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Introduction To Communication Lecture Notes

Communication is essential for life; it is a basic life skill.


Communication is inescapable since we spend 80% to 90% of our day communicating.

I. In its broadest sense, communication is the process of acting upon information.


A. Communication occurs between humans and animals—the dog barks, she is fed.
B. Yet, some scholars question whether any human behavior is truly communication.
1. If you cross your arms, does this mean you are uninterested or simply cold?
2. An action may not mean you are intentionally expressing an idea or emotion.
3. Communication is not a simple, linear, what-you-send-is-what-is-received process.
C. Consequently, human communication can be defined as, “the process of making sense out of
the world and sharing that sense with others by creating meaning through verbal and nonverbal
messages.”

II. Functions of Communication


A. We communicate to meet our need to communicate.
1. By nature we are social creatures and need to communicate with others.
2. Example of the movie “Castaway” involving the character of Tom Hanks and the volleyball “Wilson”
B. To enhance and maintain our sense of self
.1. Through communication we learn who we are and what we’re good at by how people react to our
messages.
2. Example of a child doing a trick. If you laugh or applaud they will continue doing it
C. To fulfill social obligations
1. We say “Hi” and “how are you doing?” because we are expected to.
2. When someone sneezes, we say “God bless you.”
D. With communication, relationships grow and develop, without it they wither away.
E. We communicate to exchange information.
F. We use communication to influence others.

III. Competent communication is more than just being well-liked, glib, able to give polished presentations, or
interact with others one-on-one or in groups or teams.
A. Messages should be understood.
1. One of the aims is to create clarity of expression and common understanding.
2. Examples of headlines that have appeared in U.S. newspapers.
a. “Panda mating fails: Veterinarian takes over”
b. “Drunks get nine months in Violin case”
c. “Include your children when baking cookies.”
d. “Police begin campaign to run down jaywalkers.”
e. “Local high school dropouts cut in half.”
B. The message should achieve its intended effect.
1. Often, when we communicate, it is intended to achieve some goal or outcome.
2. The goal may be to entertain, persuade, or disseminate information.
3. Effective communication means the outcome received was the outcome sought.
C. The message should be ethical.
1. Ethics—beliefs, values, and morals we use to determine what is right or wrong.
2. Philosophers have debated for centuries whether or not there is a universal moral and ethical code.
3. Honesty is the key element to ethical communication.
a. To withhold information, lie, or distort truth is not ethical or effective.
b. Example of Paul, who explains an absence during an exam by citing the death of his
Grandmother who is quite well and alive. Paul’s dishonesty would qualify his communication as
inappropriate and unethical.
IV. Communication Principles
A. Communication has purpose
1. When people communicate they have a purpose for it.
2. Kathy Kellerman (’92) states “all communication if goal-directed” whether or not the purpose is
conscious”
B. Communication is continuous
1. We constantly communicate with our words and actions
2. We need to constantly be aware of the messages we are sending
C. Communication messages vary
1. spontaneous messages are spur of the moment thoughts and comments
2. scripted messages are conversations that have worked in certain past situations
3. constructed messages are messages we create when scripted messages do not apply or work
D. Communication is relational
1. It defines how we feel about someone
2. It defines who is in control
a. Complementary relationship- one person gives another power or control in the relationship
b. Symmetrical relationship – both are trying to be in control or both abdicate control in the
relationship.
E. Communication is culturally bound
1. What message is formed and how it is interpreted depends on the cultural background of the
participants.
2. We often miscommunicate with another because we unknowingly violate a cultural rule
F. Communication has ethical implications
1. All the major religions have moral codes on how to treat others (Golden Rule). Professions also
have ethical codes (Medicine, law and journalism)
2. There are five standards in developing one’s ethics
a. truthfulness and honesty are standards that refrain us from lying, cheating and stealing. We are
most likely to lie when caught it a moral dilemma, a choice involving unsatisfactory alternatives.
b. Integrity means maintaining a consistency of belief and actions
c. Fairness means achieving the right balance of interests without regard to one’s own feelings
without showing favor to any side in a conflict.
d. Respect means showing regard or consideration for a person and for that person’s rights.
e. responsibility means being accountable for one’s actions.

V. There are several reasons for taking a communication class.


A. Communication skills are highly desired in the job market.
1. John H. McConnell, CEO of Worthington Industries states, “Take all the speech and communication
courses you can because the world turns on communication.”
2. A survey of personnel managers who state that oral communication skills, written communication
skills, and listening are the three most desirable skills sought by employers.
B. Communication skills help improve our relationships.
1. Developing friendships and falling in love are the top-rated sources of satisfaction and happiness in
life.
2. Virginia Satir describes family communication as “the largest single factor determining the kinds of
relationships [we make] with others.”
3. Finally, we can learn to work with colleagues and better manage stress on the job to increase work
success.
C. Communication can improve our health.
1. Loss or lack of close relationships can lead to ill health and even death.
2. Studying how to enrich the quality of our communication with others can make life more
enjoyable and enhance our overall well-being.
D. It improves the way you see yourself and others see you
E. To teach important life skills
F. To help you exercise your freedom of speech
VI. Different models have been used to explain our evolving understanding of communication.
A. An early model looked at communication as action with emphasis on message transfer.
1. Harold Laswell described the process as who (sender) says what (message) in what channel
to whom (receiver) with what effect?
2. The model he created identified communication as a linear input/output process.
a. Source—thought or emotion created by the person expressing the idea or the originator of the
thought or emotion.
b. Encoding—translating feelings and thoughts into a code.
c. Decoding—words or unspoken signals are translated into thoughts and feelings.
d. Receiver—person who decodes the signal.
e. Message—the written, spoken, and unspoken elements of communication.
f. Channel—the pathway and senses stimulated when a message is sent.
g. Noise—any interference, either both external or psychological, that can interrupt communication
3. While the communication-as-action model is simple and straightforward, it is flawed in that human
communication rarely, if ever, is as simple and efficient as “what we put in is what we get out.”
B. A later model emerged in the early 1950s and focused on the idea of interaction: message exchange.
1. This model adds two key elements—feedback and context—to the original eight.
a. Feedback—the verbal or nonverbal response to a message.
b. Context—the physical, historical, and psychological setting governing a communication exchange.
2. While more realistic than the previous model, this model is flawed in that it views communication as a
stop action event and fails to recognize the simultaneous process of sending and receiving
messages that occurs in communication.
C. The communication-as-transaction perspective, which evolved in the 1960s, acknowledges that
when we communicate with another, we are constantly reacting to what our partner is saying and
expressing.
1. The model uses the same elements as the previous models, but acknowledges that even as
we talk, we are also interpreting our partner’s nonverbal and verbal responses.
2. The distinction is that we create meaning, rather than transferring or exchanging it, during a
communication transaction.

VII. There are five basic characteristics of communication.


A. Communication is inescapable.
1. Communication is ubiquitous—it is inescapable.
2. We spend most of our waking hours in thought or interpreting messages.
B. Communication is irreversible.
1. Once created, communication is like physical matter: it can’t be uncreated.
2. It is impossible to “take back” a statement.
C. Communication is complicated.
1. Messages are not always interpreted as we intend them.
2. Wiio’s maxims of communication:
a. If communication can fail, it will.
b. If a message can be understood in different ways, it will be understood in just that way
which does the most harm.
c. There is always somebody who knows better than you what you meant by your message.
d. The more communication there is, the more difficult it is for communication to succeed.
D. Communication emphasizes both content and relationship information.
1. The content refers to the actual meanings the speaker intends — The What.
2. The relationship refers to the feelings communicated — The How.
3. Example of Clinton’s testimony regarding his inappropriate relationship with Monica Lewinsky.
E. Communication is governed by rules.
1. Communication rules define behavior that is appropriate, expected, or preferred.
2. Communication rules may be explicit or implicit.
a. Explicit rules are stated and explained, such as rules stated on a syllabus.
b. Implicit rules were at one time explicit, but became expected over time.
c. Rules are developed by those involved in the interaction and cultural norms.

IX. We communicate in three different ways


A. Verbal – the words you say
B. Non-Verbal – often referred to as body language
C. Vocal – the tone and pitch of your voice as well as sounds that are not words
X. 5 types of communication
A. Intrapersonal – communication with yourself Intra – within
B. Interpersonal – between two people inter – between
C. Small Group – 3-15 people dealing with a common issue
D. Public – Speaking in front of a large group of people
E. Mass – radio, television, film, internet

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