TOPIC 1:

INTRODUCTION TO
COMMUNICATION
What is Communication?
INTRODUCTION TO COMMUNICATION

Communication is at the heart of our everyday

lives. From the moment we wake in the
morning to the moment we drift off to sleep,
we are constantly in the process of
communication (Beck, A. et al. 2002)

Communication can be any or all of the

following: an action on others; an interaction
with others and a reaction to others (McQuail
& Windahl 1993)

She dumped him video

Advantages of learning communication

1. Studying communication can improve

the way you see yourself
2. Studying communication can improve
the way others see you
3. Studying communication and engaging
in effective communication behaviors can
improve your relationships with others
4. Studying communication can teach you
important life skills
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 Advantages of learning
communication

5. Studyingcommunication can help you feel

confident in voicing and advocating your
opinions and create space to give voice to
others
6. Studying
communication can help you
succeed professionally
7. Studyingcommunication can help you
navigate an increasingly diverse world
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 How do we communicate?

 Humans communicate by thinking

of the information they wish to
share, encoding it, and transferring
it by either verbal, nonverbal or
written mediums directly to a
receiver who then decodes the
information.
TYPES OF COMMUNICATION

• Intrapersonal communication
• Interpersonal communication
• Mediated interpersonal communication
• Small Group communication
• Organizational communication
• Public communication

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INTRAPERSONAL COMMUNICATION

• An individual “talking” to himself or

herself
• Dreaming? Contemplating? Reflecting?
Thinking?

• Seinfeld video

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INTERPERSONAL
COMMUNICATION
 involves two or three individuals
signaling to each other using their
voice, facial, and hand gestures, and
other signs (even clothes) that they
use to convey meaning.

 Interpersonal video
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MEDIATED INTERPERSONAL
COMMUNICATION

• specialized type of
interpersonal
communication
that is assisted by
a device, such a
computer, or a
telephone.

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Small group communication

• Communication among three or more

individuals
• Purpose is to achieve shared goals

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 Organizational communication

• interactions of individuals in a formal

working environment.

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Public communication

• One person who speaks to a large

number of people

• Marc video

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PRINCIPLES OF COMMUNICATION

1. Dynamic process
2. Symbolic
3. Systemic
4. Involves making inferences
5. Self-reflective
6. Has a consequence
7. Complex

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 DYNAMIC PROCESS
 Ongoing
 Transitory
 Brings change

 Good people video

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 SYMBOLIC

 Humans are symbol-making creatures

 Humans are able to generate, receive,
store, and manipulate symbols
 symbols we use are discretionary and
subjective

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SYSTEMATIC

• Setting
• Location
• Occasion
• Time
• Number of people
• Cultural setting

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 MAKING INFERENCES

• No direct mind-to-mind contact between

people
• You make inferences from a single word,
from silence, from long speeches, from
simple head nods, and from glances in our
direction or away from us
• What we know and feel remain inside of us
unless we communicate

• Rabbit and bear video

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 SELF-REFLECTIVE

• The idea that human beings think

about themselves, and reflect on their
past, present
• We can watch, evaluate, and alter our
“performance” as a communicator at
the very instant we are engaged in the
act

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 HAS A CONSEQUENCE
• All of our messages affect someone
else through respond to the sounds
and actions of others
• The response you make to someone’s
messages does not have to be
immediate

• Social learning video

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COMPLEX

• Culture?
• Gestures?
• Irony?

 10 ways to offend video

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Summary

• We cannot NOT communicate

• We communicate in many ways
• We use different types of communication
• Understanding the principles of
Communication is vital to become a
competent communicator

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