Effective Interpersonal

Communication
Barriers to Communication

 Filtering
 Emotions
 Information overload
 Defensiveness
 Language
 National Culture
Barriers to Communication

 Filtering

The deliberated manipulation of information to make it

appear more favorable to the receiver.

Example:
when a person tells his or her manager what the manager
wants to hear, information is being filtered.
Barriers to Communication

 Emotions
How a receiver feels when a message is received influences
how he or she interprets it.

 Information Overload
When information exceeds our processing capacity
Barriers to Communication
 Defensiveness
When people feel they being threatened, they tend to react
in ways that hinder effective communication and reduce
their ability to achieve mutual understanding.
 language
Words mean different things to different people. Age,
education and cultural background are three of the more
obvious variables that influence the language a person uses
and the definitions he or she gives to words.
Jargon – specialized terminology or technical language that
members of a group use to communicate among themselves.
Barriers to Communication

 National culture

In general tendency it illustrates how communication

differences can arise from national culture as well as
different languages.

Example, let’s compare countries that value individualism

(such as united states) with countries that emphasize
collectivism (such as Japan).
Overcoming the Barriers

 Use feedback
 Simplify language
 Listen actively
 Constrain emotions
 Watch nonverbal cues
 Don’t interrupt Show empathy

Paraphrase what’s Active

Show interest by
been said listener
making eye contact

Exhibit affirmative
Avoid distracting head nods and
Ask question
actions or gesture appropriate facial
expressions
Thank you for listening