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McGraw-Hill/Irwin

Chapter 5

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Interpersonal Communication

© 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved

Introduction

 Most employees spend 75 percent of each workday communicating  75 percent of what we hear we hear incorrectly  75 percent of what we hear accurately we forget within three weeks  70 percent of all business communication fails to achieve the intended purposes

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The

communication process

consists of a

sender

who encodes a message and transmits it through a channel to a

receiver

who decodes it and may give feedback.

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The Communication Process

Step 1: Encodes message and selects transmission channel Step 3: Decodes message and decides if feedback is needed Step 2: Transmits message through a channel 5 - 5 Step 4: Feedback – response or new message may be transmitted Exhibit 5.1

Barriers to Communication

 Perception  Information overload  Channel selection  Noise  Trust and credibility  Not listening  Emotions  Filtering  Gender  Culture

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How Barriers Affect The Communication Process

Message Barriers Barriers Response 5 - 7

Steps in the Communication Process (1 of 3)

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

Step 1.

The sender encodes the message and selects the transmission channel 

Encoding

message into a form that the receiver will understand – the sender’s process of putting the  Perception communication barriers  Information overload communication barriers  Transmission channels  Oral  Nonverbal  Written  Channel selection barriers

Steps in the Communication Process (2 of 3)

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

Step 2.

The sender transmits the message  Noise communication barriers 

Step 3.

The receiver decodes the message and decides if feedback is needed 

Decoding

– the receiver’s process of translating the message into a meaningful form  Trust and credibility communication barriers  Not listening barrier to communication  Emotional barriers to communication

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Steps in the Communication Process (3 of 3) 

Step 4.

Feedback – a response or a new message may be transmitted  Filtering communication barriers  Gender style barrier to communication

Gender Conversation Differences  Research shows the men and women converse for different reasons  Gender style becomes a barrier to communication between the sexes  Women tend to:  talk to create connections and develop relationships  Men tend to:  talk about status and independence

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Barriers to Cross-Cultural Communication:

5 - 12 1. Cultural Context 2. Social Convention 3. Language 4. Etiquette and Politeness 5. Nonverbal Communication

High- versus Low-Context Cultures

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High-Context

Chinese Korean Vietnamese Arab Greek Spanish Italian English North American Scandinavian Swiss German

Low-Context

Cultural Context:

High-Context Cultures

 Rely heavily on nonverbal communication  Rely on subtle situational cues during the communication process  What is not said is often more important than what is actually said  Important factors in communication:  official status  place in society  reputation

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Cultural Context:

Low-Context Cultures

 Rely heavily on the actual words used  Nonverbal communications and subtle situational cues are not as important as what is actually said  Status, place, and reputation are given secondary importance to the actual words

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High- versus Low-Context Culture Communication Importance

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X

Low Context Culture

Focus on nonverbal communications and subtle cues Focus on actual spoken and written work Credibility and trust are important The need to develop relationships Position, age, seniority Use of precisely written legal contracts Direct get down to business conversation Managers tell employees (give orders) what to do X X X X X X X

Social Conventions

 Language, Etiquette, and Politeness  Even when speaking the same language, words mean different things, and the same thing may be called by different names  Nonverbal Communication  Consists of messages we send without using words

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Guidelines to Overcome Global Barriers to Communications:  Believe there are differences until similarity is proven  Delay judgment of peoples’ behavior until you are sure you are being culturally sensitive  Put yourself in the receiver’s position  When in doubt, ask  Follow the other person’s lead and watch his or her behavior

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Sending Messages

 To transmit messages effectively, managers must state exactly:  what they want  how they want it done  when they want it done  Before you send a message,  you should carefully select the channel  plan how you will send the message

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Goals of Communication

Influence Inform Express Feelings 5 - 20

Planning the Message



What

is the goal of the message?



Who

should receive the message?



How

will you encode the message so that it will be understood?



When

will the message be transmitted?

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The Message-Sending Process Model 

Step 1.

Develop rapport 

Step 2.

State the communication objective 

Step 3.

Transmit the message 

Step 4.

Check understanding 

Step 5.

Get a commitment and follow up

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Receiving Messages

 Communication does not take place unless the message is received with mutual understanding  The message cannot be received accurately unless the receiver listens 

Empathic listening –

the ability to understand and relate to another’s situation and feelings

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Levels of Listening

3. Projective

The receiver listens without evaluation to the full message, attempting to understand the sender’s viewpoint.

2. Evaluation

The receiver listens carefully until hearing something that is not accepted. Listening ends and the response to the incomplete message is developed.

1. Marginal

The receiver does not listen carefully. The message is not heard or understood with mutual agreement

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Active Projective Listening Tips (1 of 2)

5 - 25 Listening Analyzing

1. Pay attention 2. Avoid distractions 3. Stay tuned in 4. Do not assume and interrupt 5. Watch for nonverbal cues 6. Ask questions 7. Take notes 8. Convey meaning 9. Think 10. Evaluate after listening 11. Evaluate facts presented

Active Projective Listening Tips (2 of 2)

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12. Paraphrase first 13. Watch for nonverbal cues

Feedback

 Process of

verifying messages

 Forms of feedback include:  questioning  paraphrasing  allowing comments and suggestions  Feedback when giving and receiving messages facilitates job performance

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360-Degree Feedback

 Performance feedback method: 

downward

from the supervisor 

laterally

from peers or coworkers 

upwards

from subordinates 

inwardly

from the person getting the feedback  Customers and suppliers can also provide feedback on different aspects of performance

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Common Approach of Getting Feedback  To send the entire message  Followed by asking “Do you have any questions?”  Feedback usually does not follow because people have a tendency not to ask questions because:  They feel ignorant  They are ignorant  Receivers are reluctant to point out the sender’s ignorance

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How to Get Feedback on Messages

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 Be open to feedback  Be aware of nonverbal communication  Ask questions  Paraphrasing

 Advising  Diverting  Probing  Reassuring  Reflecting

Response Styles

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Response Styles:

Advising



Advising responses

provide evaluation, personal opinion, direction, or instructions  Employees often come to the manager for advice on how to do something or for the manager to make a decision 

Appropriate use of advising responses:

 Giving advice is appropriate when you are directly asked for it

Response Styles:

Diverting

 Often called

changing the subject



Diverting responses

switch the focus of the communication to a message of the receiver  The receiver becomes the sender of a different message 

Appropriate use of diverting responses:

 When using the autocratic supervisory style  Helpful when used to share personal experiences of feelings that are similar to those of the sender

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Response Styles:

Probing

 A

probing response

asks the sender to give more information about some aspect of the message  Useful to get a better understanding of the situation 

Appropriate use of probing responses:

 During the early stages of the message to ensure understanding

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Response Styles:

Reassuring

 A

reassuring response

is given to reduce the intensity of the emotions associated with the message 

Appropriate use of reassuring responses:

 When the other person lacks confidence  Encouraging responses can help employees develop

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Response Styles:

Reflecting

 The

reflecting response

paraphrases the message back to the sender to convey understanding and acceptance  Used by the empathic projective listener 

Appropriate use of reflecting responses:

 The empathic responder deals with content, feelings, and the underlying meaning being expressed in the message

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