Chapter 6
Overcoming Obstacles to
Communication in the Electronic Age
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Chapter 6 Objectives
• Identify specific ways technology has changed the
way we communicate
• Define the terms situational anxiety and trait anxiety
• Describe obstacles to communication
• Define the term sexual harassment
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Communication Technology
• Technology is changing so rapidly it is easy to feel
overwhelmed
– Internet is catalyst for most of these changes
• It is how and when people now use the Internet
– Blogs
– Email
– Social media
– Twitter.com
– Instant messaging
– Smart phone
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
E-mail
• There are some advantages to using e-mail in an
organization
– Fast retrieval of information
– Social uses such as hobbies and recreational
activities
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
E-mail
• Social use of e-mail had following advantages:
– Employees learned to use system more rapidly
– Social contacts often became valuable in later
work tasks
– Quality of work life improved for some employees
– Creativity was enhanced
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
E-mail
• Number of disadvantages to using e-mail:
– Messages not private and may live as long as “five
years in someone’s backup file or memory bank”
• According to Electronic Communications
Privacy Act, legal to view of disclose personal
electronic communication if “ready accessible”
to public
– Because e-mail usually brief and informal,
senders often do not give them same care they
would give to letter or memo
– “Tone” of an e-mail may cause anger
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Blogs
• Use of personal blogs growing rapidly
• The number of company blogs will continue to grow
– Allow company to develop relationships with
blogosphere
• E-commerce growing
• Blogs are better than one-way communication
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Blogs
• Be aware of power of technology
– Blog swarm
– Don’t think blog goes no further than family and
friends
• Many reported cases of employee firings
because of blog content
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Instant Messages (IM)
• There are advantages to using instant messages in
an organization
– Increased access to and faster retrieval of
information
– Avoiding playing phone tag
– Communicating with several people at same time
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Instant Messages (IM)
• There are disadvantages of using IM
– Expectation of instantaneous reply
– Errors due to casual and short messages
– Vulnerability to viruses
– Loss of confidentiality
– Lack of records kept for later use
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Facebook and Twitter
• Being used as communication tools by organizations
for marketing and relationship-building
• Changed the way people search for jobs and send
resumes
• Changed way companies search for potential job
applicants
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Electronic Meetings
• Electronic meetings are important communication
avenues
– Study of telecommuters found many “felt sense
of loss akin to grief at job loss”
• Not only do telecommuters need information,
they also need involvement to feel more a part
of company
– Encourage face-to-face or electronic
meetings
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Electronic Meetings
• Videoconferencing used by multiple-location companies
to communicate with employees
– Characteristics of videoconferencing when compared
with face-to-face meetings:
• Discussants show less emotion and experience less
conflicts
• Participation is more organized and orderly
• Decision-making quality is generally equal to faceto-face groups
• Participation is more equal
• Discussants find videoconferencing less satisfying
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Communicator Anxiety
• Can be an obstacle to effective communication in
work environment
– Technology age playing conflicting role in
communication anxiety
• When online people feel less anxiety about
sharing personal information
• So much online communicating is giving
people less practice communicating face-toface
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Communicator Anxiety
• The higher a supervisor’s anxiety, the less potentially
important information employees receive
• People who experience high level of communication
anxiety are at a disadvantage when compared with
more talkative, outgoing employees
• Hearing-impaired people experience
communication anxiety
• Not all cultures express same levels of
communicator anxiety
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Communicator Anxiety
• There are two types of communication anxiety
– Situational anxiety/state anxiety
• Caused by factors in specific situation
– Trait anxiety
• Internal anxiety individual brings to speaking
situation
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Situational Anxiety
• Feeling nervous prior to new communication situation is
normal
– Our body’s nervous system prepares us for action
with shot of adrenaline
• We should be grateful for this boost from our
nervous system
– People who view increase as normal
excitement necessary for dynamic job of
communicating find their anxiety becomes
manageable
– Poor communicators who view physical
reactions with fear often find anxiety becomes
worse
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Situational Anxiety
• The following advice will help you stay in control
during situational anxiety:
– Prepare and practice
– Warm up
– Use deep breathing
– Use an introduction that will relax you
– Concentrate on communicating your meaning
– Use visual aids
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Trait Anxiety
• Fewer people experience trait anxiety, known as
communication apprehension
– Trait anxiety is both learned and inborn
• If anxiety is learned, may:
– Feel that you are different from and less
effective than most other speakers
– Have history of negative speaking
experiences
– Consider yourself inferior to others
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Trait Anxiety
• Trait anxiety may be inborn trait for some people
– Communibiology
• Some feel biology is only one of several factors
causing anxiety and anxious individuals can
learn to control their anxiety
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Trait Anxiety
• There are many techniques used to manage trait
anxiety
– Most of them require professional assistance
• Positive imagery
– Visualization
» To become confident speakers, we must
think of ourselves as confident
• Courses or workshops
• Relaxation with deep breathing
• Cognitive restructuring self-talk
• Skills training
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Trait Anxiety
• The widest possible combination of methods is
often most effective in reducing communication
apprehension
– When using positive imagery also add at least one
of other methods for reducing anxiety
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Vague Instructions
• Giving and receiving instructions is weakness in
many organizations
– With so many different technologies to use,
communicating skill in giving instructions even
more important
– Many of us give vague instructions, easily
misunderstood due to lack of preparation
– In some cases, we give confusing instructions
even when we prepare instructions ahead of time
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Vague Instructions
• Principles for giving instructions:
– Rule 1: Begin with an overall picture
– Rule 2: Use a minimum number of words
– Rule 3: Use simple, easily understood words
– Rule 4: Be specific
– Rule 5: Use simple comparisons
– Rule 6: Use repetition
– Rule 7: Number or “signpost” objects or steps
– Rule 8: Use good delivery techniques
– Rule 9: End with a summary
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Jumping to Conclusions
• When we fail to distinguish between what we
observed firsthand and what we only inferred or
assumed, inference-observation confusion has
occurred
– With short messages sent by text messaging and
social media, jumping to conclusions happens
fairly often
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Jumping to Conclusions
• We all make assumptions
– It is possible your job requires you to make a
certain number of inferences or assumptions
• In such cases, you are aware that you are
making an inference
– Problems more likely to arise when people are
unaware they have made any inferences
• Communication breakdown is likely to occur
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Bypassing
• Bypassing happens when we assume a word has
same meaning for other people that it does for us
– Managers and employees often have different
meanings for same words
– Cultural differences also cause bypassing
problems
– Another way bypassing happens is when people
have different words for same meaning
• To prevent bypassing, managers and employees
should ask for feedback from one another to
determine what each really means
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Sexual Harassment
• In technology age, sexual harassment has moved
online as well
• Definition of sexual harassment includes two basic
concepts:
– Quid pro quo
• Something for something
– Hostile work environment
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Sexual Harassment
• Since Civil Rights Act of 1964, has been unlawful in
United States to discriminate in hiring on basis of
sex
• In 1980, sexual harassment became violation of Title
VII of Civil Rights Act
• In 1991, an amendment to Title VII entitled
employees to monetary damages
• In 1998, U.S. Supreme Court ruled same-sex
harassment also governed by Title VII
• In 2000, educational institutions became liable for
sexual harassment of students
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Sexual Harassment
• Sexual harassment can occur in many
circumstances:
– Victim, as well as harasser may be a man or a
woman
– The harasser can be victim’s supervisor, an agent
of employer, a supervisor in another area, a
coworker, or a nonemployee
– Victim does not have to be the person harassed
– Unlawful sexual harassment may occur without
economic injury to or discharge of victim
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Sexual Harassment
• Harassment judged by its effects on recipient, not by
intentions of harasser
– Courts use reasonable person rule
• There has been a gender problem in applying
this rule to sexual harassment
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Sexual Harassment and E-mail
• E-mail harassment
– Organizations need to prepare themselves for
potential problems by developing strong policies
and procedures regarding use of e-mail and the
Internet, as well as dealing with sexual
harassment
• It is responsibility of employer to provide safe
workplace, free of sexual harassment
– Having procedures in place isn’t always
enough
Communicating for Results, 10th edition
Sexual Harassment – E-mail and
Online
• If you become aware of sexual harassment or you
believe you are a victim:
– Review organization’s policies on harassment
– Project a friendly but professional image of a
person who won’t put up with harassment
– Confront your harasser in an assertive manner
– Document incidents of harassment
– Report the incident to an immediate supervisor or
human resources department
– Weigh consequences of further action
Communicating for Results, 10th edition