Describe the nature, principles, and ethics of communication in

multicultural contexts

Metalanguage

In this section, you will learn about the overview on communication. You will
encounter discussion on the nature, principles, and ethics of communications as these are
important considerations for practicing purposive communication in multicultural contexts.
Please refer to these definitions in case you will encounter difficulty in the in understanding
educational concepts.

Please proceed immediately to the “Essential Knowledge” part since the first lesson is
also definition of essential terms.

Essential Knowledge
To perform the aforesaid big picture (unit learning outcomes) in the next two weeks
of the course, you need to fully understand the following essential knowledge that will be laid
down in the succeeding pages. Please note that you are not limited to exclusively refer to the
these resources. Thus, you are expected to utilize other books, research articles and other
resources that are available in the university’s library e.g. ebrary, search.proquest.com etc.

Communication Process

Fig. 1. Communication Process.1

Sender. The communication process begins with the sender who is the source of
information.
Receiver. The person to whom the message is sent.

1https://courses.lumenlearning.com/wm-organizationalbehavior/chapter/the-process-of-communication/

GE 2 – PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION 22
 Message. The content or the information that the sender gives to the receiver.
Channel. The means by or through which a message is transmitted. (not illustrated
above). An example is a text message.
Noise. This is the interference; it gets in the way of the message being accurately
received, interpreted, or responded to.
Feedback. The response of the receiver to the sender.
Context. The setting and the situation in which communication takes place. (not
illustrated above). The context of any communication act is the environment
surrounding it. This includes, among other things, place, time, event, and attitudes of
sender and receiver.

Communication happens when a message is encoded by a sender, decoded by a receiver,

all while navigating noise and providing feedback. The communication process is dynamic,
continuous, irreversible, and contextual. It is not possible to participate in any element of the
process without acknowledging the existence and functioning of the other elements.

Communication Principles

Communication is a complex process. For the communication to be effective, the

following principles should be considered.

1. Know your audience.

2. Know your purpose.
3. Know your topic.
4. Anticipate objections from the audience.
5. Achieve credibility with your audience.
6. Follow through on what you say
7. Present information in various ways
8. Develop a practical, useful way to get feedback
9. Use multiple communication techniques

Duck and McMahan (2012) as cited by Dapat, et. al (2018)2 mentioned 7 key principles that
may help avoid communication breakdown among people.

1. Communication involves symbols.

2. Communication requires meaning.
3. Communication is culture-related.
4. Communication is relational.
5. Communication involves frames.
6. Communication is both presentational and representational.
7. Communication is a transaction.

Barriers to Effective Communication

2Dapat, R. et. al (2018). Essence and Essentials of Purposive Communication in the 21 st Century. Mandaluyong: Books Atbp.

GE 2 – PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION 23
There are many reasons why communication fails. Noise is anything that interrupts or blocks
the flow of information. Whenever the understanding of a message is affected, the obstruction
is considered a barrier to communication.

Physical Barriers Psychological Barriers Interpersonal Barriers

Noise
Lack of Attention
Gender Issues
Temperature

Medium Disturbance / Poor Retention

Technical Problem
Competition
Workplace Design
Lack of Trust
Information Overflow
Culture
Closed Minded / Filtering
Physical Disabilities

Fig. 2. Barriers to Effective Communication

Physical barriers are the environmental and natural conditions disrupt or interfere the
message in the communication process. Beeping cars, talking people, open spaces may
disrupt the quality of the message sent.

Psychological barriers refer to influences of our mental condition. Narrowmindedness,

prejudices, and mental fatigue may disrupt the quality of the message sent.

Interpersonal barriers refer to barriers to effective communication in relation to people.

Choice of language, cultural beliefs, etc may disrupt the quality of the message sent.

Different Communication Settings3

1. Intrapersonal. This means communicating within yourself.

2. Interpersonal. This form of communication refers to the interactions of two or more
people.
3. Small Group. This form of communication is characterized by leadership, a somewhat
equal sharing of ideas, peer pressure, roles and norms, and focus on a common goal,
usually in face-to-face interaction. The small group is one of the most important
communication settings
4. Public Communication. This occurs where one person talks to several others and is
the dominant focus of the communication in a public setting. It is characterized by
having a speaker and an audience. Here, the speaker is the primary sender of
messages, while others function primarily as receivers of those messages. The
number of the audience is not important here.
5. Mass Communication. This occurs where a message needs help to get from point A
to point B – from its source/sender to its destination/receiver. Some form of mechanism

3https://cape-commstudies.blogspot.com/2010/10/forms-of-communication.html

GE 2 – PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION 24
 is needed to connect the sender to the receivers. These include print (newspapers or
magazines), electrical (radio, television or video), or electronic (computer modems).
6. Organizational Communication. This is a very specialized area that focuses on
interpersonal, small-group, public and mass communication as they interact in a
complex, multi-group setting. It is especially important to business, government, and
educational institutions.
7. Intercultural Communication. Otherwise known as cross-cultural communication, it
describes what happens when the sender of a message is from a different cultural
background than the intended receiver.

Communication Ethics

Ethics is the study and practice of what is good, right, or virtuous. Ethical communication is a
type of communication that is predicated upon certain business values, such as being truthful,
concise, and responsible with one’s words and the resulting actions.

In relation to proper ethics regarding communication, everyone should be guided with the
following principles.

Jone Johnson Lewis (2015) shared his 10 Basics of Ethical Communication. 4

1. Seek to “elicit the best” in communications and interactions with other group members.
2. Listen when others speak.
3. Speak non-judgmentally.
4. Speak from your own experience and perspective, expressing your own thoughts,
needs, and feelings.
5. Seek to understand others (rather than to be “right” or “more ethical than thou”).
6. Avoid speaking for others, for example by characterizing what others have said
without checking your understanding, or by universalizing your opinions, beliefs,
values, and conclusions, assuming everyone shares them.
7. Manage your own personal boundaries: share only what you are comfortable sharing.
8. Respect the personal boundaries of others.
9. Avoid interrupting and side conversations.
10. Make sure that everyone has time to speak, that all members have relatively equal
“air time” if they want it.

Self-Help: You can also refer to the sources below to help you
further understand the lesson:

1. Madrunio, M. R. & Martin, I.P. (2018). Purposive communication: Using English in

multilingual contexts. Quezon: C & E
2. Aquino, A. et. al (2018). Purposive communication for the 21 st century learners.
Malabon: Jo-Deh Publishing.

4https://www.rysec.org/10-basics-of-ethical-communication/

GE 2 – PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION 25
 3. Dapat, R. et. al (2018). Essence and Essentials of Purposive Communication in the
21st Century. Mandaluyong: Books Atbp.
4. Martinez, R. (2018). Purposive communication. Manila: Mindshapers.

Let’s Check
Activity 1. Choose the letter of the correct answer.

1. The CEO of a corporation gives a speech on first quarter profits to board members.
What is the speaker?
a. the CEO
b. the first quarter profits
c. the board members
d. the CEO’s words and movements

2. You deliver a speech about the importance of higher education to a group of high
school students. What is the message?
a. the speech and how you deliver it
b. higher education
c. the high school students
d. all of the answers

3. Susan names four ingredients for Amy to buy at the grocery store. What is the channel
in this example?
a. Susan’s voice and movements
b. the four ingredients
c. Amy
d. the grocery store

4. Which of the following is an example of an audience feedback?

a. laughter
b. tears
c. half-closed eyelids
d. all of the above

5. Which of the following is a good practice when giving a speech?

a. Dress in business professional attire: it's better to be overdressed than
underdressed.
b. Use natural gestures and make eye contact with audience members.
c. Avoid speaking in a monotone voice: play with the pitch and tone of your
speech.
d. all of the answers
6. During a long sermon, a 10-year-old child annoys nearby adults by constantly whining
about being hungry and bored. What type(s) of noise are the adults and the child
experiencing?
a. The child is experiencing physiological noise and the adults are experiencing
physical noise.

GE 2 – PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION 26
 b. The child and the adults are all experiencing attention-span noise.
c. The child is experiencing semantic noise and the adults are experiencing
physiological noise.
d. The child is experiencing receiver apprehension.

7. To combat external noise

a. speak louder or use amplification
b. take deep breaths before speaking
c. calm your anxieties by thinking positively
d. all of these answers

8. Ethical speakers typically practice which of the following behaviors when presenting to
audiences?
a. Ethical speakers give appropriate attribution or credit as necessary.
b. Ethical speakers pass off words and ideas from others as their own.
c. Ethical speakers speak about topics in which they may benefit from financially.
d. Ethical speakers use their opinions as fact to prove an argument

9. Writers should consider which of the following factors when tailoring their speech
toward a specific audience?
a. Gender and age
b. Cultural background and/or ethnicity
c. Speaker gestures and mannerism
d. all of the answers

10. Communication involves verbal and nonverbal cues (such as language, picture, logo,
etc) which could represent various meanings. Which of the following principles does
this refer to?
a. Communication involves symbols.
b. Communication is culture-related.
c. Communication is relational.
d. Communication involves frames.

Let’s Analyze
Activity 1. Getting acquainted with the nature, principles, and ethics of communication is
essential. Now, I will require you to answer the following questions below. You may refer to
a particular experience to justify your answer.

1. With what you know about communication barriers, how could you be more effective
in your personal communications? Is there a difference in communicating good news
versus bad news?
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GE 2 – PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION 27
 ___________________________________________________________________
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2. Give one situation in which your communication fails because of a barrier. Identify the
barrier as you narrate what happened in the situation.
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3. The principles of communication indicated in this module are not the only “principles
to live by.” Write your own principle/s that are not included in this book. Justify your
answer/s.
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Activity 2. Understand the importance of communication principles on television. Watch a

talk show, commercial, and variety show on local television and accomplish the following
worksheet. (This worksheet is adapted from Dapat, R. et. al.5)
What is the importance of the following principles of communication to:
Comm. Talk Show Commercial Variety Show
Principle
1

5Dapat, R. et. al (2018). Essence and Essentials of Purposive Communication in the 21 st Century. Mandaluyong: Books Atbp.

GE 2 – PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION 28
 3

In a Nutshell

Our discussion to cover ULOb can be summarized by the following key points below:

Communication has a symbolic nature and is an act of sharing one's ideas, emotions,
attitudes, or perceptions with another person or group of persons through words
(written or spoken), gestures, signals, signs, or other modes of transmitting images.
Certain principles are inherent in the communication process; they constitute the
foundation of effective communication.
To communicate effectively, one should develop not only skills, but also a sense of
empathy with others

Your turn. What did you learn about the nature, principles, and ethics of communication?

GE 2 – PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION 29
 1. ___________________________________________________________________
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2. ___________________________________________________________________
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3. ___________________________________________________________________
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Q & A List
This section is a place for you to raise your questions and queries that you feel the
instructor should give attention to. Feel free to ask relevant questions related from the course
here. This Q & A portion helps in the review of concepts and essential knowledge.

Do you have any question for clarification?

Questions/Issues Answers
1.

2.

3.

GE 2 – PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION 30
4.

5.

GE 2 – PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION 31