CHAPTER ONE

OVERVIEW OF COMMUNICATION

INTRODUCTION

As you have studied in the course, Introduction to Management, managers have three basic jobs: to
collect and convey information, to make decision and to promote interpersonal unity. To put it in
short, managers are expected to work together to achieve organizational goals. All of these jobs
happen through communication. Effective managers are able to use a wide variety of media &
strategies to communicate. This chapter introduce you the general overview of communication from
its definition and meaning to significance of communication in a certain business organization.

CHAPTER OUT LINE

1.1 Definition and meaning of Communication

1.2 Significance of communication

1.3 Elements of the communication process

1.1 DEFINITION AND MEANING OF COMMUNICATION

Different writers define communication in different ways. Let’s look at various possible ways of
defining communication. When people are asked to define communication, some define
communication as “the process of transferring ideas from one person to another”. When you see this
definition on surface it seems sound. However, it is incorrect way of defining communication. Why
do you think it is so? Because the words transferring and from one person to another inaccurately
imply that communication is like pouring liquid from a pot to another pot.

In other words, the definition implies a simple, one way action where person A takes knowledge from
his or her head and simply pours (transfers) it into the head of person B, the same way the water
poured to a pot. Person B may refuse to accept A’s ideas and may, instead, wish to present his or her
own ideas (give feedback) unlike the pot. The Latin root of communicate is communicate, which
means “to make common to many, share”. According to this definition, when people communicate,
they express their ideas and feelings in a way that is understandable (common) to each of them. They
share information with each other. So, what is the correct way of defining Communication?

Hamilton and Parker (1987), define communication as” the process of people sharing thoughts, ideas,
and feelings with each other in commonly understandable ways.”
Bovee and Thill (2000) defined communication as the process of sending and receiving messages.
They distinguished communication and effective communication. According to Bovee and Thill,,
effective communication occurs when individuals achieve a shared understanding, stimulate others to
take actions, and encourage people to think in new ways.

Now look back the definition you gave for communication earlier at the beginning of this topic and
revise it again in line with the definitions forwarded here. Because this module is concerned
primarily with effective business communication, the discussions and illustrations you will read focus
mainly on business messages. However, you can apply them also to other organizations, to other
professions, and to your personal communication.

As communication is a much more complex factor in our present world, not surprisingly, the problem
Of defining it as a subject of study has also become increasingly difficult. For our purposes, however,
we can define communication as: The process by which people attempt to share meaning (ideas, feeling,
thought, experience, knowledge, skill, etc) for some purpose through the transmission of symbolic
messages.
Our working definition of communication calls attention to the following five essential points.
1. Communication is a process
Communication refers to a series of activities to be accomplished in a sequence; it does not refer to
incidental events and transactions among people.
2. Communication is purposeful
When senders - receivers communicate the sender originally should have an objective to be checked at
the end of the communication process. Communication is not just the transfer of messages but
purposeful transfer of messages between senders and receivers. Thus it does not refer to incidental
transactions between people.
3. Communication involves people
Communication shows the degree of understanding among senders-receivers and how
They relate to each other. Therefore, it refers to communication among people only and
the exchange of interpersonal behaviors among them.
4. Communication involves shared meaning
This suggests that in order for people to communicate, they must agree on the definitions of the terms
and symbols they are using. The symbols used by the sender should be similarly interpreted by the
receiver in order to ensure equal or similar understanding between them.
5. Communication is symbolic
In communication symbols such as, letters, numbers, words, gestures, sound, etc can only represent or
Approximate the ideas they are meant to communicate. In other words symbols are not perfect
representations of our ideas. Thus we have to take care in selecting symbols that best approximate the
sender’s ideas.
Communication is vital to human existence. It is how we pass on to others our thoughts and feelings,
Tell them what we want them to do, ask them to help us, share with them our knowledge and
experience. Without communication we would each live as if alone in the world.
1.2 SIGNIFICANCE OF COMMUNICATION

In order to show the importance of communication to organization it is better to define what

organization is. An organization is a group of people associated for business, political, professional,
religious, athletic, social, or other purposes. Its activities require human beings to interact, react-
communicate. They exchange information, ideas, plans, make decisions, rules, proposals, contracts
and various agreements which all of them cannot happen without communication. Whether an
organization is large or small, the sharing of information among the parts of an organization, as well
as between the organization and the outside world, is the glue that binds the organization together. As
a member of an organization, be it formal or informal organization, you are a link in the
communication chain. Whether you are a top manager or an entry level employee, you have
information that others need to perform their jobs. At the same time, others have information that is
crucial to you. Communication skills are important because it is through communication that you
gain the information you need to make successful decisions at work. The success of an organization
depends on communication skills of its employees. Researches indicate that communication skills
were rated “extremely important” relative to other kinds of abilities by the surveyed organization.
Researchers conducted on business organizations also show that “inability to communicate” and
“poor communication skills” were the most frequently mentioned reasons for not hiring a job
applicant. From this you can see that communication affects even your personal life.

To be specific communication serves the following three purposes in personal or individual life.
 Job Success

The two dimensions of management most often cited as the keys to individual and organizational
Successes are technical ability and understanding of people. Effective communication skills to listen,
speak, and write complement these two dimensions. Therefore enhance ones job success, a person
learn the art of human relations to effectively communicate her/his ideas, experiences, thoughts, skills
and feelings.
 Personal Satisfaction

Mastery on a certain area goes beyond vocational success or promotion, i.e. personal satisfaction. Thus
Communication skill can be a source of personal satisfaction, particularly in the areas of art such as
Writing, painting, etc.
 Meeting Social and Ethical obligations

A person may be in conflict with him/herself, with other people, and/or with the community at large.
With the help of communication people continue adjusting profitably to themselves, to other people, to
the environment in which they live and work. It is a means of winning respect and confidence from
other people or from the community at large.
As you attempt to fulfill yourself in business and in the private aspect of your life, your brain enables
you to identify, classify, relate and solve issues. But in responding to your environment, you generate
both emotions and ideas. You feel as well as think. Through such experiences you continue adjusting
profitably to yourself to other people, to the environment in which you and they live, cooperate and
compete. In brief, effective communication is a key to success in personal life and in business career.

1.3. ELEMENTS OF COMMUNICATION

The various elements of communication are briefly described below to help you understand the
process of communication: The process of communication involves five elements:

 sender-encoder

 message

 medium

 receiver-decoder

 feed back

The following figure illustrates how these factors interact in the communication process, affected by
various internal and external conditions and decisions.

Sender: the person who transmits, spreads, or communicates a massage or operates an electronic
device is the one who conceives and initiates the message with the purpose of informing, persuading,
influencing, and changing the attitude, opinion, or behaviour of the receiver (audience listener). He
/she decide the communication symbols, the channel, and the time for sending the message after
carefully considering the total situation in which communication takes place.

Ideas or Thoughts: the raw form of telling the ideas that the sender wants to share with a receiver by
changing them to messages using symbols.

Encoding: is changing the raw idea from its mental form into symbols, that is, patterns of words,
gestures, pictorial forms or signs (physical or sounds) of a specific visual /oral language. The sender
must choose certain words or non verbal methods to send an intentional message. This activity is
called encoding. The words and channels that a communicator chooses to deliver a message can
make a tremendous difference in how that message is received. Consider the simple act of a
manager’s offering feed back to an employee whether the words are respectful or abrupt and whether
the message is delivered in person or in a memo can make a big difference in how the feedback is
received.

Message: It is the information, written, spoke or nonverbal, which is to be sent from one person to
another. Here, the word “person” stands for the two ends of a system, and may represent an
individual, or a group of individuals, or even electronic machines.

The most important characteristic of a message as an element of communication is that it is

organized, structured, shaped, and selective – a product & pre- writing or pre – speaking stage. It
exists in the mind of the sender (communicator)

Medium: is the carrier of the message such as written words, in the form of written communication,
and spoken words and gestures in the form of face-to-face discursion.

Channel: is the carrier of the medium like a memo or a letter, which carry the written words, and air,
radio, telephone, television etc that carry the spoken words.

Receiver: is the targeted audience of the message. A receiver is any person who notices and attachés
some meaning to a message. In the best of circumstances, a message reaches its intended receiver
with no problems. In the confusing and imperfect world of business, however, several problems can
occur. The message may never get to the receiver. It might be delivered but lie buried under a
mountain of papers on the recipients desk. Even worse, a message intended for one receiver might be
intercepted by another one.

Decoding: This is the act of translating symbols of communication into their ordinary meanings;
however, the total meaning would consist of meanings of the words ( symbols) together with the tone
and the attitude of the sender as treated by the structure of the message and the choice of words used
by him (the sender).

Feed back: This is the loop that connects the receiver in the communication process with the sender,
who, in turn, acts as a feedback receiver and, thus, gets to know that communication has been
accomplished. In communication, feedback plays an important role. It helps the communicator know
if there are any corrections or changes to be made in the proposed action. It also ensures that the
receiver has received the message and understood it as intended by the sender failure to answer a
letter or to return a phone call can suggest how the non-communicative person feels about the sender.
 CHAPTER TWO
THE COMMUNICATION PROCESSES

2. BASIC CONCEPTS IN THE PROCCESES OF COMMUNICATION

Communication involves participants (a sender & a receiver), message to be sent a medium to carry
the communication signals & the environments in which the message is sent & received. These
elements act & interact in the five-step process. Whether you are speaking or writing, listening or
reading, communication is more than a single act. Instead, it is a chain of events that can be broken in
to five phases as:

 The sender has an idea.

 The idea becomes a message.

 The message is transmitted.

 The receiver gets the message.

 The receiver reacts & sends feedback to the sender.

A) The Sender Has an Idea

The sender is the individual who initiates the communication. This person is sometimes known as the
‘encoder’, two things must happen before the sender wants to send a message: First, an internal or
external stimulus prompts you to send a message. This prompt may arrive in the form of letters,
memorandum, pencilled note, electronic mail, fax, telex, or even casual conversation in the hallway,
Regardless of the stimulus source; it could be a business transaction, a written question, a meeting, an
interview, or unexpected request for a favours. Whatever the case might be, you will start thinking of
ideas for the message.

It is important to remember, however, that a stimulus alone may not be enough to trigger
communication. The second requirement to send message is sufficient motivation. Think of times
when a manager asks a question, and some of the people present were fairly sure they knew the
answer (were stimulated), but did not respond. Why didn’t they respond? Probably because they were
not sufficiently motivated; i.e. they saw no personal benefit in answering. Or they saw greater benefit
in not answering.

B) The Idea Becomes a Message

After being stimulated & motivated to communicate, the sender must decide how best to convey a
message to the specific receiver. The message is the information or core idea being transmitted. The
process of putting a message into the form in which it is to be communicated is called ‘encoding.’ It
consists of both verbal (written or spoken) symbols & nonverbal (unspoken) symbols. Verbal
information is the part of the message that is heard. Nonverbal information entails such things as
body language & the surrounding environment. Whenever you compose a message, you need to
consider what content to include, how the receiver will interpret it, & how it may affect your
relationship. A simple ‘thank you’ message will be relatively easy. In contrast, to inform 200
employees of bad news about salaries will require much more complicated, carefully planned
message. To some extent, your choice of words also depends on your cultural background. When you
choose your words, you signal that you are a member of a particular club and that you know the code.
The nature of your code-your language and vocabulary-imposes its own limits on your message. For
example, the language of a lawyer differs from that of an accountant or a doctor, and the difference in
their vocabularies affects their ability to recognize and express ideas.

Several things can go wrong when you’re formulating a message. Typical problems involve
indecision about message content, lock of familiarity with the situation or the receiver, emotional
conflicts, or difficulty in expressing ideas.

Indecision about content

Deciding what to say is the first difficulty in the communication process. Many people make the
mistake of trying to convey everything they know about a subject. When a message contains too
much information, it is difficult to absorb. If you want to get your point across, therefore, you have to
decide what to include and what to leave out, how much detail to provide, and what order to include
and how much detail to provide, and what order adequate background, you will create confusion.
And if you recommend actions without first explaining why they are justified, your message may
provoke an emotional response that inhibits understanding. Include only the information that is useful
to the receiver, & organize it in a way that encourages its acceptance.

Lack of familiarity with the situation or the receiver

Can you deliver your message equally well when you are not very familiar with the subject you are
talking about: or when you do not know the receiver very well? Creating an effective message is
difficult if you don’t know how it will be used. Let’s say you’re writing a report on the market for
sports equipment. If you don’t know the purpose of the report, it’s hard to know what to say. Some of
the things you should be clear about before writing the report are:

 What sort of sports equipment should you cover?

 Should you include team sports as we I as individual sports?

 Should you subdivide the market geographically or according to price ranges?

 How long should the report be?

Unless you know why the report is needed, you really can’t answer these questions intelligently. You
are forced to create a very general document one that covers a little bit of everything.

Lack of familiarity with your audience is an equally serious handicap you need to know something
about the biases, education, age, status, and style of the receiver in order to create an effective
message. If you’re writing for a specialist in your field, for example, you can use technical terms that
might be unfamiliar to a layperson. If you’re addressing a lower-level employee, you might approach
a subject differently than if you were talking to your boss. Decisions about the content, organization,
style, and tone of your message all depend, at least to some extent, on the relationship between you
and the audience. If you don’t know the audience, you will be forced to make these decisions in the
dark. As a result, at least part of your message may miss the point. Hence, ask why you are preparing
the message & for whom you are preparing it.

Emotional conflicts

Another potential problem in developing the message arises when the sender has conflicting emotions
about the subject or the audience. Let’s say you’ve been asked to recommend ways to improve the
organization of your department. You conclude that the best approach is to combine two positions.
But this solution will mean eliminating the job of one of your close associates. As you prepare your
report, you find yourself apologizing for your recommendation. Even though you believe your
position is justified, you cannot make a convincing case. Thus, in business communications try to
maintain your objectivity.

Difficulty of expressing ideas

Most of us might think that to write and to speak are not so difficult. We only learn that they do not
come easy when we have to make public speeches or when we are required to write an influential
letter on a particular matter. Lack of experience in writing or speaking can also prevent a person from
developing effective messages. Some people have limited education or a lack of aptitude when it
comes to expressing ideas. Perhaps they have a limited vocabulary or are uncertain about questions of
grammar, punctuation, and style. Or perhaps they are simply frightened by the idea of writing
something or appearing before they lack expertise in using language.

Problems of this sort can be overcome, but only with some effort. The important thing is to recognize
the problem & take action. An inability to put thoughts into words can be overcome through study &
practice.

C) The Message is transmitted

The third step in the communication process is physical transmission of the message from sender to
receiver. How will you send your message? Should one write or speak? What is the appropriate
channel for any given message? The channel is the means used to convey the message. The forms of
communication may be verbal, or nonverbal. Beyond that, you can convey a message by phone,
computer, face-to-face exchange, or other medium.

D) The Receiver Gets the Message

The receiver is the individual to whom the message is directed, also knows as ‘decoder’. When the
encoder’s message is picked up, the receiver tries to make sense out of it; i.e. to decode it. Decoding
is the process the receiver goes through in trying to interpret the exact meaning of a message.
Everyone tries to read between the lines in an effort to interpret what the sender means by the
message. If you send a letter, the recipient has to read it before she/he can understand it. If you’re
giving a speech, the people in the audience have to be able to hear you, and they have to be paying
attention.

But physical reception is only the first step. The receiver also has to absorb the message mentally. In
other words, the message has to be understood and stored in the receiver’s mind. If all goes well, the
message is interpreted correctly. The receiver assigns the same basic meaning to the words as the
sender intended and responds in the desired way.

Like transmission problems, problems during the reception phase often have a physical cause.
Competing sights and sounds, an uncomfortable chair, poor lighting or some other irritating condition
may distract the receiver. In some impairment, for example, or even a headache, can interfere with
reception of a message. These annoyances don’t generally block communication entirely, but they
may reduce the receiver’s concentration.
Perhaps the most common barrier to reception is simply lack of attention on the receiver’s part. We
all let our minds wander now and then, regardless of how hard we try to concentrate. People are
especially likely to drift off when they are forced to listen to information that is difficult to
understand or that has little direct bearing on their own lives. If they are tired or concerned about
other matters, they are even more likely to lose interest. Is the communication process complete once
the receiver has the message?

B) The Receiver Reacts & Gives Feedback to the Sender

Feedback is the receiver’s response to a message. It is the final link in the communication chain.
However, the feedback response involves a reversal of the communication process so that the
receiver now becomes the sender & the sender becomes the receiver. After getting the message, the
receiver responds in some way and signals that response to the sender. The signal may take the form
of a smile, a long pause, a spoken comment, a written message, or an action. Even a lack of response
is, in a sense, a form of response.

Feedback is a key element in the communication process because it enables the sender to evaluate the
effectiveness of the message. It provides guidance for the next message that you send to the receiver.
If your audience doesn’t understand what you mean, you can tell by the response and refine the
message. Feedback plays an important role by indicating significant communication barriers:
differences in background, different interpretations of words, and differing emotional reactions. So
when the receiver of the message has made feedback and the sender is sure that the message has been
communicated in the way intended, we say communication has existed.

Therefore, from the above phases, you can think of communication as a process consisting of
identifiable links, with ultimate objective of influencing behaviour, attitudes, & beliefs. Each element
of the communication process is critical: the sender, encoding, channel, the receiver, decoding, &
feedback. The communication process is illustrated in the figure below.
 Fig.2 Process of Communication

COMMUNICA
Phase
pp 1 Phase 6
TION
The sender has an idea Receiver sends feedback
CHANNEL
AND
TRANSMISSIO
N MIDIUM

Phase 2
Sender transforms Phase 5
idea into a message Receiver interprets the
(encoding) message (decoding)

Phase 3
Sender transmits the Phase 4
message Receiver gets the
message

The process is repeated until both parties have finished expressing themselves. To say a given
communication is effective each step should be successful.

2.2. BARRIERS OF COMMUNICATION

No two persons are exactly alike mentally, physically, or emotionally. Thus the innumerable human
differences plus cultural, Social & environmental differences may cause problems in conveying an
intended message. Although all communication is subject to misunderstandings, business
communication is particularly different. Various characteristics of the sender, receiver, &
communication situation can create barriers to effective communication. The major barriers of
communication include the following:

1. Channel selection: Communication may be oral, written, visual or audio-visual. The different
communication channels can be personal barriers in that some individuals always seem to incline
toward a particular channel even though a more effective one exists. All the media have their relative
merits and limitations. While a properly chosen medium can add to the effectiveness of a
communication, an unsuitable medium may act as a barrier to it.

2. Physical barriers: these include noise, and time & distance.

a. Noise: Anything that interferes with communication & distorts or blocks the message is noise.
Noise is quite often a barrier to communication. In factories oral communication could be difficult by
the loud noise of machines. Electronic noise like ear-splitting often interferes in communication by
telephone. The word “noise” is also used to refer to all kinds of physical interference like illegible
handwriting, smudged copies of duplicated typescript, poor telephone connections, use of jargons
(terms that have a precise meaning among specialists, but are unfamiliar to others), distraction that
prevents the receiver from paying attention, a worn printer ribbon that makes a document hard to
read, etc.

b. Time & Distance: Time and distance also act as barriers of communication. Modern
communication facilities like fax, telephone and internet are not available everywhere. This is
especially so in most companies of our country. Even when these technologies are available,
sometimes mechanical breakdowns render these facilities ineffective. In such cases the distance
between the transmitter and the receiver becomes a barrier. There is a kind of communication gap
between persons working in different shifts of a factory. Can you imagine how difficult it would be to
send an urgent message to a business partner living in England if it had to be done through postal
mail?

3. Semantics: refers to the different uses & meanings of words and symbols. Words and symbols
may not have similar uses and meanings for different individuals from different cultural group,
language and living style so it may create some barrier in the communication process.

a) Interpretations of words: Do you remember a situation where you and your friend understood a
word communicated by somebody else in a different way. The knowledge each have about a subject
or word affects the meaning we attach to it. Individuals have their own network of words & meanings
available for recall that overlap, but do not correspond exactly, with those of other individuals using
their own networks can attach different meanings to words. Receivers decode words & phrases in
conformity with their own network, while may be very different from those of senders. Words are
capable communicating a variety of meanings. It is quite possible that the receiver do not assign the
same meaning to a word as the sender has intended, that may lead to miscommunication. For some, a
successful career means having prestigious job title & making lot of money; for others, it may mean
having a job they really enjoy & plenty of personal time to spend with family & friends. Different
word interpretations especially, noticeable in, “bypassed” instructions & in reactions to denotations,
connotations and euphemisms.
b) Bypassed instructions: when the message sender & receiver attribute different meanings to the
same words or use different words though intending the same meaning, bypassing often occurs.
Example: An office manager handed to a new assistant a letter, with the instruction “Take it to our
store room and burn it” In the office manager’s mind (and in the firm’s jargon) the word “burn”
meant to make a copy on a photocopier. As the letter was extremely important, she wanted an extra
copy. However, the confused employee afraid to ask questions burned the letter and thus destroyed
the original existing copy! To avoid communication errors of bypassing, when you give instructions
or discuss issues, be sure your words & sentences will convey the intended meaning to the recipient.
Also, when you are the recipient of unclear instruction, before acting on it, ask questions to determine
the sender intended meaning.

Denotations, Connotations, & Euphoniums: Many of us have at some time been surprised that a
remark intended as a complement, or joke was interpreted by the receiver as an insult. A statement
intended as a good deed can be distorted in to something self-serving. Some of these communication
problems may occur because words have both denotative and connotative meanings, and the sender
has not considered the receiver’s probable interpretation and reactions.

Denotations: the denotative meaning is the meaning on which most people will probably agree. It
often is the dictionary definition. The word informs the receiver & it names objects, people, or events
without indicating positive or negative qualities. Such words are car, desk, book, house, water
conveys denotative meaning, provided, of course, that the communicators understand the English
language & provided that the receiver has a similar understanding of the context in which the word is
used.

Connotations: in addition to more literal denotative meanings, some words have connotative
meanings that arouse qualitative judgments & personal reactions. The term ‘meeting room’ is
denotative. Director’s lounge, executive suite, boardroom, though they each denote a meeting place,
also has connotative meanings. The word ‘student’ is denotative; bookworm, scholar, dropout, are
connotative. Some words have favourable connotations in some contexts but unfavourable meanings
in other instances. Compare, for example, fat check & fat girl; free enterprise & free (rude, bold)
manners; cheap products & cheap price.

The communicators’ different backgrounds & interests also affect the connotative meanings for
words. On hearing that a particular person is ‘cool’ members of one generation may take it to mean
the person is fun to be with, while members of earlier generation may believe it means that the
individual is unemotional & insensitive.

Euphemisms: tactful writer & speakers are euphemisms whenever possible to replace words that
might have blunt, painful, lowly, or distasteful connotations. Euphemisms are mild, innovative
expressions with which most people do not have negative associations. Expressions like the
following have obvious connotative advantage: maintenance worker or staff member instead of
janitor, slender instead of skinny; restroom instead of toilet. Instead of saying an employee was fired,
a communicator may use such euphemism as laid off, terminated, or a victim of reorganization or
staff cutbacks.

To communicate effectively you need to be aware of the usual connotative meanings of various terms
and also to realize that some people may have their own unique meanings because of their
experiences & background. Thus choose your words carefully, considering both their connotations
and other denotations to convey the idea you want and achieve the desired results.

4. Perception of reality: The reality of an object, an event, or a person is different to different

people. Reality is not a fixed concept; it is complex, infinite and continually changing. Besides, each
human being has limited sensory perceptions-touch. Sight, hearings, smell, and taste and each
person’s mental filter are unique. People perceive reality in different ways. No two persons perceive
reality in identical manners. We make various abstractions inferences and evaluation of the world
around us.

Abstracting: the process of focusing on some details & omitting others. In countless instances,
abstracting is necessary and desirable – for both written and oral communications. Whether you write
a memo, letter or report or converse by telephone, you will be limited somewhat by time, expense,
space. And purpose. You will need to select facts that are pertinent to accomplish your purpose and to
omit the rest. We often use abstracting while preparing business reports & application letters. Precise
writing is nothing but the art of abstracting. So how is abstracting considered a barrier to
communication? Abstracting poses a grave barrier to communication for details, which look pertinent
to one reporter, may look insignificant or trivial to another. You as a communicator must also
anticipate the likelihood that others may not be abstracting as you are. Their points may be as
important as yours though they select differently from the infinite details in reality. For example,
when reporting on an event-a football game or an accident, no two witnesses give exactly the same
descriptions. The participants will perceive different details than the observers, but all or several
observers may mention some parts of the whole. Juries often determine which witness’s details are
the most credible. Differences in abstracting occurs not only when persons describe events but also
when they describe people, equipment, project, or animals. We do not give allowances for these
differences, and misunderstandings arise.

A. Inferring: What we directly see, hear, feel, taste, smell or can immediately verify and
confirm & constitutes a fact. But the statements that go beyond the facts and the
conclusions based on facts are called inferences. They are conclusions made by
reasoning from evidences or premises. A very simple example of inferring is when we
drop a letter in the post box, we assume that it will be picked up by someone and be
delivered to the destiny we desired. “If enough rain fall during the summer, we can
infer that the price of ‘teff’ will go down.” We infer that the gas station attendant
pumps gasoline (not water) into our car’s tank.

For business & professional persons inferences are essential & desirable in analyzing
materials, solving problems, & planning. Systems analysts, marketing specialists,
advertisers, architects, engineers, and designers are all required to draw inferences
after they have gathered as much factual data as possible. Also, as consumers in our
daily activities, we may make inferences that are necessary & usually fairly reliable.
When we base our inferences on direct observations or on reasonable evidence, they
are likely to be quite dependable; but even so, there are disappointing exceptions.
Conclusions we make about things we have not observed directly may be true or
untrue.

As intelligent communicator we must avoid faulty inferences. We must realize that

inferences may be incorrect & unreliable & may cause miscommunication. We need to
anticipate risks before acting on the inferences. Consider this simple example.
Suppose that a personnel manager observes a particular new employee has been
leaving the office one hour late every day for the last two weeks. What can be inferred
from this observation? The manager might infer that the worker is:

 exceptionally conscientious;
  that he is incapable of doing the required work within the regular time;

 that he has been given more responsibility than should be expected of a

new trainee; or

Even that he is searching for some secrets from confidential materials after others
have left the office.

Do you suppose the personnel manager should take an action based on any of the
above – mentioned inferences or any other possible inference that the manager could
make? Before acting on any of these inferences, the manager should get more facts. A
wrong inference can surely be a barrier to communication.

B. Making frozen evaluation: another drawback of effective perception is the frozen

evaluation- the stereotyped, static impression that ignores significant differences or
changes. Stereotyping is the tendency to attribute characteristics of an individual on
the basis of an assessment of the group to which the individual belongs. The manager
uses those perceived common characteristics to draw conclusions about the
characteristics of the individual, rather than acquiring information about those
characteristics more directly. It is often based on faulty inferences. To help you assure
that your comprehension of reality will be correct, you need to recognize that any
person, product, or event may be quite different from others in a group, or may have
significant differences today when compared with characteristics yesterday or some
time ago. You should recognize individual differences within groups & differences
within time periods. In all, we should remember to avoid frozen evaluation made on
the basis of what was true for one (for a group) at one time. Changes occur in
everything.

5. Attitudes & Opinions: communication effectiveness is influenced also by the attitudes & opinions
the communicators have in their mental filters. People tend to react favourably when the message
they receive agrees with their views towards the information, the set of facts, & the sender. In
addition, sometimes unrelated circumstances affect their attitudes, & responses like:

A. Emotional state: a person’s ability to encode a message can become impaired when a
person is feeling strong emotions. For example, when you are angry, it is harder to
consider the other person’s viewpoint & to choose words carefully. Likewise, the
 receiver will have difficulty-decoding message when her/his emotions are strong. For
instance, a person who is elated at receiving good news might not pay close attention
to someone else’s words or body language. Someone who is angry might pay attention
but misinterpret a message in light of her/his anger.

B. Favourable or Unfavourable information: rejecting, distorting, & avoiding are three

common undesirable, negative ways receivers react to information they consider
unfavourable. For example, if a change in the policy of an organization proves
advantageous to employees, they welcome it as good; if it is contrary to their beliefs or
benefits, they may reject, or resent the company and their boss, perhaps falsely
accusing them of being unfair. Or they may instead, distort, the meaning and
misinterpret the true purpose of the policy change. Or they may avoid the message,
situation or people by putting of acceptance hoping that the delay will somehow
prevent the change & protect them.

C. Closed mind: some people have a closed mind toward receiving new information. The
closed-minded person is one of the most difficult to communicate with. Typically this
person has only inadequate and mainly incorrect knowledge of the subject. Yet she/he
refuses to consider any new facts. Even from an expert who has made a long, careful
study of the problem and the proposed change. The closed minded person says in
essence: “my mind is made up” “Don’t bother me with facts” “I want what I want”.
Closed – minded people stubbornly reject distort or avoid a viewpoint before they
know the facts.

D. Status consciousness: people in the upper areas of organization’s hierarchy, those

who have more status & power, may be hesitant to listen to those individuals lower in
the hierarchy, feeling for example, that people of lower status & power do not possess
any useful information. By the same token, people of lower status & power may be
reluctant to share information because they believe that people with higher status &
power will not listen. Subordinates are afraid of communicating any unpleasant
information to their managers. They may be afraid that they might displease their
superiors by telling them unpleasant facts. Or they may fear that unfavourable
communication may adversely reflect upon their own competence. The subordinates
 also find it difficult to offer proposals for the improvement of the organization, for
such proposals are not usually encouraged.

E. Credibility: people react more favourably when a communicator has credibility –

when they respect, trust, & believe in the communicator. A sender’s credibility plays
an important role in how a message is received & understood. If the receiver does not
consider the sender trustworthy or knowledgeable about the subject being
communicated, she/he will most likely be reluctant even to listen to the message. For
example, if you may feel that she/he has little knowledge concerning the area of
management &, thus, places little weight on anything she tells you concerning the
subject. Likewise, a sender may limit what she/he communicates to a receiver who is
not considered trustworthy. For instance, if an employee offers idea for a more
efficient way to perform a job & his supervisor takes credit for it, then the employee is
more likely to withhold future information from the supervisor, as he will probably not
trust the supervisor with such information.

6. Information overload: refers to the condition of having too much information to process. The
implication is that individuals can effectively process only certain amount of information. An
example would be if your professor gave you too much information, too quickly, concerning a term
paper’s requirements or if a manager gave an employee too much information at one time about a
report’s requirements. In either situation, the receiver probably does not receive the entire message.
Managers need to be aware of potential for information overload & to make appropriate adjustments.

2.2.1. GUIDELINES TO OVERCOME COMMUNICATION BARRIERS

Now having the knowledge of the barriers to effective communication, can you think of alternative
ways of avoiding them? The following are ways which are suggested so as to make your
communication in the work place as smooth and effective as possible.
There are six factors or themes that contribute to effective communication.
1. Fostering an open communication climate.
2. Committing to ethical communication
3. Understanding the difficulties involved in intercultural communication.
4. Adopting an audience-centred approach to communication.
5. Using technology wisely and responsibly to obtain and share information.
6. Creating and processing messages effectively and efficiently.
1. Fostering an open communication climate.
An organization’s communication climate is a reflection of its corporate culture: the mixture of
values, traditions and habits. It affects the quantity and quality of the information that passes through
the pipeline. The following are the measures that can be taken to create an open communication
climate: a) Modify the number of organizational levels.
One way to foster an open communication climate is to reduce the number of levels in
the organizations structure. The fewer the links in the communication chain, the less
likely the misunderstandings will occur. In other words, a flat structure (having fewer
levels) and a wide span of control are likely to introduce distortion than a tall structure
and a narrow span of control.
b) Facilitate feedback
Giving the audience a chance to provide feedback is crucial to maintaining an open
communication climate.
2. Committing to ethical communication
Ethics are the principles of conduct that govern a person or a group. Ethical people are generally
trustworthy, fair and impartial, respecting the rights of others, and concerned about the impact of
their actions on society. Ethics plays a crucial role in communication. Ethical communication
includes all relevant information, is true in every sense and is not deceptive in any way. In order to
maintain ethical communication follow the guidelines below:
a) Recognize ethical choices.
Every company has responsibilities to various groups- customers, shareholders,
suppliers, neighbours, the community and the nation. What’s right for one group may
be wrong for another. Moreover as we attempt to satisfy the needs of one group, we
may be presented with an option that seems right on the surface but somehow feels
wrong.
b) Make ethical choices.
Laws provide ethical guidelines for certain types of messages. Look at the
consequences of the decision and opt for the solution that provides the greatest good to
the greatest number of people, and one that we can live with.
c) Motivate ethical choices.
Organizations can foster ethical behaviour:
  by helping top managers become more sensitive communicators
 by using ethics audits
 by rewarding ethical actions
3. Understanding the difficulties involved in intercultural communication
More and more businesses are crossing national boundaries to compete on a global scale and the
makeup of the global and domestic work force is changing rapidly. Global companies must
understand the laws, customs and business practices of many countries, and they must deal with
business associates and employees.
4. Adopting an audience-cantered approach to communication
Using an audience-cantered approach means keeping the audience in mind all times when
communicating. Since audience is taken care of, every possible step is taken to get the message
across in a way that is meaningful to the audience. Empathizing with and being sensitive to the
audience’s feelings is the best way to overcome such communication barriers as differences in
perception and emotional interference.
5. Using technology wisely and responsibly to obtain and share information
In today’s world, information moves through an array of media at the speed of a neural impulse.
Technology has such an impact on business communication. When used wisely and responsibly,
technology helps to improve the effectiveness of business communication.
6. Creating and processing messages effectively and efficiently.
The sixth guideline is to plan messages, generate ideas, organize the thoughts, and turn the words into
effective business messages. In order to create messages effectively and efficiently, consider the
following issues.
a) Learn about the audience: Creating an effective message is difficult if the audience
is unfamiliar, or if we don’t know how the message will be used. We need to know
something about the biases, education, age, status and style of the receiver in order to
create an effective message.
b) Adapt the message to the audience
Decisions about the content, organization, style, and tone of the message depend on
the relationship between the sender and the audience.
c) Develop and connect ideas
Include only the information that is useful to the audience, and organize it in such a
way that encourages its acceptance. To make message memorable;
 Use telling statistics.
 Use words that evoke a physical, sensory impression.
 Tie the message to the audience’s frame of reference.
 Keep messages as brief and as clean as possible.
 Highlighting and summarizing key points.
d) Reduce the number of messages
Organizations save time and money by sending only necessary messages. If a written
message merely adds to the information overload, it is probably better left unsent or
handled some other way – by a quick telephone call or a face to face chat. By holding
down the number of messages, organizations will maximize the benefits of their
communication activities.
e) Choose the correct channel and medium
The careful choice of channel and medium helps focus the audience’s attention on
message. The choice of a communication channel and medium depends on the:
 Message
 Audience
 Need for speed
 Situation.
f) Strengthen the communication skills
Recognizing the importance of efficient communication, many companies today train
employees in communication skills. Companies offer seminars and workshops on
handling common oral communication situations (such as dealing with customers,
managing subordinates, and getting along with co-workers), as well as training in
computers and other electronic means of communication.