Barrier to Communication

‘Any obstacle or problem in the process of Communication which hinders/obstructs the

process of Communication is called Barrier.’

Barriers are part of process of Communication. Whenever we are communicating we

encode and decode. We use various channels for passing messages. At any level or at any
moment or stage there can be problems in communication process. Sometimes the sender
may not use proper language that the receiver will understand. Receiver may not be able
to Decode properly. There can be lot of noise in the surrounding which can disturb us. It
rarely happens that barriers do not arise in the communication process. Many times
barriers arise in the minds of the sender and receiver. The intended messages are not sent
to the receivers.

Types of Barriers

1. Physical or Environmental Barriers: The Barriers in the surrounding or in the

environment are the physical barriers. Many barriers arise in the surroundings or our
environment. These barriers create problems or confusion in communication.

a. Noise: Traffic Noise or noise of machines in factory creates disturbances in

communication. Noise pollution is biggest contributor or environment pollution in India

b. Time and Distance: Physical distances between people can create major problems in
communication. Time zones around the world are not same. Due to differences in timings
between countries we have to adjust with the time difference of that country.

c. Defects in Communication Systems: Many times the instruments or machines used in

communication such as Telephones, Fax or Computer can develop problems. The
network of Internet can fail or the Mike or Microphone used in the programmes can
create loud noise. Due to excess rains or natural calamity it becomes difficult to use the
instruments properly. The failure of Electronic power also results into communication
loss or messages are not sent properly.

d. Wrong Selection of Medium: Medium means the objects used in communication eg.
Emails, Mobile Phones, Telephones etc. The correct medium is necessary. The improper
use of some machines such as Emails can delay the messages.
e. High Temperature and Humidity: Excess Temperature or heat or cold Temperature
create difficulties in communication Many times human physical difficulties in
communication

2. Language/Semantic or Linguistic Barriers: Barriers arising due to the different

language or differences in language can create problems in communication. Semantic
Barriers means the problems arising because of the different meanings of the words.

Different Languages or lack of Common Language can create obstacles in

Communication. A person who does not understand the native language or even foreign
language cannot communicate well. This becomes very difficult situation.

Multiplicity of words: words can have different meanings. Word power is gift to
human beings but at the same times multiple meaning or spellings of the words can create
the problems in communication

Words with similar pronunciation but different meaning [Homophones] also create
problems in communication. E.g. Except-accept, fair-fare, council-counsel, principal
principle [etc].

Jargon words [Technical words] used by professionals such as Engineers/Doctors or

any other professionals. Many times, jargon words are used unintentionally. But common
people or those who do not understand the meaning of these words face problems.

3. Psychological Barriers: Barriers or problems arising due to the stress or psychological

problems are psychological barriers. It is difficult to accept and overcome these barriers.

Lack of Attention:When a person’s mind is distracted or preoccupied with other

things, the person is not able to form proper messages, listen to what others tell

him/her, interpret the message as required and give proper feedback. The

communication will face problems and becomes ineffective. Examples:

1) A person in tragedy, for instance, does not want to listen to other people giving advice.
2) A person might be preoccupied by the problems of his/her professional life or personal

life, which affects both.

Poor Retention: Retention of information is the capacity of the memory of the brain to

store information. The Brain does not store all the information it comes across, but only

the ones it deems useful for future. So, half the information is lost in the retention

process.

Similarly, brain also loses information that is old and not taken as useful with

time. Extracting the information is also a process in the formation of message. Here,

the brain tries to remember the required information, the fragments of which have already

been lost.

For example, you were told about a friend coming to meet you before a month and had

been given the person’s name, address, phone number, etc. Now, you have to

communicate the information to somebody else. At the time, you only remember the name

and address and forget the phone number. The truth can change or distort due to poor

retention which acts as barrier to communication.

Distrust and Defensiveness: Communication is successful when the communicators

trust each other. Lack of trust makes them derive negative meaning of the message and

they ignore the message. When a person tries to force his/her own ideas and opinions,

then receiver does not listen. If the receiver does not agree to the message provided or

thinks of it as a threat, he/she will not listen to it. Similarly, when the message is not
transferred across to the receiver, the communication fails. For example, I don’t trust a

friend, I will only give the details, of what is happening in my personal life which I think

are harmless.

Perception, Viewpoint, Attitudes and Opinions: Perception is the mindset using

which people judge, understand and interpret everything. Each person has his/he own

perception of reality which is shaped from mental and sensory experiences.

Likewise, viewpoint is also a mindset to look at the world. Sender might have a

particular viewpoint that is not shared by the receiver. The sender does not explain the

viewpoint but takes the viewpoint as granted. The message is not understood by the

receiver as must have been understood, creating a barrier to effective communication.

Attitude is the established way in which we think and feel about things and

ideas which also creates a psychological communication barrier. For example, a person

takes females to be weak which is the person’s perception. He/she tells that to someone

who does not think so. This causes a misunderstanding between the two. Everything they

communicate after that becomes unsuccessful that the view of the person is already set.

Emotions: Anyone who isn’t in a good mood is likely to talk less or talk negatively. A

preoccupied mind is not good at communicating. For example, when a person is angry,

he/she might say things they regret later. Even when listening to someone else speak, an

angry person might easily misinterpret the message.

Various other emotions like fear, nervousness, confusion, mistrust and jealousy affect

communication process. For example, a person having extreme moods of happiness will

laugh at anything at all said to him/her. The same person when sad will cry or get angry at

insignificant situations.

Closed Mind and Filtering:Man is selfish by nature and put his own needs and

problems above all else. This sometimes leads people to filter information that someone

is trying to convey to them. This might be due to mistrust, competition, jealousy, or the

view that the message is insignificant.

For example, a senior in a company does not want the junior to do better at work, the

person filters the information and does not provide crucial information that could help the

junior. The junior therefore will not be able to complete the work properly and progress in

ranks. Similarly, when a person is close minded, the person will have fixed opinions on

many things which the person believes resolutely. The person will interpret any

information in a negative way.

For example, a sexist person does not accept the suggestions of a female colleague in a

meeting that affects the communication flow in the meeting. It is difficult to argue with

such close minded people and give proper information.

Premature Evaluation:

Some people are always in a hurry by habit. These kinds of people most likely make

quick judgments and jump into conclusions. They do not consider all aspects of the

information such as social, cultural, economic, etc., and often end up taking quick and

wrong decisions.

It is important to hear the whole message to make proper judgments because they are not

changed easily after they are once made.

For example, a person who is in a hurry and is talking on the phone does not listen to half

the message and makes the decision which is wrong in the situation.

Psychological barriers affect communication more as information is formed in the brain

and is sent by people with various psychological condition which differs from one

moment to another. Information is as effective as the people involved make it. Similarly,

the psychological condition of the receiver also has as much importance as the sender’s.

Communication is ineffective if psychological aspects of communication acts as a barrier

to communication.

Effective Communication is King in a Crisis:

Communication is a crucial aspect of our lives whether that be personal or professional

and although it is common to believe that communication is simply the exchange of

words, it is much more than that.

A speaker’s words only account for a fraction of the information being transmitted,

7% to be precise. Your non-verbal cues such as your facial expressions, tone of voice and

body language have much more of an influence on how the message will be received.

Often in interactions, when verbal and nonverbal massages fail to align, it can decrease

clarity, rapport and most importantly trust. As such, the importance of effective

communication skills must not be overlooked.

In the world of business, communication is regarded as an essential skill; one that can

always be improved and one that is pivotal to the success of organisational

process. Increased productivity, reduced conflict and greater job satisfaction are just

a few of the positive outcomes associated with effective communication in the

workplace. Yet it continues to remain a key challenge for many businesses and a lack of

communication within and across teams can result in poor customer experience.

As challenging as it may be, it is essential that effective internal and external

communication be the norm within your organisation. This goes beyond putting processes

in place, it should be part of the organisation’s DNA. The right people should be

communicated to at the right time to ensure customers are being helped efficiently and to

present a united front.

Organizational Barriers

The effectiveness of communication is also highly affected by various elements inherent

in the organization.Organizational factors such as organizational policies, rules &
regulations, authority structures etc. may also put a hindrance in the communication
process

Following are the organizational barriers:

Organizational Policies: Organizational policies are the guidelines under which all the
decisions will be taken in the organization. For example, the organization may have the
policy that formal communication will only be through written formin the organization
which will follow a prescribe path for the flow of communication. For Example: There
might be a message which can be communicated instantly, directly to the person
concerned, orally to ensure faster action but due to organizational policythe message will
be transmitted in a written form through a longer and more time consuming path, with a
possibility of modification of the original message. As a result the intended message may
be lost in the process and work may done differently or delayed unnecessarily.

Rules and Regulations: Rules and regulations are the strict plans of the organization
which must be followed by each person in the organization. Sometimes the rules and
regulation of the organization regarding communication may become a hindrance in
effective flow of communication. The rules concerned with communication may be
regarding the subject matter or following a particular medium. For Example: There may
be a rule in the organization that only if there is a negative comment in the appraisal of an
employee, it will be communicated to that employee, that too through written
communication so that the employee can improve herself for future appraisal. Hence
because of this rule the employee who receives appreciation or positive comments in her
appraisal will not come to know about it. This not a very desirable situation as receiving
praise motivates people and organization because of this rule, loses on this opportunity to
motivate its employees. Also feedback on the appraisal is always more effective through
oral communication especially if the objective is not only to judge but to improve the
performance as well.

Status: All the employees in the organization are divided into different level as per their
authority and responsibility relationship. The formal hierarchy of the level of employees
may become an obstacle in effective communication, especiallywhen the flow of
communication is fromthe bottom level to top level. Secondly, sometimes the top level
employees don’t have credibility in the information supplied by lower level employees.
For example- If a message is sent by a foreman to the manager about the conduct of an
executive there may be an insecurity in the mind of the manager that the information may
have errors. But if the similar message is sent by a senior executive to the manager then
the manager will be more ready to believe the information. Hence the status of an
employee may also put a barrier in the flow of effective communication.

Complexity in Organizational Structure: In an organization, the complexity of

organizational structure is determined on the basis of a number of management levels.
Higher the number of levels, greater will be the complexity in the organizational structure
and effectiveness of the communication depend upon the organization structure. If the
organizational structure is more complex than the quality of the message will be distorted
because the information loses its originality with each transfer of information from one
level to another level.

Organisational Facilities: The availability of organizational facility also affects the

effective flow of communication in the organization. The organizational facilities include
telephone,fax, internet connection,task force, stationary, translator, complaint box, etc. If
these are available in sufficient quantity in the organization, then there will be effective
and smooth flow of information. But if these are not available in sufficient quantity then
the communication will be delayed and become ineffective. So that organizational facility
may also become a barrier in communication process.