Communication Through Verbal

and Non-verbal Messages

Reina R. Miranda, Ph. D
 Verbal and Non-verbal Communication

Verbal communication
-spoken or written words to communicate a message.
Non-verbal communication
the use of body language, gestures, facial
expressions, movements, and even posture to communicate.
-sets the tone of a conversation
-can seriously undermine the message in your
words
 Verbal Communication
Language Variety and Register
Language
- a set of arbitrary symbols which create possible
combination of utterances primarily used for communication.

Language Register
- the level and style of spoken and written discourse
depending on the context you are in
 Types of Language Register
1. Formal – used in a professional context
- highly structured, impersonal, and more serious in its tone,
vocabulary, and grammar
-common in the workplace, academe, business, trade, and
other industries
2. Informal – casual, personal, and more intimate in its tone,
sentence structure, and choice of words
- appropriate when communicating with people you know
very well
- used during informal gatherings such as family dinners,
parties, and other informal encounters
 Types of Language Register
3. Neutral – more factual and non-
emotional type
- mostly used in highly-business
oriented and technical contexts
 Categories of Non-verbal Communication

1. Kinesics
2. Paralanguage
3. Proxemics
4. Chronemics
Verderber et al. (2015)
 Categories of Non-verbal Communication

1. Kinesics : Use of body

-technical name for interpretation that
comes along with motion when someone
communicates
- includes gestures, movements,
posture, eye contact, facial expression,
and touch
 Categories of Non-verbal Communication

2. Paralanguage: Use of Voice

- it should have intelligibility, variety, and
understandable patterns
Intelligibility- loudness of your voice, rate of your speech,
pronunciation, and enunciation
Variety – pitch, force, and pauses
Stress – emphasis put on certain syllable or word/s
 Categories of Non-verbal Communication
3. Proxemics : Use of Space
technical term used to study how space and
distance communicate (Hall, 1968)
Types of Proxemics
1. Personal space – the distance one consciously
maintains when interacting with others
2. Territorial space – physical space which implies your
sense of authority and ownership
3. Acoustic space – area where the voice of the speaker
is heard or not
 Categories of Non-verbal Communication

4. Chronemics : Use of Time

- how people perceive and value time
Monochronic culture – “time is of the
essence”
Polychronic culture – “luxury of time”
 Collaborative Task
1. Research on various cultural and intercultural modes of
communication (e.g., greetings, bidding goodbyes, words/
gestures used in particular region or country to show
respect. Compare and contrast these with the Filipino
culture.
2. Research on the use of politically correct words or
euphemestic expressions in today’s society. For instance, as
much as possible, the phrase “passed away” is used instead
of “died’ and “mentally challenge” instead of “retarded.” List
down euphemistic expressions and identify whether or not
the use of such expressions is specific to a certain culture.