COMMUNICATION

Chapter 16
WHAT IS COMMUNICATION?
 Communication
 The transfer and understanding of meaning
 Transfer means the message was received in a
form that can be interpreted by the receiver.
 Understanding the message is not the same as
the receiver agreeing with the message.
 Interpersonal communication
 Communication between two or more people
 Organizational communication
 All the patterns, network, and systems of
communications within an organization

2
FUNCTIONS OF COMMUNICATION

 Control
 Motivation
 Emotional Expression
 Information

3
EXHIBIT 16-1 THE INTERPERSONAL
COMMUNICATION PROCESS

Message Channel Receiver

Encoding Decoding

Sender Noise Message

Feedback

4
INTERPERSONAL
COMMUNICATION
 Message
 Source: sender’s intended meaning
 Encoding
 The message converted to symbolic form
 Channel
 The medium through which the message travels
 Decoding
 The receiver’s retranslation of the message
 Noise
 Disturbances that interfere with communications

5
FITTING COMMUNICATION WITH
CIRCUMSTANCES
Managers can use 12 questions to help them evaluate
appropriate communication methods for different
circumstances.

1. Feedback. How quickly can the receiver respond to the

message?
2. Complexity capacity. Can the method effectively
process complex messages?
3. Breadth potential. How many different messages can
be transmitted using this method?
4. Confidentiality. Can communicators be reasonably
sure their messages are received only by those for
whom they’re intended?
5. Encoding ease. Can the sender easily and quickly use
this channel?

6
FITTING COMMUNICATION WITH
CIRCUMSTANCES (CONT’D)
6. Decoding ease. Can the receiver easily and quickly
decode messages?
7. Time–space constraint. Do senders and receivers need to
communicate at the same time and in the same space?
8. Cost. How much does it cost to use this method?
9. Interpersonal warmth. How well does this method convey
interpersonal warmth?
10. Formality. Does this method have the needed amount of
formality?
11. Scanability. Does this method allow the message to be
easily browsed or scanned for relevant information?
12. Time of consumption. Does the sender or receiver
exercise the most control over when the message is dealt
with?

7
INTERPERSONAL
COMMUNICATION METHODS
 Face-to-face  Bulletin boards
 Telephone  Audio-/videotapes
 Group meetings  Hot lines
 Formal presentations  E-mail
 Memos  Computer conference
 Postal mail  Voice mail
 Fax  Teleconference
 Publications  Videoconference

8
NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION
 Communication that is transmitted without
words
◦ Sounds
◦ Images
◦ Situational behaviours
◦ Clothing and physical surroundings
 Body language: gestures, facial expressions,
and other body movements that convey
meaning
 Verbal intonation (paralinguistics): emphasis
that a speaker gives to certain words or
phrases that conveys meaning
9
INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION BARRIERS

Filtering
National
Culture Emotions

Language Interpersonal Information

Communication Overload

Defensiveness

10
BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE
INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION
 Filtering
 The
deliberate manipulation of information to
make it appear more favourable to the receiver
 Emotions
 Disregarding
rational and objective thinking
processes and substituting emotional judgments
when interpreting messages
 Information Overload
 Beingconfronted with a quantity of information
that exceeds an individual’s capacity to process
it

11
BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE INTERPERSONAL
COMMUNICATION (CONT’D)
 Defensiveness
 When threatened, reacting in a way that reduces
the ability to achieve mutual understanding
 Language
 The different meanings of and specialized ways
(jargon) in which senders use words can cause
receivers to misinterpret their messages
 National Culture
 Culture
influences the form, formality,
openness, patterns, and use of information in
communications

12
OVERCOMING THE BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE
INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATIONS

 Use Feedback
 Simplify Language
 Listen Actively
 Constrain Emotions
 Watch Nonverbal Cues

13
TYPES OF ORGANIZATIONAL
COMMUNICATION
 Formal Communication
 Communication that follows the official chain of
command or is part of the communication
required to do one’s job
 Informal Communication
 Communication that is not defined by the
organization’s hierarchy
 Permits employees to satisfy their need for social
interaction
 Can improve an organization’s performance by
creating faster and more effective channels of
communication

14
DIRECTION OF COMMUNICATION
FLOW
 Downward
 Communications that flow from managers to
employees to inform, direct, coordinate, and
evaluate employees
 Upward
 Communications that flow from employees up to
managers to keep them aware of employee
needs and how things can be improved to create
a climate of trust and respect

15
DIRECTION OF COMMUNICATION
FLOW (CONT’D)
 Lateral (Horizontal) Communication
 Communication that takes place among
employees on the same level in the organization
to save time and facilitate coordination
 Diagonal Communication
 Communication that cuts across both work areas
and organizational levels in the interest of
efficiency and speed

16
TYPES OF COMMUNICATION
NETWORKS
 Chain Network
 Communication flows according to
the formal chain of command, both
upward and downward
 Wheel Network
 All
communication flows in and out
through the group leader (hub) to
others in the group
 All-Channel Network
 Communication flows freely among
all members of the work team

17
THREE COMMON ORGANIZATIONAL
COMMUNICATION NETWORKS AND HOW THEY RATE
ON EFFECTIVENESS CRITERIA

Chain Wheel All-Channel

Criteria
Speed Moderate Fast Fast
Accuracy High High Moderate
Emergence of leader Moderate High None
Member satisfaction Moderate Low High

18
THE GRAPEVINE
 An informal organizational communication
network that is active in almost every
organization
 Provides a channel for issues not suitable for
formal communication channels
 The impact of information passed along the
grapevine can be countered by open and honest
communication with employees

19
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
 Benefits of Information Technology (IT)
 Increased ability to monitor individual and team
performance
 Better decision making based on more complete
information
 More collaboration and
sharing of information
 Greater accessibility
to co-workers

20
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
(CONT’D)
 Networked Computer Systems
◦ Linking individual computers to create
an organizational network for
communication and information
sharing
 E-mail
 Instant messaging
 Voice-mail and fax
 Electronic data exchange (EDI)
 Teleconferencing and videoconferencing
 Intranets and extranets

21