1

COMM110- Purposive Communication

COMM110- Purposive Communication
Objectives:

At the end of this modules, you are expected to:

• explain communication process and principles;

• identify different levels of communication;
• apply principles and ethics of communication.

NATURE OF THE COMMUNICATION PROCESS

As we all know, human communication is vital for survival and it is one thing in life that
we cannot avoid to do.

Communication is:
✓ comes from the Latin word ‘communis’, which means ‘common’. To be common means
“to
come together” or “to commune”- “to share something in common”.

✓ is the process of exchanging ideas, thoughts, feelings and emotions from one person to
another

✓ with the use of symbols which may be verbal and/or non-verbal and aims for
understanding.

Black and Bryant (1922) define communication as:

✓ the process by which individuals share meaning.

✓ the process by which an individual (the communicator) transmits stimuli (usually verbal
symbols) to modify the behavior of other individuals (communicatee).

COMM110- Purposive Communication

 ✓ occurring whenever the information is passed from one place to another. Not simply the
verbal, explicit, and intentional transmission of message; it includes all those processes
by which people influence one another.

What then is PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION?

Purposive communication

• is an intentional communication that happens within the bounds of specific

contexts.
• is a communication applied in specific setting, environment, scene, social
relations and culture.

Contexts affects the process of sending and receiving of messages; semantics or

meanings, choice of channels, words and methods of delivery.

COMMUNICATION AS A PROCESS AND ITS FOUR ATTRIBUTES

COMM110- Purposive Communication

ELEMENTS OF HUMAN COMMUNICATION

Berlo’s Model of Communication (1961)

1. Source

• refers to a person or a group of persons “with a purpose, a reason for engaging in

communication” (Berlo, 1961).
• The source initiates the communication process.
• Also referred to as the encoder, sender, information, source or communicator.

2. Receiver

• refers to the person or group of persons at the other end of the communication process.
• He or she is the target of the communication (Berlo, 1961).
• The receiver listens when the source talks; the receiver reads what the source writes.

3. Message

• A source must have something to transmit.

• His or her purpose is expressed in the form of a message.
• The message may be an idea, purpose or intention that has been translated into a code
or a systematic set of symbols (Berlo, 1961).

COMM110- Purposive Communication

 A message has three factors:

1. Message code – any group of symbols that can be structured in a way that is
meaningful to some person. Thus, language (sounds, letter and words) is a code
because it contains elements that are arranged in meaningful orders.

2. Message content – is the material in the message selected by the source to

express his/her purpose. Ex: research report (included writers’ assertion’s,
information presented, conclusions drawn.

3. Message treatment – decisions that the communication source makes in

selecting and arranging both code and content. Ex: A journalist writes an article
(what information to include, the angle of the story, the words he will use.)

4. Channel

• modes of encoding and decoding the messages (e.g. speaking)

• message vehicles (sound waves)
• vehicle carriers (air)
• determined by: availability, money, source preferences, which channels are received by
most people at the lower cost, which channels have the most impact; which channels
are adaptable to the purpose of the source; which channels are most adaptable to the
content of the message.

5. Effect

• The outcome of a communication or the response of the receiver to the message of the
source.
• Sometimes it adheres to the desired outcome of the source, sometimes the effect is not
the desired outcome.

• Overt Effect – obvious or visible; responses include non-verbal cues (nodding of

head,
signing of a contract).
• Covert Effect – non-observable but sometimes they are the most important.

COMM110- Purposive Communication

6. Feedback

• When an individual communicates with himself, the messages he encodes are fed back
into his system by his decoder (Berlo, 1960).
• A communication response is feedback to both source and receiver.
• Feedback could take form of non-verbal or verbal cues.
LEVELS OF COMMUNICATION

1. Intrapersonal Communication

✓ communication with oneself.

2. Interpersonal Communication

✓ often defined as face-to-face communication

✓ person-to-person communication – communication between one person, a group,
or a room full of people at one time but still on a person-to person basis.

3. Mass Communication

✓ A communication that employs technological devices (radio, television, films) to

disseminate symbolic content to large, heterogeneous, and widely dispersed
audiences (Janowitz, 1968 and McQuail, 1981).
✓ Communicating with large group of people at one time through the use of social
media.

COMM110- Purposive Communication

MODELS OF COMMUNICATION

\
1. Laswell’s Model

• Harold D. Laswell, an American political scientist.

• Limitations: omits the elements of feedback; the model took for granted that the
communication is mainly a persuasive process. No feedback

2. Shannon and Weavers “Mathematical” Model

• Claude Shannon and Warren Weaver were engineers working for Bell Telephone
Company.
• the model answered the questions

• one-way linear model

• introduced the element of noise – in technical aspect, noise is anything that disrupts
the transmission of a signal; in human communication context, noise is anything that
disrupts the smooth flow of communication.

COMM110- Purposive Communication

3. Newcomb’s Model

• Introduces the role of communication in a society or social relationship.

• Communication maintains equilibrium within a social system

• If A and B have similar attitudes about X, then the system is in

equilibrium. Should their attitudes differ, then there is no
equilibrium and A and B must communicate to find a way to put
their system in balance.

4. Osgood and Schramm’s Model

• Wilbur Schramm and Charles Osgood

• Compares their model to Shannon and Weaver’s
(focus on channel)
• Schramm and Osgood model focuses on the actors
in the communication to be equal in performing
the tasks of encoding, interpreting, and decoding
messages.

5. Dance’s Helical Model

• Portrays the communication process as moving.

• Shows the dynamism of the communication process
• May be used to illustrate information gaps and the thesis
that knowledge tends to create
• more knowledge.

COMM110- Purposive Communication

FORMS OF COMMUNICATION

Verbal communication

• is the transmission of ideas, opinions, feeling emotion or attitude through the use
of oral language.

• Examples of verbal communication are meetings, letters, reports, emails, notes,

memos, group discussions, interviews, counseling, face-to-face conversations,
telephone calls, radio, etc.

Non-verbal communication

• Refers to the sending of messages to another person utilizing method or means other
than spoken language. These methods include the following:

a. Visual

1. Posture is the position and movement of the body. The way we stand or carry
ourselves speaks so much of our personality

2. Gestures and Body Movements. When a student raise his hand in a lecture class,
he may want to recite, ask a question or make a request.

3. Facial expression. It is the arrangement of facial muscles to communicate

emotional states or reactions to messages.

4. Eye Movements. It is said that “the eyes are the windows of the soul.” Our eyes
can communicate love, hatred, anger, joy, fear or any other type of emotion. Eye
movement can be a form of feedback and therefore play an important role in the
communication process.

5. Proxemics. According to Edward T. Hall, proxemics stands for the way people
communicate by their use of space in relation to other people.

COMM110- Purposive Communication

 6. Geographic Location. The position of the interactants during a communication
event shows the kind of relationship existing between the speaker and listener.

7. Time. A person’s observation of time reveals a lot his personality. Punctuality

and tardiness talk louder than physical characteristics.

8. Artifacts. These refers to things or objects we put on our body, in our homes or
in our personal possessions. The clothes we wear, the jewelry we put on, the
material objects we stores in our bags, the decorations we buy for our hoes and
places of work speak so much of ourselves.

9. Physical characteristics. The color of one’s skin, the size and shape of one’s body
or the color of one’s hair conveys a message.

b. Auditory

1. Silence. There is a saying that “silence speaks louder than words.” A person’s
silence may mean approval or disapproval, acceptance or non-acceptance,
understanding or lack of it.

2. Paralanguage. This is the technical name given to the non-verbal features in

speech such as intonation, pitch, louden, and intensity.

3. Tactile. This refers to communication through touch, a method of conveying

feelings without the use of words.

4. Olfactory. This form of communication refers to smell. The cologne or perfume

we wear can tell the kind of person we are to whoever e come in contact with in
different situations.

5. Gustatory. This refers to communication though taste. The choices we make in

terms of the food and drink we take for our everyday nourishment indicate the
type of individual we are or want to become.

COMM110- Purposive Communication

COMM110- Purposive Communication
7C’S OF COMMUNICATION

1. Clear

There are several stages to clarity.

Firstly, it’s important to be clear about the purpose of the message you’re delivering. The
recipient should be made aware of why they are receiving the message and what you’re trying
to achieve by delivering it. If there are multiple goals, each should be laid out separately.

Secondly, it’s essential that the content of the communication is itself clear. You should avoid
jargon, use simple language, use simple structures and focus on the core points of your
message.

COMM110- Purposive Communication

2. Correct

It’s essential that both the factual information and the language and grammar you use are
correct. If your audience spots errors in either, they will be distracted and your credibility will
be greatly reduced. This will reduce the effectiveness of your communication.

Some communications simply must be correct, clear and concise.

3. Complete

Completeness is often one of the most important of the 7 Cs of communication.

When creating a message, it’s important to give the recipient all of the information they need
to follow your line of reasoning and to reach the same conclusions you have. This level of detail
will be different in different situations, and you should adjust your communications accordingly.

In addition, you should make things as easy as possible for the recipient. For example, if you are
issuing a “call to action”, provide explicit guidance on that action. Increasingly it’s common to
include things like hyperlinks in written communications or to attach FAQs, both of which help
audiences access a complete set of information while also ensuring that core communications
focus on core messages.

4. Concrete

When shaping your communication you must ensure that you are specific and that the logic
and messages that you’re using fit together, build on each other and support each other. Your
arguments should be based on solid facts and opinions from credible sources and you should
share irrefutable data to support your argument.

It may be important to help bring the solid nature of what you’ve created to life for your
audience through examples that show the relevance of your messages for them as individuals.

5. Concise

When communicating messages of this nature it’s important to stick to the point and keep your
messages short and simple. Don’t use 10 words if you can use five. Don’t repeat your messages.

The more you say, the more risk there is of confusion. Avoid that risk by focusing solely on the
key points you need to deliver.

COMM110- Purposive Communication

6. Courteous

People are not always courteous.

You can increase the effectiveness of your communications by being polite and showing your
audience that you respect them. Your messages should be friendly, professional, considerate,
respectful, open and honest.

To help ensure you are courteous, you should always use some empathy and consider your
messages from the point of view of the audience.

7. Coherent

The last of the 7 Cs of communication is coherence. If your communications are not coherent
they will not be effective. To help make sure your communications are coherent you should
have a logical flow and your style, tone and language should be consistent throughout.

In addition to making sure that each communication you issue is coherent within itself, you
should also ensure consistency of message when delivering multiple communications.

ETHICS OF COMMUNICATION

Ethics

• A system of moral principles

• Deals with the value relating to human conduct, with respect to the rightness and
wrongness of actions and to the goodness and badness of motives and ends of such
action.

Communication Ethics

• The principle governing the communication, the right and wrong aspects of it, the
moral-immoral dimensions relevant to Interpersonal Communication are called the
ethics of Interpersonal communication.
• Maintaining the correct balance between speaking and listening.
• Degree of critism and praise

COMM110- Purposive Communication

Fundamentals of Ethical Communication

• Responsible thinking
• Decision making
• Development of communication and communities

Principles of Ethical Communication

1. Advocate truthfulness, accuracy, honesty, and reason as essential to the integrity of

communication.
2. Endorse freedom of expression, diversity of perspective, and tolerance of dissent to
achieve the informed and responsible decision making fundamental to a civil society.
3. Strive to understand and respect other communicators before evaluating and
responding to their messages.
4. Promote access to communication resources and opportunities as necessary to fulfill
human potential and contribute to the well-being of families, communities, and society.
5. Promote communication climates of caring and mutual understanding that respect the
unique needs and characteristics of individual communicators.
6. Condemn communication that degrades individuals and humanity through distortion,
intimidation, coercion, and violence, and through the expression of intolerance and
hatred.
7. Committed to the courageous expression of personal convictions in pursuit of fairness
and justice.
8. Advocate sharing information, opinions, and feelings when facing significant choices
while also respecting privacy and confidentiality.
9. Accept responsibility for the short- and long-term consequences of our own
communication and expect the same of others.

COMM110- Purposive Communication

MODULE 1 INSIGHT

Congratulations for finishing Module 1! Let’s assess your learnings base on the objectives of
this module. Write your take-aways from this module (maximum of 1 paragraph). (Grading
rubric:
50% Reflective, 25% Coherence, 25% Conciseness)

COMM110- Purposive Communication

ACTIVITY/WORKSHEET 1: ESSAY

Direction: (Grading rubric: 50% Reflective, 25% Coherence, 25% Conciseness)

1. Write an essay on “how the pandemic changes our way of communication.”

2. Minimum of 2 paragraphs and maximum of 5 paragraphs.
3. You can write it in this module or in google classroom.

COMM110- Purposive Communication

COMM110- Purposive Communication