better communicator  By continuously working toward improving your communication skills  By practicing the skills you are taught

What are the characteristics of a competent communicator?  A wide range of communication behaviors to choose from in an interaction  Ability to choose the most appropriate behavior for the situation  Ability to perform effective communication  Plenty of practice as a skilled communicator

Other characteristics of competent communicators  Empathy  Cognitive Complexity  Self-Monitoring  Commitment to the relationship

Empathy  Ability to put yourself in another’s shoes  Understanding another’s perspective

Cognitive complexity  The ability to analyze the behavior of others in a variety of ways  Looking at the situation from a variety of angles (rather than just your perspective)

Self-Monitoring  Observing your own behaviors as if you are outside yourself  Imagining how others are interpreting your behaviors  Being aware of how your behaviors affect others

Commitment to the relationship  Level of commitment to a relationship determines willingness to communicate effectively  We work harder at communicating in relationships we genuinely care about

Three factors to remember when deciding on a response  The context (what is involved in the situation)  Your goal (do you want this relationship to continue positively)  The other person (where is he or she coming from and how is he or she feeling)

In Conclusion:  It is now clear that communication satisfies several human needs  It is important that we all work on our communication skills in order to have more effective relationships

Models of Communication  Linear Model  Transactional Model

Linear Model  In this model communication only goes one way

How it works…  Sender – person sending the message  Receiver – person receiving the message  Sender encodes a message, chooses a channel by which to send the message, and then sends the message to a receiver who then decodes the message.

 Channel – the way the message is conveyed (face- to-face, telephone, e- mail, etc.) depends on the situation  [p. 14 explains different channels and their effectiveness in specific situations]

 Encode – when the sender consciously attaches meanings to symbols from feelings and ideas, creating the message sent  Decode – when the receiver interprets and creates an understanding of what the message sent means

Noise  affects the message sent by the sender  may prevent the message from reaching the receiver accurately  may affect the way the receiver interprets the message.  May take place before, during and after message is sent

Types of Noise  1. External – factors that take place outside the receiver  2. Physiological -- biological, personal factors that prevent the receiver from accurately interpreting and decoding the message  3. Psychological -- when forces within a person prevent he/she from having the ability to send or receive a message effectively

Environment Refers to our physical surroundings, or to our personal experiences and cultural backgrounds that communicators base their view of the world on. Our environments may influence the way we encode or decode messages.

The way we understand a message is based on several factors: 1. How we interpret the message sent 2. Environment we come from 3. The environment we are in when the message is sent 4. The amount of noise that is present when communication takes place

Weaknesses of the linear model:  lacks an element of response, and communication is only one way.  This model assumes that all messages sent involve conscious encoding  Sometimes we send messages unconsciously without consciously encoding them

 This brings us to the transactional model – which changes encoding to response  Response – takes place when the sender (consciously or unconsciously) sends a message, or when a receiver (consciously or unconsciously) responds to a message.

Transactional Model  Similar to the linear model with added elements  Represents two-way communication

In the Transactional Model…  Feedback is the seen and understood response of a receiver to a sender’s message  Both parties involved are sending and receiving messages simultaneously  Noise and environment are also elements involved with the transactional model