Relationship Between Senders and Receivers of Communication - Essay Example

? The relationship between senders and receivers of communication with the focus being on how messages are encoded and decoded Communication refers to the process by which information is passed from one person to another and feedback is received. The process involves a sender and a receiver. The information is passed through media. During the communication process, there are two important issues that have to be covered, the content of the message and context. The content is the symbols or wording of the message while the context is the delivery part of the message. Communication is said to be complete when immediate feedback of the message is received involving matters speech, body language, emotions and gestures. This process involves at least two persons and it starts when one individual intends to pass a message to another person. Communication starts with crafting of images and ideas in the mind of a person who wants to send the message. This can be a feeling, an idea or even a concept. This part of the communication process is in reflection (Guffey et al., 2013). In order to pass this message to another person, the individual intending to pass the message must be able to translate the crafted images into signs that the intended person of the message will be able to interpret and understand. Signs in communication can be words, sounds and sense, and this is the only way the images in the mind can be expressed in the form of meaningful ideas and passed on to another person. This process is referred to as encoding. Upon encoding the message, it is expected to be transmitted to the person intended, and that is the recipient (Lehman et al., 2011). Transmission of the message can be done in various ways, for example, orally, and this may include one-on-one verbal interaction and use of telephone. The message can also be transmitted through non-verbal means, and this can be done through short messages services, newspapers and letters. Another form of medium includes visual media; finally, the process in which the recipient translates the symbols or wording into such information that he or she can understand is called decoding. Diagrammatic representation of communication process Medium Medium From the diagram above, we can see the process involved in communication right from its initial stage until it reaches the intended audience, i.e. the receiver. The letter X represents encoder while the letter Y represents decoder. This model represents communication process from the person sending to the person receiving it (Barker, 2010). The relation between Encoder-decoder At this time, the message is interpreted as having a nonfigurative reality which encoding shapes into an actual form that can be conveyed. Decoding has the capacity to reinstate it to its inventive nonfigurative meaning. The two terms, encoding and decoding, mean that text is made up of a number of codes resulting from another text (Wood, 2003).  To deliver a message effectively, the sender and the receiver need to take care of: Maintenance of eye contact to increase message flow and interest in the information; it shows utmost attention and increases the likelihood that feedback will be received in the communication process. It also gives the urge to continue with the communication interaction in a bid to pass information consequently with the right encoding and decoding. Facial expressions, for example, in smiling, while conversing would mean an acceptance of the message by the receiver and vice versa if the recipient has, for instance, a sad face. Gestures should be part and parcel of communication; for example, if the sender is throwing her or his hand with a message like “Go away!” this should indicate a situation in which the recipient is not needed in that particular place. Proximity, i.e. reasonable distance between the sender and the recipient as regards the channel used. Body language and/or posture, for example, leaning towards the sender, gives a connotation that the recipient is attentive while a case where one seems to be absent-minded would suggest that the recipients are not interested in the message. Vocals, including intonation of the voice, pitch etc. The right blend of these aspects in voice would yield an effective communication while the contrary would have adverse effects as far as the right encoding and decoding of the message or information is concerned. Structures of communication and their effect on communication success In business, the conveyance of information or message depends on the company and ranges from one firm to another, whether internally or externally; for example, information flow in small firms varies from that of multinational corporations, but the most important is always the information flow from the sender to the receiver. Regardless of the structure, information passed from one person to another goes through some channel, lateral or horizontal. The lateral way is a way where there is information flow in the department or among departments with employees of the same cadre. Horizontally, it would mean a flow of information from a higher level of organisation to a lower level. Business structure plays a crucial role in the channels of communication that it has undertaken to develop. The different types of structures include: Entrepreneurial It is most common in small businesses, for example, micro finance institutions. Communication is made between management and individual employees making feedback easy to get because the decision making organ readily conveys the same for responsible employees. Independent It is subtle and is a product of one person’s activity. It has no recognised standards of communication. It is most typical of specialists like doctors and lawyers who have their own entities. This type of communication is more fragmented. It is almost exclusive to independent professionals. Matrix It is usually employed in large companies based on crowd work inside the departments in a way that each department is given a task, and it is the department’s responsibility to accomplish the same. It tends to be broken down too only if the departments do not communicate with one another within the same department; communication is very effective with every individual informed or who is supposed to be knowledgeable of the work at hand and the completion thereof. Pyramid Done by multinational corporations, a pyramid structure is a type of communication whereby the decisions of the management are passed through a chain of commands top-down while information about the daily operations is passed from the bottom to the top management as deemed necessary. The business communication context The context is usually defined by relevant constraints of the situation in which one is communicating and that influence the choice of the channel and the mode of communication like language and language use, variations, etc. The various contexts include: Intrapersonal communication This is where one person is arguing with self, usually psychologically (when addressing self, for example) or is pondering whether to take a given course of action or not. Interpersonal communication Also referred to as a dyad, it is communication between two people. In this case two people may debate on a course of action, for example, whether to tackle a given exam paper or not. It should be noted that unlike in the former, here there could be disparities between their opinions, that is, one person is proposing something, and the other is opposing it (Bhardwaj, 2009). Small group communication context This is a situation where there are more than three but less than twelve individuals taking up an issue, for example, in most juries in courts for that matter; it is usually recognised by the capability of all the people that are involved to contribute to whatever discussions is going on. Unlike interpersonal communication context, it is based on the work or tasks before participants while the former centers a lot on relationships with many members meaning plenty of ideas regarding from different perspectives (Bhardwaj, 2009). Organisational communication context This is a case where an individual would hierarchically interact discussing with his or her seniors, especially those in a far off geographical location, in a bid to get him or her involved in some activities, for example, an employee of Barclays Bank in Finland wishing to reach the Chief Executive Officer of the same institution in the mother company in Europe to establish some foundation (Bhardwaj, 2009). Mass mediated communication context Is a type of communication context whereby one decides to use a release in the press, for instance, through a television network or radio, so that the audience would be out of sight but would manage to receive information from the senders successfully. Public speaking as a context In public speaking, the sender of the message or information will normally have visual contact with the recipients with almost instant feedback, and she or he can interact with them to make changes as she or he deems necessary in accordance with the recipients’ reaction (for example, in promotion of household items or other items like mobile handsets in public). Computer mediated context This is a communication context realised through the use of computer technology (for example, via the use of digital cameras and uploading of the same message online using (YouTube) where sales, that is, modern day sales of software like the Windows operating systems are made through such sites as eBay, Amazon among many others (Bhardwaj, 2009). Intercultural communication context This is a context in which a sender undertakes interaction with a certain community, researching on the various cultures concentrating on the cultural background of the recipients as she or he moves along. The context by which the recipients (members of the community) receive such message is intercultural communication context, i.e. communication between various cultures (Rizvi, 2005). Organisational communication context This is a context where there is a command chain to be followed, for example, the management passing some message or information down to his or her employees (in the need to communicate an implementation on some factor or vice versa, etc.). This is communication in an organisational context. Noise and communication Noise tampers with communication in that it alters the message and thereby distorts the intended message that is being sent to the recipient from the receiver. Briefly put, noise affects effective communication, and the conversation cannot be interpreted. The media of communication maybe television radio or even print media. If there is noise in this channel, communication is not very effective. In transmission (for instance, in a session or, rather, in a television series) through a satellite dish or a cable box, a channel may be interfered with by noise, and that the receiver may misinterpret the message if not miss it at all (Collins, 2009). Noise may either be internal or external. External noise would be produced by such components as machines, vehicles, trains, etc., while internal would, for example, be the mood or the attitude of either the sender or the receiver towards some issue or a third person. The attitude or mood could either be positive or negative. When the sender and/or the recipient are in a bad mood, they are likely to give a negative connotation to whatever message is passed while in a good mood, a positive interpretation is likely to be attached to the message, even if it is negative more prominently in transactions that involve money. Different types of noise in relation to origin Psychological noise is a situation whereby the mechanisms of one, that is, either the sender or the receiver, if you include the aspect of feedback, restrict his or her understanding or expression. A good example would be a case where there is a linguistic barrier (one’s poor vocabulary) or where the recipients are being defensive in matters that require the employment of their self-perceptions. Physical noise is an obvious distraction existing in the environment of communication hindering the passage and interpretation of information, for example, the attempt to communicate at a bus terminal or railway station where the noise is distorting the message either with the sender, through the media, or if there is a distortion on the recipient’s side . It is also true for situations in which the recipient is not in a position to access his or her email due to environmental distractions (Guffey et al., 2010). Physiological noise is a distraction caused by famine, exhaustion, medication, etc., affecting how either the sender or the recipient thinks. For example, one suffering from an ear defect might not be able to get with exact clarity what the sender intends to convey. The higher the number of those involved in the communication process, the more likely there will be errors due to the presence of noise. References Barker, A. (2010). Improve your communication skills. London: KoganPage. Bhardwaj, K. (2009). Professional communication. New Delhi: I.K. International Pub. House. Collins, S. (2009). Effective communication: A workbook for social care workers. London: Jessica Kingsley. Guffey, M. E., & Loewy, D. (2010). Business communication: Process and product. Mason, OH: South-Western/Cengage Learning. Guffey, M. E., & Loewy, D. (2013). Essentials of business communication. Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning. Lehman, C. M., & DuFrene, D. D. (2011). Business communication. Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning. Rizvi, M. A. (2005). Effective technical communication. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill. Wood, J.T. (2010). Interpersonal Communication: Everyday Encounters, 6th ed. Wadsworth. Read More