1 Barriers

Barriers to Effective Communication Paper Robin Mravik Due Date: Monday October 10, 2011 CJA/304 Instructor: Janette Nichols

2 When it comes to communicating with people in our daily lives, there are many people that think there is just talking and listening to the other people in the communicating process. However, there is actually five step in the communication process; which are as follows: 1.) sending the message out to someone, 2.) sending the message through a medium, 3.) receiving the message , 4.) understanding the message the person had sent, and 5.) giving your feedback to the individual that had sent the message to you.

1.) Sending the message: with this step in communication, this is where a person gathers their thoughts about what they want to say in the message, and then comes to the conclusion that this what that needs to be said. Although we have thoughts about different things every day, there are many of them that should be kept to ourselves. 2.) Sending the message through a medium: once the person has decided what he or she needs to be said, now it is time where the brain decides how the message should be sent. Whether it is in written form, in an email, a text message, or in a letter. It can also be received through speaking to the person face-to-face or on the telephone. The message can also be given in the body language the person is presenting.

3.) Receiving the message: in this third step, this is where the person receives the message from the sender. If the message is given in conversation form, then the person sending it must make sure that he or she speak loud enough so that the message can be received. If the message is sent in an email, a text message, or a letter, the sender must make sure that it is worded so the reader can understand it and

3 if he or she has any questions then the sender must be able to answer those questions. 4.) Understanding the message that was sent: this is where the sender should place their self in the receivers shoes, and know how to deliver the message. That means the message should be presented in a way the receiver should know exactly what was meant by the message and in contents of that message. 5.) Giving feedback to the individual that sent the message: when you give feedback is the final step in the communication process. However, this step is only completed if the person who had received the message, understands the message that was sent.

There are differences when it comes to hearing a message and listening to a message; hearing is the perception of the sound, while listening is hearing and at the same time understanding what is actually being said by the speaker. Hearing and listening could actually be thought of in a different way, such as ineffective listening and effective listening. One reason a person may be an ineffective listener is because they do not feel what they are hearing is of any interest to them at all. So, they dont pay attention to the speaker because it is boring to them. Another reason could be that the listener has some type of bias against the speaker, so they will not take an interest in what he or she is saying. To be an effective listener there are four factors that are involved; the listener must have the ability, experience, education, and oral proficiency, to absorb what is that they are hearing. To be an effective

4 listener you need to have special training in concentration and an environment where you can concentrate. In short, if a person with good listening skills should be able to concentrate on the speaker, interpret the speakers words, evaluate their meaning, and can respond effectively to what was said.

Directions or channels of communication have to do with the flow of information that is being given from the sender to the recipient. There are two communication channels that are used by all institutions called formal and informal channels. The formal channel is the conventional method of communication in any police department, which usually follows a chain of command. This kind of communication channel is characterized by directives, written memorandums, and formal orders. This type of communication gives a sense of security to a police department, while at the same time provides a sense of order in the department. There are some disadvantages to this type of communication, one is that it is very time consuming and personnel consuming, Another disadvantage is that the formal channel of communication has is that it effects the free flow of information between the speaker and the receiver. The formal channel can seem to be a hindrance to spontaneous thoughts and ideas. There are also advantages to formal communication channels. The formal channel provides the police organization with a type of consistency, because all officers

5 receive the same information. This is significant when there is information about a crime, and t his information needs to get the officers that are out patrolling the area. An informal channel of communication is basically departmental gossips. This basically is an unofficial channel of communication within a police organization. The information from these channels will not be seen on any black boards, emails, or memos.

There are few barriers that make it difficult for people to have effective communication; these barriers are called emotional, physical, semantic barriers, and ineffective listening. However some may think that barriers only affect the receiver, but that is not true it affects the receiver and also the sender.

And emotional barrier is when an officer has low self-esteem, a simple case of depression, or a complex case of psychological problems. When an officer has one or more of these problems, then it can become very difficult for the officer to express their self. For one they may be very informative of a certain situation because he or she may not be sure of what they are saying to them.

A physical barrier is when a part of the environment is making it difficult to communicate with someone. A real world example of this would be a lower ranking officer that must follow the chain of command and report information to their

6 supervisor instead of just to anyone in the department. Or it could be faulty equipment such as telephones, computers, or a radio within the department that is making messages difficult for the receiver to understand or it is difficult to send to information due to a faulty piece of equipment.

Semantic barrier is another form of communication barrier that people face. This can occur when a person sends a message and says what they mean, but they are still using the wrong words to get their meaning of the message across to them. This would be like if an officer tells another officer about an inmate saying something like, he is such a delinquent, but the officer did not tell the officer which inmate they were referring to. Then, the second officer may assume the first officer is talking about a juvenile, when the first officer was actually talking about an adult inmate. The officer should have said, the guy in D5 is acting like a delinquent.

The final barrier that would interfere with two people having an effective communication is called ineffective listening. Ineffective listening is when the senders message is not sent properly or the receiver does not hear what is being said. The reason someone may be an ineffective listener is because the topic of discussion may not be something that they want to hear and it is considered boring to them. The topic could also be something that is too difficult for the receiver to understand which would cause the person to be uninterested in what is being said

7 to them.

There are ways to help guard against these communication barriers and become an effective listener. When receiving information the receiver has to make sure that the environment is a place that allows them to concentrate. Although is order to become an effective listener requires a fair amount of training in concentration.

8 References

BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION.Full Text Available By: Gould, Jay R.. Journal of Business Communication, Winter69, Vol. 6 Issue 2, p53-58, 6p In any discussion on the failure of communication, the writer usually bears the burden of criticism. But when writers have an opportunity to discuss problems of communications among themselves, o... Subjects: COMMUNICATION; EXPECTATION (Psychology); EMPLOYEES -Training of; OCCUPATIONAL retraining; EMPLOYEE motivation; BUSINESS communication; COMMUNICATION policy; TRAINING; Professional and Management Development Training; Vocational Rehabilitation Services; COMMUNICATION barriers; PSYCHOLOGICAL aspects; AUTHORSHIP