Communication Process

This presentation provides an overview of communication and introduces you to themain elements in the communication process. It also highlights the importance ofwriting clear, positive messages and offers you some basic tips and guidelines onthis form of communication so that you may become more proficient in the kindof writing needed at home as well as in the college and workplace. You will alsolearn about some of the common pitfalls which may impede the effectiveness ofwritten communication.

1. Introduction to
Communication Process
BoutkhilGuemide
University Mohammed Boudiaf,
M’sila
Algeria

2. Overview
Introduction
Communication:Definition
Components ofcommunication
process(Elements)
Commonbarrierstocommunication
Factorinfluencingthecommunication
process.

3. Introduction
Communicationisattheheartofoureverydaylives;itisa
ubiquitousphenomenon(asweallcommunicatenearlyevery
minuteofeverydayofourlives).
Itanactivitythatequallyexistsintheworldofanimals(even
plants).
Hybels&Weaver(2005),‘…communication,…,issoimportantto
dailylifethatithasspawnedanentireindustryofbooks,articles,
andseminarsexplaininghowtodoitbetter’.
Itistheartofpersuading,influencing,entertaining,sharing,
discoveringandtransmittinginformation;Weareeithersenders,
orreceiversofmessages.
Communicationisacclaimedthemostpreciousgiftgivento
humanracebytheCreator.

4. What is communication?
Itisthesharingofideasand
information;
Theactoftransmitting;
Agivingorexchangingofinformation,
signals,ormessagesasbytalk,
gestures,orwriting;
Theinformation,signals,ormessage;
Close,sympatheticrelationship.

5. Communication is
Thetransferofinformation
(data)fromonepersonto
another.

6. Ameansofcommunicating;specificallyasystemforsending
andreceivingmessages,asbytelephone,telegraph,radio,etc.
Asystemasofroutesformovingtroopsandmaterial;
Apassageorwayforgettingfromoneplacetoanother
Theartofexpressingideas,esp.inspeechandwriting
Thescienceoftransmittinginformation,esp.insymbols.
Transmissionofmessageviaverbalandnon-verbalcues;
Communicationisatransactioninwhichtheparticipantsare
mutuallyengagedintheprocess.

7. G.G.Brown:“Communicationistransferof
informationfromonepersontoanother,
whetherornotitelicitsconfidence.Butthe
information transferred must be
understandabletothereceiver”.
FredG.Meyer:“Communicationisthe
intercoursebywords,lettersormessages”.

8. Communication?
Tocommunicate=“toshare”or‘toparticipate‘.
Thetransmissionofamessageorinformationbyspeakingor
writing.
Thegivingorexchanginginformation,signals,messagesby
talkorgesturesorwriting.
Asocialintercourse.
Communication is giving, receiving or exchanging ideas,
information, signals or messages through appropriate media,
enabling individuals or groups to persuade, to seek
information, to give information or to express emotions.
This broad definition includes body-language, skills of speaking
and writing. It outlines the objectives of communication. It
emphasizes listening as an important aspect of communication.

9. “Communication”:originatedfromLatin
wordCommunicare:“share”andinas
muchasitpresupposesacommunicatorand
areceiver,relationshipbetweenthem–a
mutualawarenessororientationofone
another,intentofthecommunicator;an
externalreferent–whatthemessageis
about,acommonlanguageandsomesharing
ofexperience,wecannotcontendwithsucha
definition.

10. Communicationistheartoftransmittinginformation,ideasandattitudes
fromonepersontoanother.
Communicationistheprocessofmeaningfulinteractionamonghuman
beings.
ITSESSENCES:
Personalprocess.
Occursbetweenpeople
Involveschangeinbehavior
Meanstoinfluenceothers
Expressionofthoughtsandemotionsthroughwordsandactions.
Toolforcontrollingandmotivatingpeople.
Itisasocialandemotionalprocess.

11. What are the most common
ways we communicate?

12. Contexts of communication
Intrapersonal Itconsiderscommunicationwithoneself
Interpersonal
Itisthepersonalprocessofcoordinatingmeaning
betweenatleasttwopeopleinasituationthat
allowsmutualopportunitiesforbothspeakingand
listening (Pearson et al.,
2003).Itoccursforavarietyofreasonsto(1)solve
problems, (2)resolveconflicts,(3)share
information,(4)improveone’sperception,orto(5)
fulfill social needs. Through
thiscontext,peopleareabletoestablish
relationshipswithothers(friendshipsandromantic
relationships).
Public
Itinvolvestheprocessofgeneratingmeaningina
situationwhereasimplesourcetransmitsa
messagetoanumberofreceivers(oftenrange
between3to12people,ormore)whogivenon-
verbalandsometimes,questionandanswer
feedback.Thiskindofcommunicationisrecognized
byitsformality,structureandplanning(Examples:
lectures,seminars,conferences,directspeechesand
religiousservices).
Masscommunication Itisacontextbetweenasourceandalargenumber
ofunseenreceivers.Inthiscontext,thereisalways
amediatorbetweenthesourceandthereceiver.
Themediatorisofteninthecommunication
technology;suchas,televisionandradio.Theyare
thechannelandthemethodofdistribution

13. Basic Functions of
Communication
Forinteraction
Forincreasingthestoreofinformation
Forbetterunderstandingofourselfandthe
worldwelive
Forchangingpeople’sattitudes,beliefs,
opinionsandactions
Formakingdecisions

14. Components of communication
process (Elements)
Communicationisbasicallyatwopartsystem;whateveryouarespeakingor
writing,listeningorreading.
Itisaprocessoftransmittingandreceivingmessages.
Theprocessofcommunicationcannotbecompletedunlessitgetsresponse:
Itisconsideredeffectivewhenitachievesthedesiredresponsefrom
receiver.
Thestepsinvolvedintheprocessofcommunicationcalledelementsof
communication.
Itisachainofeventsthatcanbebrokenintosixphases:
1.Source;
2.Message;
3.Channel;
4.Receiver;
5.Effect;
6.Feedback;

15. Source
“Senderofmessagewhodeterminesthepoint,
message,materialandchannelofmessage.”
Thesourceistheoriginatoroftheideaorthe
message.
Itisalsoknownassenderorencoderwhomaybean
individualorgroup.
Hechoosessuchwordsorsymbolstoexpressthe
messagesothatthereceivermayunderstanditand
reactswiththedesiredresponse.
Hedecideswhichwordsorsymbolsbestconveyhis
messageandwhichsendingmechanismtochoose
amongtheavailablewrittenandoral.

16. Message
“Whenapersonexpresseshisideas,thoughts,and
emotionsintheformofwordssothatthemeaningful
wordsbecomemessagefortheotherperson”;
Amessageistheconversionofconceivedideainto
words.
Itmayconsistofbothverbalandnon-verbal.
Wheneveryoucomposeamessage,youneedto
considerwhatcontenttoinclude,howthereceiverwill
interpret,andhowitmayaffectyourrelationship.
Forinstance,forthankingsomeonetheword“Thank
you”issuitablebutnotfortheexcuse.

17. Channel
“Medium,channelwaywhichisusedforsendingmessage,
itmaybeprintedwords,electronicmail,soundetc.”
Inter-relationshipbetweenthesenderandthereceiver
andtheurgencyofmessagearethemajordeterminersof
themediumusedforthemessage.
Theotherfactorsarenumberofreceivers,cost,and
amountofinformationandeffectivenessofthechannel.
Thechannelmaybeprintmediasuchasnewspaper,
brochure,handbillortheelectronicmedialikeT.V,Radio
andinternetetc.
Selectionofchanneldependsuponthemessage.

18. Receiver
“Apersonwhoreceivesthemessageandtakes
decisionintheformoffeedbackisknownas
receiver.”
Thereceiveristhepersonforwhomthemessage
isintended.
Itisthesinglemostimportantelementinthe
communicationprocess.
Anyneglectonthispartofreceiver,the
communicationwillbeineffective.
Actuallymessagereceiverisyourlistener,also
knownas“Decoder”.

19. Effect
Effectisthechangeinthebehavior
ofthereceiveroccurringinresponse
tothemessagereceiver.
Thereceivermayignorethe
messageorstoretheinformation
received,oractaccordingtothe
wishesofthesender.

20. FeedBack
“Feedbackistheactionordecisiontakenby
receiverafterreceivingthemessage.”
“Itcanbeoralorawrittenmessage,anactionor
simplysilence.”
Feedbackistheresponsethatsendergetsfrom
thereceiver.Itmaybepositiveornegative.
Ifthereceiverincorrectlyperceivesourmessage,
wemaysayitasmiscommunication.
“Thesuccessorfailureofthecommunicationis
indicatedbythefeedbackweget.”

21. Barrierstocommunication:the
aspectsorconditionsthatinterfere
witheffectiveexchangeofideasor
thoughts.
BARRIERS TO
COMMUNICATION

23. PHYSICAL BARRIERS

24. Noise
Physicalnoise(outside
disturbance)
Psychological noise
(inattentiveness)
Written noise (bad
handwriting/typing)

25. Time and Distance
ImproperTime
Defects in Medium of
communication
NetworkFacilities
MechanicalBreakdowns

26. SEMANTIC & LANGUAGE
BARRIERS

27. Themisunderstandingbetweenthesenderand
receiverarisingduetothedifferentmeanings
ofwords,andothersymbolsusedinthe
communication.
Thesemanticbarriersusuallyarisewhenthe
informationisnotinthesimplelanguageand
containsthosewordsorsymbolsthathave
multiplemeanings.

29. LANGUAGE BARRIERS
DifferentLanguages
NoClarityinSpeech

30. Using Jargons
Not being specific

31. SOCIO-PSYCHOLOGICAL
BARRIERS

32. Psychologicalbarriers:distorted
communicationbecauseofhuman
psychologyproblems.

33. Attitudeandopinions
Emotions
Filteringanddistortionofmessage
Statusdifference
Inattention
Open-mindedvs.Closed-minded
Fieldsofexperience

34. CROSS-CULTURAL
BARRIERS

35. Language
Values
SocialRelation
Gestures

36. ORGANISATIONAL
BARRIERS

37. Lossordistortionofmessagesasthey
passfromoneleveltoanother
Filteringofinformationaccordingto
one’sunderstanding/interpretation
Messagesnotreadcompletelyornot
understoodcorrectly
Deliberatewithholdingofinformation
frompeersperceivedasrivals

38. Factors Affecting
Communication
Status/Role
CulturalDifferences
Choiceofcommunication
channels
LengthofCommunication
UseofLanguage
Disabilities
KnownorUnknownReceiver
IndividualPerceptions
ClarityofMessage
LackofFeedback

39. Status/Role
TheSenderandreceiverofamessagemaybe
ofequalstatuswithinahierarchyortheymay
beatdifferentlevels,
Thisdifferenceinstatussometimesaffectsthe
effectivenessofthecommunicationprocess.

40. Cultural Differences
Culturaldifferences,bothwithinoroutside
societymayimpedethecommunication
process.

41. Choice of Communication
channels
Beforeyouchooseyourcommunicationchannel
youshouldaskyourselfwhetherthechannelis
appropriateforparticularpurposeandthe
person/receiveryouhaveinmind.

42. Length of Communication
TheLengthofthemessagealsoaffects
communicationprocess.
Youneedtobesurethatitservesthepurpose
andappropriateforthereceiver

43. Use of Language
Poorchoiceofwordsorweaksentence
structurealsopamperscommunication.
Thesamegoesforinappropriatepunctuation
ForExample:
Women,withouther,manisnothing
Women,withoutherman,isnothing

44. Disabilities
Youmayneedtousehearingaids,sign
languages,minifyingsystemsandsymbolsto
alleviateproblemscausedbydisabilities

45. Known or Unknown Receiver
Whetherthereceiverisknownorunknownto
youalsoplaysamajorroleindeterminingthe
effectivenessofyourcommunication.
Aknownreceivermaybebetterableto
understandyourmessage.

46. Individual perceptions
Sometimethemethodofcommunicationneeds
totakeintoconsiderationthereceivers
personalitytraits,ageandpreferredstyle.

47. Clarity of message
Isthemessageconveyedinaclearor
ambiguousmanner

48. Lack of Feedback
Feedbackisimportantasitenables
confirmationofunderstandingtobemadeby
bothparties.

49. Models of Communication
Themodelshelppeopleunderstandhow
communicationworks,howmessagesare
transmitted,howitisreceivedbytheother
party,andhowthemessageiseventually
interpretedandunderstood.
Linear(Action)CommunicationModel
TransactionalModel
InteractiveModel

50. Linear(Action) Communication Model
OriginallycreatedbyAristotle
HaroldD.Lasswell(1902-1978)developedin
1948hismodelofcommunication;
Akaactionmodel/orlinearmodel/oroneway
modelofcommunication.

51. Linear(Action) Communication Model

52. 1960,DavidBerlopostulatedBerlo'sSender-Message-Channel-
Receiver(SMCR)ModelofCommunication
Linear(Action) Communication Model

53. Components of Berlo’sModel of Communication
S-Sender
Senderisthesourceofthemessageorthepersonwhooriginatesthemessage.Thepersonor
sourcesendsthemessagetothereceiver.Thefollowingarethefactorrelatedtosenderandis
alsothesameinthecaseofreceiver.
CommunicationSkills
Communicationskillsofapersonisafactorthataffectsthecommunicationprocess.Ifthe
senderhasgoodcommunicationskills,themessagewillbecommunicatedbetterthanifthe
sender’scommunicationskillsarenotgood.Similarly,ifthereceivercannotgraspthemessage,
thenthecommunicationwillnotbeeffective.Communicationskillsincludetheskillstospeak,
present,read,write,listening,etc.
AttitudeTheattitudeofthesenderandthereceivercreatestheeffectofthemessage.The
person’sattitudetowardsself,thereceiverandtheenvironmentchangesthemeaningandeffect
ofthemessage.
KnowledgeFamiliaritywiththesubjectofthemessagemakesthecommunicatedmessagehave
itseffectmore.Knowledgeonthesubjectmattermakesthecommunicatorsendthemessage
effectively.
SocialSystems
Values,beliefs,laws,rules,religionandmanyothersocialfactorsaffectthesender’swayof
communicatingthemessage.Itcreatesdifferenceinthegenerationofmessage.Placeand
situationalsofallundersocialsystems.
CultureCulturaldifferencesmakemessagesdifferent.Apersonfromoneculturemightfind
somethingoffensivewhichisverymuchacceptedinanotherculture.

54. Components of Berlo’sModel of Communication
M-Message
Amessageisthesubstancethatisbeingsentbythesendertothereceiver.Itmightbeinthe
formofvoice,audio,text,videoorothermedia.Thekeyfactorsaffectingthemessageare
ContentContentisthethingthatisinthemessage.Thewholemessagefrombeginningtoendis
thecontent.
ElementsElementsarethenonverbalthingsthattagalongwiththecontentlikegestures,signs,
language,etc.
TreatmentTreatmentisthewayinwhichthemessageisconveyedtothereceiver.Treatment
alsoeffectsthefeedbackofthereceiver.
StructureThestructureofthemessageorthewayithasbeenstructuredorarranged,affects
theeffectivenessofthemessage.
CodeCodeistheforminwhichthemessageissent.Itmightbeintheformoflanguage,text,
video,etc.
C-Channel
Channelisthemediumusedtosendthemessage.Inmasscommunicationandotherformsof
communication,technicalmachinesmightbeusedasachannelliketelephone,internet,etc.But
ingeneralcommunication,thefivesensesofahumanbeingisthechannelforthe
communicationflowanditaffectstheeffectivenessofthechannel.
Hearing–Wereceivethemessagethroughhearing.
Seeing–Weperceivethroughseeing.Wealsogetnon-verbalmessagesbyseeing.
Touching–Manyofthenon-verbalcommunicationhappensfromtouchinglikeholdinghands.
Smelling–Wecollectinformationfromsmelling.
Tasting–Tastealsoprovidestheinformationtobesentasamessage.

55. Linearmodelhasdefinedsetofcomponentsrequiredfora
communicationtobeestablishedwhere:
Sender:thepersonwhosendsamessageafterencoding.
Encoding:theprocessofconvertingthemessageintocodes
compatiblewiththechannelandunderstandableforthe
receiver
Decoding:theprocessofchangingtheencodedmessage
intounderstandablelanguagebythereceiver
Message:theinformationsentbythesendertothe
receiver.
Channel:themediumthroughwhichthemessageissent.
Receiver:thepersonwhogetsthemessageafterdecoding.
Noise:thedisruptionsthatarecausedinthe
communicationprocessinchannelorinunderstandability
ofthemessage.
Components of Linear(Action) Communication Model

57. Theexchangeofmessagesbetweensenderandreceiverwhereeachtake
turnstosendorreceivemessages.
Both"sender"and"receiver"areknownas"communicators"andtheirrole
reverseseachtimeinthecommunicationprocessasbothprocessesof
sendingandreceivingoccursatthesametime.
TransactionalCommunication Model

58. Shannon-Weaver’sModel of Communication

59. Interactive Model of Communication
AKATheConvergenceModel
Theexchangeofideasandmessagestakingplacebothways
fromsendertoreceiverandvice-versa.
Thecommunicationprocesstakeplacebetweenhumansor
machinesinbothverbalornon-verbalway.
Thisisarelativelynewmodelofcommunicationfornew
technologieslikeweb.
Schramm'sModel(1954)
Boththesenderandthereceivertaketurnsplayingtherole
oftheencoderandthedecoderwhenitcomesto
communication.
FieldofExperience:thethingsthatinfluencethe
understandingandinterpretationofmessagelikeculture,
socialbackground,beliefs,experiences,valuesandrules.