Listening

Definition

Why do we listen

Types of listening

The process of Listening

Barriers to Listening

How to improve on our Listening Skills

Listening Defined

Is a deliberate effort to pay attention

Listening attentively to yourself and others
Hearing and understanding
Responding purposefully and accurately
Listening is an open commitment to engage actively in the
world and thought of the person or people to whom you are
listening and a corresponding commitment on the part of the
other person or people to enter into yours. It does not presume
agreement or disagreement; it presumes a striving for empathy

Listening Vs Hearing

Listening" is active. "Hearing" is passive.

"Listening," therefore, is an act of will.
"Hearing" can simply happen without desire or
intention or interest or preference. Listening"
means you tune in specifically for something.
"Hearing" means you're listening in part to
avoid hearing something - namely anything
other than what constitutes a passive listening
experience (e.g., commercials, clutter, chitchat, etc.)

Listening Vs Hearing Cont....

Listening" is emotional. "Hearing" is

passionless.
"Hearing" means never getting beyond the
glossy exterior. Listening" means listeners
will seek out programming. "Hearing" means
the programming has to seek out the listener.

Active Vs Passive Listening

Passive listening is mechanical and

effortless. You hear what your teacher says
and you might be able to tell the difference
between major and minor points of the
lecture, but that is about it. Lack of
enthusiasm and a "careless" attitude during
class characterize a student who is a passive
listener.

Active Vs Passive Cont....

Active listeners, on the other hand,

concentrate on the content of the lecture and
not on the lecturer or any random distractions
in the room or their mind. They do more than
focus on facts, figures, and ideas and actively
associate the material presented with their
own experiences. The content heard at every
lecture is converted to something useful and
meaningful for the student.

Why we listen

To receive/obtain information

To be able to pass judgment/ make decisions

To be entertained

To show care/concern/empathy

Listening Types

Listening for Information

Listening for enjoyment

Critical listening

Conversational / relationship listening

The Process of Listening

Hearing

Attending

Understanding

Remembering

responding

Barriers to Listening
Introduction
* Average persons spend 70% of waking hours
communicating, 45% of that listening.
* In a ten minute presentation there is 50%
retention, in two days only 25%.
* To improve listening comprehension, one must
overcome barriers arising from: content, speaker,
distractions, mind set, language, listening speed and
feedback.

Barriers continued....
There majorly two categories:

Physical/ external barriers

Internal/ psychological barriers

Improving your listening skills

Understand the complexities of listening

Prepare to listen; it is commitment
Adjust to listening situations
Focus on ideas and key points
Capitalise on speed differential; thought is faster
than speech
Correlate with what you have in mind; pick out what
you should remember