Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Foundations of Communication

Outline
I.

II.

Defining communication.
A.
Communication is a process of interacting through symbol systems to create and
share meanings.
B.
As a process, communication is ongoing and dynamic.
1.
The ongoing nature of communication appears when we try to separate
when communication starts and stops.
2.
The dynamic quality of communication deals with how it can change.
C.
The parts of the communication process are interdependent.
D.
Since communication involves interaction, it places some obligations on all
participants.
E.
Communication operates by means of symbol systems.
1.
A symbol is a representation of something else.
2.
Symbols are systematic because their signification is governed by custom,
not by personal whim.
F.
Communication operates on two levels of meaning: informational and relational.
1.
The informational meaning of communication consists of the literal
content.
2.
The relational meaning is how communicators define their connections
with each other.
The why care? of communication.
A.
Career and personal benefits.
1.
You must learn to read, write, listen, and speak well in order to become a
competent citizen and worker.
2.
National Association of Colleges and Employers has found eight of the
top ten rated most important job-related skills are communication-based.
3.
People who have positive relationships with their physicians tend to
experience better health.
B.
Cultural benefits.
1.
Culture is how a group defines itself and preserves its identity through
time.
2.
Cultures tend to be identifiable through practices and beliefs that they
value and maintain.
3.
The United States includes substantial racial, religious, and other kinds of
cultural diversity.
4.
Studying and practicing effective communication are essential for
functioning in a multicultural environment.
a)
Modern technologies (including transportation and electronic
communication) make intercultural interactions more likely.
b)
Jobs are more likely to involve international contacts.
5.
Communication plays a critically important role in bridging the
differences between ourselves and people we may encounter throughout
life.

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6.

III.

IV.

Multicultural societies require a culture of respect and negotiation between

different traditions.
7.
Communication skills also enhanced the ability to share ones own
background.
C.
Benefits to society: communication can do more than advance your self-interests.
1.
Those who are able to communicate well can become advocates for
justice.
2.
Democracy is effective only when citizens participate.
D.
Relationship benefits.
1.
Communication establishes, nurtures, and ruptures relationships. More
than any other factor, communication plays the decisive role in whether
people will get along together.
2.
The same basic communication skills are needed in all types of
relationships, so we can improve romantic, workplace, student-teacher,
and family, and other interactions by understanding and practicing
effective communication.
3.
Communication is the single most important factor in friendship and
romance.
Realms of communication.
A.
Intrapersonal communication, the internal dialogue you have with yourself,
affects how you present yourself and relate to others.
B.
Interpersonal communication consists of all the conversational and relational
interactions among friends, family members, co-workers, and anyone else we
might associate with.
C.
Group communication, often called small group communication in research,
covers the interactions that occur between people who gather together for a
predetermined purpose.
1.
Groups can convene for many reasons, such as solving problems,
providing emotional support to members, sharing members interests or
backgrounds, or to accomplish tasks too large for one person.
2.
Managers can spend at least 17 hours per week in group meetings and six
hours preparing for the group meetings.
D.
Interviewing.
1.
We usually associate interviewing with the job search process, but
interviews actually encompass a wide range of activities.
2.
Although usually conducted in one-on-one pairs known as dyads,
interviews can occur in groups.
E.
In public speaking, a single speaker addresses an audience.
1.
Audience members can number from a handful to, with the help of
broadcast media, millions of people at once.
2.
Roles of speaker and audience are usually clearly separated, with the
speaker responsible for most or almost all of the oral delivery.
Models of communication.
A.
Linear model: treats communication as messages sent from a speaker to a listener.
a)
Advantage: simple focus on a single discrete message.

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b)

V.

Disadvantage: speaker has total control, determining everything

about the communication event.
B.
Interactive model: treats communication as a turn-taking activity.
1.
Speaking and listening are distinct; you either speak or listen, but you
cannot do both at the same time.
2.
The interactive model does account for feedback, defined as the listeners
reaction and response.
3.
This models fails to connect speaker with audience; everyone tries to do
what they think is right and hopes for the best.
4.
Example: classroom lecture.
C.
Transactional model: communication becomes a shared venture between speakers
and listeners.
1.
Participants work together to move toward understanding.
2.
The results of communication are negotiated between speakers and
listeners in their mutual adaptations.
3.
Both communicators, speakers and audiences, constantly send and receive
messages simultaneously.
a)
Live example: interactive class discussion.
b)
Electronic example: online chats.
Components of communication.
A.
Interference consists of anything that hinders or reduces effective communication.
1.
Five types of interference:
a)
Internal interference consists of any conditions or perceptions that
are within the communicators themselves.
b)
External interference includes anything about the environment that
might disrupt the flow of communication.
c)
Physical interference covers any physiological challenges
(internal) or concrete conditions in the environment (external) that
can impede communication.
d)
Psychological interference encompasses perceptions or
preconceptions that could threaten successful communication.
e)
Social-cultural interference involves a combination of internal and
external factors that arise from the different backgrounds of
communicators or mismatches between the communication and the
audiences expectations.
2.
Two ways of reducing interference.
a)
Prevention: anticipating and resolving interference before the
interference occurs.
b)
Reduction: reducing the impact of interference.
B.
Message deals with the substance, or what is transmitted during communication.
1.
Message is not meaning.
2.
Intentional messages include whatever a communicator wants to convey.
3.
Unintentional messages consist of all the information a communicator
conveys without realizing it.
4.
Interference can arise in the message.
a)
Too many messages can impede communication.
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(1)

C.

D.

E.

Information overload: the volume of messages outpaces the

ability to process them.
(2)
Message competition: the difficulty in sorting incoming
messages because they become harder to distinguish from
each other.
(a)
High priority messages much be distinguished from
lower priority ones.
(b)
Example: cell phone talking/texting or driving
shows a problem in prioritizing messages.
b)
To deal with message interference may require gatekeeping.
(1)
Gatekeeping describes a method filtering information,
making it more usable to communicators.
(2)
Gatekeeping effectiveness depends on filtering out as many
undesired messages as possible without losing important
information.
Channel describes how communication is sent and received.
1.
Channel is often called the medium.
2.
The channel is more affected by technology than any other component.
3.
Interactions can vary based on the medium (example: students who are
quiet in traditional classrooms may become full participants in online
classrooms).
4.
Interference can arise in the channel.
a)
Communicators can select the wrong medium for the message.
b)
Online media may make deception easy and invite hasty,
sometimes offensive, communication.
Source encompasses where the communication originates.
1.
A source can be anyone or anything generating information that someone
can interpret.
2.
Sources can be:
a)
Individual sources (e.g., specific people).
b)
Collective sources (e.g., corporate or government entities).
c)
Objects (e.g., monuments or clothing).
d)
Anonymous.
3.
Sources can create interference.
a)
Credibility of a source (especially an anonymous one) may be
questionable.
b)
People may have immediate, uncritical reactions to a source simply
because of the sources prestige, rank, or status.
Receiver designates the audience, whoever gets the message and can interpret it.
1.
Receivers can be unintended.
2.
Virtual audiences include people who are not physically present but still
receive messages.
3.
Interference can arise with receivers.
a)
Receivers create the meanings of messages.
b)
Carefully gather accurate information about how your receivers
culture and context shape what they consider appropriate.
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F.

VI.

Encoding converts private ideas and feelings into a public symbol system (words,
objects, or behaviors) others can access.
1.
Strong emotions are sometimes difficult to encode.
2.
Encoding is vital because encoding is the only way private thoughts and
feelings can become public.
3.
Interference can arise in encoding.
a)
Insufficient access to public symbols (e.g., limited vocabulary or
lack of cultural knowledge) can restrict encoding.
b)
People assume everyone encodes exactly like they do.
G.
Decoding refers to the process of interpretation that occurs on the receivers side
of communication.
1.
Decoding ascribes meanings to messages.
2.
Receivers are trying to reconstruct encoded messages into meaningful
information.
3.
Because everyone perceives reality according to their own experiences,
mismatches between encoding and decoding will occur.
H.
Feedback covers all responses to communication.
1.
Sources and receivers constantly exchange feedback.
2.
The only way a communicator can determine how well the communication
is going is through feedback.
3.
To prevent interference, feedback should be:
a)
Prompt.
b)
Clearly expressed.
c)
Specific.
d)
Improved by seeking feedback from others.
I.
Communication context is all the factors surrounding communication that could
influence it.
1.
Context includes the overall setting of interaction, including the audience,
time of day, cultural background, and spatial environment.
2.
Three types of communication contexts:
a)
Physical: objects, environmental conditions, space, and time.
b)
Psychological: attitudes and beliefs about the communicator,
audience, or topic.
c)
Social-cultural: expectations based on customs and heritage.
3.
To reduce interference in the communication context, consider:
a)
What are the basic expectations for this type of communication in
these circumstances?
b)
What do my listeners expect to get from our interaction?
c)
What similarities and differences between myself and my listeners
should I consider?
Correcting confusion about communication.
A.
Meanings are in people, not in words or symbols.
1.
Meanings are created, not found.
2.
Meaning is the outcome of the communication components working
together.

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3.

VII.

Because symbols stand for something else, they do not have meanings in
themselves.
4.
Communication is about the transmission of messages, not the transfer of
meaning from one persons mind into another.
5.
People often develop inaccurate beliefs as a result of prejudgment.
a)
Prejudgment occurs when receivers reach conclusions about
communicators or communication based on assumptions instead of
evidence.
b)
Prejudgments are problematic because they lack sufficient grounds
for reaching conclusions.
B.
Communication concerns quality, not quantity.
1.
Communication by itself does not solve all problems.
2.
More communication is not always better; it can hurt some situations.
3.
The best communicator knows when to stop talking or when not to speak
at all.
C.
Communication is inevitable, irreversible, and unrepeatable.
1.
You cannot not communicate.
a)
When alone, people engage in intrapersonal communication.
b)
When around other people, clothes, tone of voice, gestures,
grooming, and posture are also types of messages.
2.
One cannot take back communication that has occurred.
D.
Good communication is a learned skill, not an innate ability.
Communication and values.
A.
Communication ethics deals with how values guide actions.
1.
The justifications for actions must be subject to discussion and debate.
2.
Communication ethics usually applies when a clear right or wrong
decision does not exist.
B.
The National Communication Associations Credo for Ethical Communication
furnishes a solid starting point for formulating the core components of ethical
principles, which include:
1.
Truth and reason.
2.
Freedom of expression and tolerance of dissent.
3.
Respecting others.
4.
Access to communication opportunities.
5.
Caring and mutual understanding.
6.
Opposition to degradation and violence.
7.
Courageous expression.
8.
Sharing information and perspectives.
9.
Accepting responsibility for our own communication.
C.
How does effective communication relate to ethical communication?
1.
The most effective communication may not be the most ethical.
2.
Sometimes morally upright communication reaps little reward.
D.
How to foster responsible communication.
1.
Communication is a neutral tool that can be used for good or evil.
2.
Stakeholders are the people who might be affected by communication.
3.
When making ethical decisions about communication, one will need to:
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a)
b)

Identify the stakeholders.

Prioritize the stakeholders needs and interests that need to be
considered.

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