Communication Processes, Principles, and Ethics PDF

**Lesson 3** **Communication Processes, Principles, and Ethics** **Basic principles of communication** 1. **Sender** - The sender of the message is a highly important element being the ***source of the idea.*** - Speaker, a writer, or someone who merely gestures. **Skills required in...

**Lesson 3** **Communication Processes, Principles, and Ethics** **Basic principles of communication** 1. **Sender** - The sender of the message is a highly important element being the ***source of the idea.*** - Speaker, a writer, or someone who merely gestures. **Skills required in transmitting messages:** - Ability to use the language that the receiver understands. - Along with using the appropriate language is the application of linguist features such as correct grammar, phonetics (for spoken messages); choice of words or jargons for an appropriate audience; sentence construction; and discourse competence. 2. **Delivery** This is an equally important skill that a sender should be able to exhibit properly. In oral communication this could include: - good voice projection - use of appropriate eye contact - proper articulation of words - emphasis on important words. - appropriate intonation 3. **Receiver** - Is the listener, reader, or observer to whom a message is directed. - must have good listening and comprehension skills. ***Good listening*** requires one to focus on what is conveyed and as much as possible eliminate all possible distractions or noises (physical, environmental,psychological, emotional) that would hinder one from understanding the message. On the other hand ***good comprehension skills*** necessitate sharpness of cognition, which can achieve through continuous studies and acquisition of information and knowledge. 4. **Message** For massages to be accurately understood and positively received,the **C\'s in communication** maybe followed: - **Courtesy.** Another word for politeness. Usage of polite words and tones means ones respect the receiver of the message. - **Clarity.** This may involve correct word usage, grammar, pronunciation,sentence construction and delivery. Messages which are unclear often times do not achieve their desire effect. - **Conciseness.** Saying what needs to be said in as few words as possible. - **Concreteness.** This refers to being specific. To demonstrate concreteness, providing examples whenever necessary makes a message more comprehensible. - **Completeness.** To avoid ambiguity, message should not leave out of important details that a receiver expects to know. 5. **The importance of feedback** - Messages in communication will always have an effect on the receiver. There are messages that trigger positive reactions and at times negative depending on the kind of message relayed, how it is communicated and how it is interpreted. - It is therefore important to know the feedback of our audience/s **(Listener/reader)** in order to make the necessary clarifications and revisions of our messages. 6. **Channels** - It is ***medium*** through which a message is transmitted to its intended audience. - It refers to the way this information flows within the organization. - Smart phones, tablets, computers, traditional telephone, radio, television, and printed texts (books, newspapers, magazines, journals, posters, etc.) - The choice of channel may depend on the availability, practicality, and its impact on the receiver. 7. **Barriers and Noise** - Experts assert that noise or barriers in communication maybe due to environmental, physical, psychological and emotional conditions. - Differences in language, gender and culture can also be barrier in communication. **Ethics of Communication** - Communication ethics emphasizes that ***morals influence the behavior of an individual, group, or organization thereby affecting their communication.*** - Ethics comes from the word **ethos**, which means ***"custom, habit, character or outlook."*** - Ethics in communication can take a universal approach, which can be displayed in several ways including but not limited to the following: **1. Adhering to the golden rule or platinum rule.** - ***the golden rule-*** always treat others in the same way you want to be treated - ***platinum rule*** according to Bennett- treating others the way they wish to be treated. **2. Considering the feeling of the receiver.** To be ethical in communicating with others, it will be best to maintain tact and diplomacy in our communications. **3. Acknowledging the source of idea & information.** Sources of ideas and information should be acknowledged appropriately at all times. **4. Speaking the truth.** this is a universal rule. **Lesson 4** **Forms of Communication** **Communication Modes** - Refers to the channel through which one express his/her communicative intent. - It is a medium through which one conveys his/her thoughts. - Views or feelings can be communicated through face to face interaction, video, or audio. The mode may also be text-based. **Types of Communication Modes** 1. **Face -- to -- face interaction** - It is the most common of all these mode - An informal or casual conversation between two or more people. - Used to establish relationships or maintain them. - One way of gaining new acquaintances or friends. **Advantage of face -- to face** - Directly hearing the message being conveyed. - Able to note visual cues through facial expressions, gestures, movements, or even objects or realia from person/s you are communicating with. **How then do you initiate conversations?** Faced with a group of new people who you do not know in a social gathering, you should be able to begin a conversation. Dau Voire suggests: *"Be brave enough to start a conversation that matters"*. This simply means that even if the people surrounding you in a social gathering are strangers to you you need to be confident enough to meet new faces and initiate an interesting conversation. **What kind of topics matter to strangers you are meeting at the same time?** - Do not dwell on topics that ate never ending in nature. Ex. Politics and religion **(Sensitive issue**) - Focus on what you experience at the moment. Ex. Ambiance, atmosphere of the wedding reception, music, food, relationship to the bride or groom. **Remember...** - Initiate a topic - Topic maintenance - Topic change or shift - Topic closure 2. **Video** - Convenient communication mode for people who want to reach out to each other despite distance. - Web cameras are used so that two or more people who cannot interact face -- to face can communicate. Apps that can be used for video calls are Viber, Whatsapp, Apple Facetime, Facebook Messenger and Skype. Video conferencing is used in formal setting. **Disadvantage of Video** - Technical glitches - Time zone difference between countries **3. Audio** Audio means a transmitted sound. In this mode of communication only the voice of the speaker is heard. **Examples:** Telephone or answering machine Voice message or voice mail **Disadvantage of audio** - Not being able to see the body language or cues of the person you are talking to. - If you are listening to people with different accents **4. Text -- based Communication** - Such as E- mails, text messaging and instant messaging. Social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram likewise offer text-based interaction. - It has a wider reach and can disseminate information to a bigger audience quickly although it does not provide audio and video benefits.