AEX 201. Communication skills and Personality Development ( 1 +1)
Theory
Communication
The term 'communication' stems from the Latin word 'communis'-meaning 'common'. In
other terms, "to share" or "to make common". That derivation provides one half of the English
meaning of communication. The other half of the meaning of communication has to do with
information and meaning. These are related, but not identical, concepts. Communication, then, is
a conscious attempt to share information, ideas, attitudes and the like with others.
Meaning
In essence it is the act of getting a sender and a receiver tuned together for a particular
message, or a series of message. "Communication means the movement of knowledge to people
in such ways that they act on that knowledge to achieve some useful result.
Communication is a process by which two or more people exchange ideas, opinions,
facts, feelings or expressions in a way that each gain a common understanding of the message
being communicated.
Good communication does not consist merely of giving orders, but of creating
understanding. It does not consist merely of imparting knowledge, but of helping people gain a
clear view of the meaning of knowledge. Most of the progress in the future will stem from better
technology and greater skill in communicating it to others.
Too many people saying the wrong things at the wrong time, in the wrong way, to the
wrong people, slows down progress. What is needed is more people saying the right things at the
right time, in the right way, to the right people. This is the formula for good communication.
Mass Communications Founding Father, Wilbur Schramm is considered the father of
Communication studies. His ground breaking work laid the foundation for our modern study in
the field.
,Definition
Communication is the process by which two or more people exchange ideas, facts,
feelings or impressions in ways that each gains a common understanding of the meaning, intent
and use of messages.
- Leagans (1961)
Communication is the process by which messages are transferred from a source to receiver.
- Rogers and Shomaker (1971)
Communication as the process of sending and receiving messages through channels which
establishes common meanings between a source and a receiver
- Van den Ban and Hawkins (1988)
Basic purpose of communication is Creation of Meaning
Meaning
Meaning exists in the mind of the people, but not in the words. In fact, communication
vehicles (viz. words, symbols signs) don’t have meaning in/of themselves, but people have
meaning for them. Moreover, MEANINGS aren’t TRANSMITTABLE in nature
Types of meaning
1. Conceptual meaning (logical / cognitive / denotative meaning)
Conceptual meaning otherwise called as logical, cognitive or denotative meaning. It
is widely assumed to be the central factor in linguistic communication.
Conceptual meaning is also called as primary meaning, that is the meaning suggested by
the word when it used alone. It is the first meaning or usage which a word will suggest to most
people when the word is said in isolation. It is the meaning learned early in life and likely to have
reference to a physical situation
It refers to the dictionary meaning which indicates the concepts. In reading we can find
many different words have the same conceptual meanings. Take the word walk as an example,
the conceptual meaning or the primary dictionary meaning is to move forward by placing one
foot in front of the other. There are also a few other words that, according to the dictionary, mean
to move forward on foot, etc.
2. Connotative meaning (what is communicated by virtue of what language refers to)
It refers to the associations that are connected to a certain word or the emotional suggestions
,related to that word. The connotative meanings of a word exist together with the denotative
meanings. The connotations for the word snake could include evil or danger.
3. Social meaning (what is communicated of the social circumstances of language use)
It refers to the usage of language in and by society which has big proportions in determining the
meaning that certain speaker has to use and wants to convey, those factors include social class of
the speaker and hearer and the degree of formality. Only part of the social meaning of a
conversation is carried by words. Take saying hello or talking about the weather. Often such talk
has little dictionary meaning. It is a way of being friendly or polite.
4. Affective meaning (what is communicated of the feeling and attitudes of the speaker/writer)
It refers to the speaker’s feeling / attitude towards the content or the ongoing context. It is
important to remember that each individual will have a different affective meaning for a word.
As such, only the person using a word will be aware of the particular affective meaning that they
hold with the word.
For example, In order to get people attention to be quiet, we might say either (1)”I’m
terribly sorry to interrupt, but I wonder if you would be so kind as to lower your voice as a
little” or (2) “Will you belt up”.
5. Reflected meaning
(what is communicated through association with another sense of the same expression)
It refers to terms which have more than one meaning surfaces at the same time, so there is a kind
of ambiguity. It is as if one or more unintended meanings were inevitably thrown back rather like
light or sound reflected on a surface.
6. Collective meaning (what is communicated through association with words which tend to
occur in the environment of another word)
It refers to the associations a word acquires on account of the meanings of words
which tend to occur in its environment. In other words, it is that part of the word-meaning
suggested by the words that go before or come after a word in question, for instance, heavy news
(a piece of sad news), heavy schedule (a very tight schedule), fast color (the color that does not
fade); fast friend (a reliable friend), etc.
7. Thematic meaning
Communicated by the way in which the speaker or writer organizes the message, in terms
of ordering, focus and emphasis.
, It relates to or constitutes a topic of discourse, the meaning that the word conveys is that
of something that is connected with the theme of something. Types 2-6 are also categorized as
associative meaning.
Importance of Communication
1. The Basis of Co-ordination
The manager explains to the employees the organizational goals, modes of their achievement and
also the interpersonal relationships amongst them. This provides coordination between various
employees and also departments. Thus, communications act as a basis for coordination in the
organization.
2. Fluent Working
A manager coordinates the human and physical elements of an organization to run it smoothly
and efficiently. This coordination is not possible without proper communication.
3. The Basis of Decision Making
Proper communication provides information to the manager that is useful for decision making.
No decisions could be taken in the absence of information. Thus, communication is the basis for
taking the right decisions.
4. Increases Managerial Efficiency / Leadership
The manager conveys the targets and issues instructions and allocates jobs to the subordinates.
All of these aspects involve communication. Thus, communication is essential for the quick and
effective performance of the managers and the entire organization.
5. Increases Cooperation and Organizational Peace
The two-way communication process promotes co-operation and mutual understanding amongst
the workers and also between them and the management. This leads to less friction and thus
leads to industrial peace in the factory and efficient operations.
6. Boosts Morale of the Employees
Good communication helps the workers to adjust to the physical and social aspect of work. It
also improves good human relations in the industry. An efficient system of communication
enables the management to motivate, influence and satisfy the subordinates which in turn boosts
their morale and keeps them motivated.
Theory
Communication
The term 'communication' stems from the Latin word 'communis'-meaning 'common'. In
other terms, "to share" or "to make common". That derivation provides one half of the English
meaning of communication. The other half of the meaning of communication has to do with
information and meaning. These are related, but not identical, concepts. Communication, then, is
a conscious attempt to share information, ideas, attitudes and the like with others.
Meaning
In essence it is the act of getting a sender and a receiver tuned together for a particular
message, or a series of message. "Communication means the movement of knowledge to people
in such ways that they act on that knowledge to achieve some useful result.
Communication is a process by which two or more people exchange ideas, opinions,
facts, feelings or expressions in a way that each gain a common understanding of the message
being communicated.
Good communication does not consist merely of giving orders, but of creating
understanding. It does not consist merely of imparting knowledge, but of helping people gain a
clear view of the meaning of knowledge. Most of the progress in the future will stem from better
technology and greater skill in communicating it to others.
Too many people saying the wrong things at the wrong time, in the wrong way, to the
wrong people, slows down progress. What is needed is more people saying the right things at the
right time, in the right way, to the right people. This is the formula for good communication.
Mass Communications Founding Father, Wilbur Schramm is considered the father of
Communication studies. His ground breaking work laid the foundation for our modern study in
the field.
,Definition
Communication is the process by which two or more people exchange ideas, facts,
feelings or impressions in ways that each gains a common understanding of the meaning, intent
and use of messages.
- Leagans (1961)
Communication is the process by which messages are transferred from a source to receiver.
- Rogers and Shomaker (1971)
Communication as the process of sending and receiving messages through channels which
establishes common meanings between a source and a receiver
- Van den Ban and Hawkins (1988)
Basic purpose of communication is Creation of Meaning
Meaning
Meaning exists in the mind of the people, but not in the words. In fact, communication
vehicles (viz. words, symbols signs) don’t have meaning in/of themselves, but people have
meaning for them. Moreover, MEANINGS aren’t TRANSMITTABLE in nature
Types of meaning
1. Conceptual meaning (logical / cognitive / denotative meaning)
Conceptual meaning otherwise called as logical, cognitive or denotative meaning. It
is widely assumed to be the central factor in linguistic communication.
Conceptual meaning is also called as primary meaning, that is the meaning suggested by
the word when it used alone. It is the first meaning or usage which a word will suggest to most
people when the word is said in isolation. It is the meaning learned early in life and likely to have
reference to a physical situation
It refers to the dictionary meaning which indicates the concepts. In reading we can find
many different words have the same conceptual meanings. Take the word walk as an example,
the conceptual meaning or the primary dictionary meaning is to move forward by placing one
foot in front of the other. There are also a few other words that, according to the dictionary, mean
to move forward on foot, etc.
2. Connotative meaning (what is communicated by virtue of what language refers to)
It refers to the associations that are connected to a certain word or the emotional suggestions
,related to that word. The connotative meanings of a word exist together with the denotative
meanings. The connotations for the word snake could include evil or danger.
3. Social meaning (what is communicated of the social circumstances of language use)
It refers to the usage of language in and by society which has big proportions in determining the
meaning that certain speaker has to use and wants to convey, those factors include social class of
the speaker and hearer and the degree of formality. Only part of the social meaning of a
conversation is carried by words. Take saying hello or talking about the weather. Often such talk
has little dictionary meaning. It is a way of being friendly or polite.
4. Affective meaning (what is communicated of the feeling and attitudes of the speaker/writer)
It refers to the speaker’s feeling / attitude towards the content or the ongoing context. It is
important to remember that each individual will have a different affective meaning for a word.
As such, only the person using a word will be aware of the particular affective meaning that they
hold with the word.
For example, In order to get people attention to be quiet, we might say either (1)”I’m
terribly sorry to interrupt, but I wonder if you would be so kind as to lower your voice as a
little” or (2) “Will you belt up”.
5. Reflected meaning
(what is communicated through association with another sense of the same expression)
It refers to terms which have more than one meaning surfaces at the same time, so there is a kind
of ambiguity. It is as if one or more unintended meanings were inevitably thrown back rather like
light or sound reflected on a surface.
6. Collective meaning (what is communicated through association with words which tend to
occur in the environment of another word)
It refers to the associations a word acquires on account of the meanings of words
which tend to occur in its environment. In other words, it is that part of the word-meaning
suggested by the words that go before or come after a word in question, for instance, heavy news
(a piece of sad news), heavy schedule (a very tight schedule), fast color (the color that does not
fade); fast friend (a reliable friend), etc.
7. Thematic meaning
Communicated by the way in which the speaker or writer organizes the message, in terms
of ordering, focus and emphasis.
, It relates to or constitutes a topic of discourse, the meaning that the word conveys is that
of something that is connected with the theme of something. Types 2-6 are also categorized as
associative meaning.
Importance of Communication
1. The Basis of Co-ordination
The manager explains to the employees the organizational goals, modes of their achievement and
also the interpersonal relationships amongst them. This provides coordination between various
employees and also departments. Thus, communications act as a basis for coordination in the
organization.
2. Fluent Working
A manager coordinates the human and physical elements of an organization to run it smoothly
and efficiently. This coordination is not possible without proper communication.
3. The Basis of Decision Making
Proper communication provides information to the manager that is useful for decision making.
No decisions could be taken in the absence of information. Thus, communication is the basis for
taking the right decisions.
4. Increases Managerial Efficiency / Leadership
The manager conveys the targets and issues instructions and allocates jobs to the subordinates.
All of these aspects involve communication. Thus, communication is essential for the quick and
effective performance of the managers and the entire organization.
5. Increases Cooperation and Organizational Peace
The two-way communication process promotes co-operation and mutual understanding amongst
the workers and also between them and the management. This leads to less friction and thus
leads to industrial peace in the factory and efficient operations.
6. Boosts Morale of the Employees
Good communication helps the workers to adjust to the physical and social aspect of work. It
also improves good human relations in the industry. An efficient system of communication
enables the management to motivate, influence and satisfy the subordinates which in turn boosts
their morale and keeps them motivated.
