In more detail
Communication means moving meaning from one place to another. Humans do it in all sorts of ways - with words (spoken and heard or written and read); pictures and signs; charts and maps; behaviours and body language. We increasingly use machines to do it. And the feelings we share range from distress to encouragement; outrage to hope.
Regardless of how we do it, and what we do it for, communication is always two way process. Even getting no 'feedback', is feedback...
Simple Communications Theory
The simplest model of communciations is based on: a sender; a message; and a receiver. In this model, communication consists of a message being sent from sender to receiver. If a message is loud, clear and in a form the receiver can understand, then communication is more likely to be successful.
Building in Feedback
We know that communications always works two ways, however. Even as the message is being sent one way, other messages (interest or dis-interest, for example) are sent in the other direction. Understanding feedback (which might include, for example, providing channels for it and times during meetings etc specifically for it to be expressed) is, therefore, an important part of communication. In particular, people are used to conversations - which are forms of communication with a high degree of to-ing and fro-ing.
Choose Channels
Not all ways of expressing a message are equally likely to succeed. Just as we can make feedback easier to understand by providing some appropriate channels for it (a feedback sheet for example), so we can improve communication of the message by choosing the right channels (plural) to use. Channels are the media you use to express your message in. Channels, here, is plural, because it is not always that everyone gets the best impression of the meaning in a message through the same channel. You may need to think about using several channels to get your meaning across; other times you should focus on one channel.
Overcoming Noise
Then there is noise - the message that is received is not always the same as we sent. ‘Noise’ distorts the signals we use. It can be:
- physical –we sometimes literally cannot hear what is being said to us. All forms of communication degrade over time: leaflets get lost; the acoustics in community halls can let us down; websites crash; mobile phones ring to distract us: and maps get rained on.
- semantic – we understand different things by the same symbols and words. The fact that the same words or expressions mean different things to different people can distort communication.
- psychological – what we think - in terms of ‘reputations’, stereotypes, biases, assumptions and prejudices - can get in the way of, and distort communication.
- physiological - people can be distracted by other, more important messages. If you're hungry or tired, you probably aren't on peak form at a long evening meeting; fatigue and boredom at being consulted - yet again - tend to make us not listen. Likewise, worry (eg about a threat to their safety or security) and stress distort what information we can take in.
Improve communication by taking steps to reduce noise.
Reducing 'Entropy' and the effort to understand
Entropy means 'disorder'. In communications theory it is a measure of how much effort it takes to understand a message. Some messages are hard to understand and some make sense straight away. Entropy in communciations is to do with using familiar patterns of expression and putting it in appropriate formats. Key factors include: contrast (make the key message stand out), order (put things in an order which mirrors the argument you want to make), alignment ('line up' ideas so it easy to see that order) and repetition (say what you're going to say, say it and then tell people you've said it).
Use contrast, proximity, alignment and repetition to make it easy for people to understand the meaning in your message.
Interpretation
Your message, however honestly expressed, can only be an interpretation of what needs to be said; your view of what needs to be done. Similarly, the people who receive your message will interpret it and transform it into action in their own way. In terms of the sender-message-receiver model, a message neither starts with being sent, nor ends with being received.
Effective communication allows people to see the source of a message - to understand 'where it comes from'; and suggests its destination - that is. what the receiver might do with it.
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You can improve communication by:
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BIRMINGHAM COMMUNITY PLANNING TOOLKIT DEFINITION SHEET This sheet may be reproduced in paper or electromic or any other form but please mention it was made by Chamberlain Forum Limited for Birmingham City Council supported by Department for Communities and Local Government.
| created: 2016-07-12 15:30:20 | by: admin | status: f published |