SCIENCE OF HUMAN COMMUNICATION: UNIT- 2
Dr. Jose Murickan O.Praem
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2.1: Communication Process: Communication is a social process like any other
processes such as urbanization, industrialization etc. It is an on going process in which people
engages themselves as individuals or a mass sharing, creating, sending or receiving varieties
of meaning. Therefore, as a process it involves many separate but interrelated steps that occur
over time. For example, when we prepare for and deliver a public presentation, we are not
engaged in a single static act. Instead, it involves a sequence of interrelated activities such as
planning, gathering materials, rehearsal, presentation of the speech and so on. We may even
adjust the speech while giving it, based on the audience’s reaction. It would mean that in
every exchange of communication messages are created, sent, received, interpreted, and
responded to.
Communication can be defined as an on going process in which the actions of sharing,
participating, informing, receiving, and creating take place among the participants. In order to
be at its most effective plane, the process of communication should share an understanding of
the past, use the communication format of the past and be in continuity with the past. If not
the process of communication becomes meaningless in any society. One must recognize that
communication is an ongoing process in which people do not simply create and send
messages to others through a medium, but they need to share the understanding and the
medium before they communicate.
Communication is essential for individuals, relationships, groups, organizations, and
societies. It is communication that links human beings with the rest of the world, our means
of making impressions, expressing ourselves, influencing others, and giving ourselves. It is
through communication that we from relationships of all kinds. In groups, organizations and
societies communication is the means through which we coordinate our own needs and goals
with those of others.
Communication involves responding to and creating messages. It is through the process of
creating and interpreting messages that we interact with our surroundings and one another.
Communication involves adapting to people and the environment. We create and interpret
messages –as individuals and in relationships, groups, organizations and societies –to relate
to the environment and to the people around us. In some cases, the process consists primarily
of adjusting to the circumstances in which we find ourselves.
In short, in every act of communication there are seven basic elements at work. They
are the following.
1). Source: The sender or the originator of the message.
2). Message: It refers to the content or signal that the source sends to a receiver.
3). Receiver: The receiver is the listener or audience that interprets the message and then
sends feed back to the source.
4). Channel: A channel is the sense—eyes, ears, nose, mouth, body—used to send the
message. Each of these can be used independently, and will communicate a message.
However, when more than one sense is used in the process of communication it
becomes more accurate or effective. This is why face to face interaction is more
powerful than a telephone conversation.
5). Context: The context refers to the time, setting and situation in which communication
takes place. You don’t speak the same way to your parents or teachers or boss as you
would do with your best friend.
6). Noise: Anything that hinders or interferes with a message is called noise. There are three
different types of noise. A). Psychological noise: you are distracted or your mind is
somewhere else. B). Physical noise: consists of external distractions that occur when
communication takes place in a noisy restaurant, crowded street etc. C). Semantic
noise: when individuals have different meanings for symbols like when a speaker uses
a word not understood by the listener.
7). Feedback: It refers to the reactions of the listener to the source, may be verbal, non verbal
or both. Feedback includes comments, facial expressions, and body mannerisms.
2.2
MODELS OF COMMUNICATION
A model is a pictorial description of a piece or reality. It shows the main elements of any
structure or process and tends to describe the relationship between them. Models help us to
organize, explain, and predict the outcome of events through their images and
representations. Since communication can be understood in different ways, communication
models too can be explained and studied through a number of ways.
Communication models try to relate the basic elements of the communication process, put
them into a certain order and contribute to a better insight into the structures and the flow of
these processes. The beginnings of the formulations of communication models started in the
late 1940s. ‘Shannon and Weaver’s Mathematical Theory of Communication (1949) is
widely accepted as one of the main seeds out of which Communication Studies have grown.
2.2.1 BERLO’S SMCR MODEL
According to David Berlo, communication can be understood from the perspective of the
relationship between the sender and the receiver. For Berlo, there are 5 verbal communication
skills. Two are encoding skills; speaking and writing. Two are decoding skills; listening and
reading. The fifth is crucial to both encoding and decoding; thought or reasoning. As
encoders, our communication skill level affects our communication fidelity in two ways.
First, it affects our ability to analyse our own purpose and intentions. Secondly, it affects our
ability to say something when we communicate. Our communication skills, our facility for
handling the language code, affect our ability to encode thoughts that we have. We have
certainly experienced at times the frustration of not being able to find the ‘right word’ to
express ourselves. Here we need to remember that finding the ‘right word’ is not simply a
matter of satisfaction. It also has to have approximately the same meaning for the receiver.
According to Berlo, our ability to use language is very much related to our ability for
thinking, and it can also affect the way we see the world and the way we think about it.
Criticism of Berlo’s SMCR Model of Communication:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
No feedback / don’t know about the effect
Does not mention barriers to communication
No room for noise
Complex model
It is a linear model of communication
Needs people to be on same level for communication to occur but not true in real life
Main drawback of the model is that the model omits the usage of sixth sense as a channel
which is actually a gift to the human beings (thinking, understanding, analyzing etc).
2.2.2 LASSWELL’S LINEAR MODEL
Lasswell model is one of the earliest linear models. He was primarily concerned about the
process of mass communication and propaganda that was carried out through mass media.
His model has five major components. He refers to the communicator as a
source/sender/transmitter. This model raises questions such as who says what in which/what
channel to whom and with what effect? The emphasis here is very much on the transmission
and reception of information. This model is also referred as an ‘information model’ of
communication. This is one way by which communication, the message and its effects are
given importance. In other words, Lasswell’s model of communication introduces us to the
question of media effects. People normally do not communicate in vacuum. Instead, we
normally communicate to achieve something. Even when we say just a “hello” to someone
without really thinking about it, we want to have the effect of reassuring them that we are still
friends, we are nice people and so on.
In this model, the media is considered powerful while the audience is seen as ignorant. This
model views communication as a process of sequential transmission of a fixed quantity of
information-message, as determined by the sender or the source. The receiver/audience is
totally passive in this model.
Advantage of Lasswell model:
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It is Easy and Simple
It suits for almost all types of communication
The concept of effect
Disadvantage of Lasswell model:
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Feedback not mentioned
Noise not mentioned
Linear Model
2.2.3 WILBUR SCHRAMM
Wilbur Schramm (1907-1987) is considered one of the key proponents of communication
research in the 20th century for his remarkable contributions to the better understanding of
human communication, communication theory, and interpersonal communication knowledge
as well as paradigm and curriculum development. The uniqueness of his approach to the
study of communication could be found in his ability to bridge both humanistic and scientific
perspectives as few researchers had done before him.
It is interesting to note that originally Schramm was often criticized for taking a “linear”
approach to communication, for he saw the focus on the message as originating from a
“sender” and proceeding more or less intact until the message accomplished the desired effect
upon the “receiver”1. Moreover, this approach was coupled with the view of a passive
1
Schramm was influenced by the Aristotelian principle that communication always requires at least three
elements—source, message and destination. Cf. Keval Kumar (2004), Mass Communication in India, p. 18.
receiver. With time spent in research, Schramm’s own understanding of the nature of
communication grew and it became more evident to him and to his colleagues that the simple
linear projection of communication was not as simple as once thought. He modified the
original interpretation and emphasized communication as “relationship or sharing”.
a).
Schramm’s Concept of Communication as Relationship
Schramm’s understanding of communication is deeply rooted in his notion of society and he
affirms that communication is the tool that makes societies possible. Society, for him, is a
sum of relationships in which information of some kind is shared. From this broad
perspective, one could opine that Schramm has been influenced by Charles Cooley’s
definition of communication. “By Communication is here meant the mechanism through
which human relations exist and develop—all the symbols of the mind, together with the
means of conveying them through space and preserving them in time” (Cooley, 1962: 61).
The more closely one considers this mechanism the more intimate will appear its relation to
the inner life of mankind. Thus, Cooley emphasized the aspect of communication as a process
of human relationship, a tool, a progressive invention, whose improvements reacts upon
mankind and alters the life of every individual and institution (Cooley, 1962: 64). Schramm
develops the concept of communication:
Human communication is something people do. It has no life of its own. There is
no magic about it except what people in the communication relationship put into
it. There is no meaning in a message except what people put into it. When we
study communication, therefore, we study people—relating to one another and to
their groups, organizations, and societies; influencing one another; being
influenced; informing and being informed; teaching and being taught;
entertaining and being entertained. To understand human communication, we
must understand how people relate to one another (Schramm and Porter, 1982: 3).
From what is said above, it is evident that Schramm sees communication as a fundamental
human social process which involves a relationship. It is not accidental, he says, “that
communication and community have the same root word. Without communication, there
would be no communities; and without community, there could be no communication”
(Schramm and Porter, 1982: 2). As communication involves relationships, Schramm is aware
that these relationships are not simple. While acknowledging the role of cultural differences,
experiences and use of language in the process of sharing information, he also affirms that
communication is not conducted entirely, or even mostly, in words. Communication as
relationship for him includes also gesture, facial expression, a pitch pattern, a level of
loudness, an emphasis, etc., since these also carry information.
Schramm is of the opinion that such a relationship does not have to be face to face, and it is
from this perspective that he sees mass media. Mass media, says Schramm, “make
communication possible over great distance: they are simply machines put into the
communication process to duplicate man’s writing (the printing press) or to extend his senses
of sight and hearing (television, films, radio)” (Schramm, 1977: 14). However, he also admits
that there is a difference in the quality of feedback, power, and cost between communication
relationships that are close and direct, and those that are far in time and space. In any case,
whether immediate or distant, the communication relationship according to Schramm
includes three elements and two kinds of action. The constitutive elements of a
communication relationship for Schramm are: a) the communicator, b) the message and, c)
the receiver. The two kinds of actions come from the communicator and the receiver,
respectively. Firstly, the communicator constructs signs (verbal, nonverbal, auditory, visual,
or tactile) as best he can, and hopes he will call forth the desired responses. Secondly, a
receiver selects (among the stimuli available to him) from the content of the messages,
chooses, interprets and disposes of it as he intends (Schramm, 1977: 14-16). Thus, the realm
of effective communication lies in the area of shared experiences between the communicator
and the receiver. In other words, when person A and person B have a greater area of shared
experience between them, it is highly possible that they have a deeper meaning within their
communication relationship.
The core of Schramm’s renewed understanding recognizes communication as a relationship,
a sharing, rather than something someone does to someone else. When this relationship
works effectively, it results in what he calls a kind of “in tune-ness” (the remarkable human
experience). On the contrary, when it works poorly it bears disunity, misunderstanding and
sometimes hostility. However it works, Schramm concludes, “this is the process that allows
us to form the images in our heads that map our environments and guide our behaviour”
(Schramm and Porter, 1982: 4).
b). From Passive to Active Audience
There has been, thus, a gradual abandonment of the idea of a passive audience and the
concept of a highly active and selective audience—manipulating rather than being
manipulated by a message and a full partner in the communication process—began to prevail.
In review of his own findings and theory Schramm states:
We had been concerned with ‘getting the message through’, getting it accepted,
getting it decoded in approximately the same form as the sender intended—and
we had undervalued the activity of the receiver in this process. We tended to
undervalue the importance of the psychological processes that might be triggered
by present and stored perceptions of social relationships and role patterns, in such
way as to enter into the response to any communication. …thus we have come
180 degrees from a theory of the passive audience to a theory of an active
audience (Schramm, 1977: 11).
Through his research and reviews Schramm modified his original perspective and opened a
wider horizon, taking the audience from the realm of passive receivers to that of active ones
who take part and choose their media content.
c). The Interactive Communication Theory
Since the early 1950’s there had been a renewed interest in dealing with the communication
process as a whole due to insights gained into audience behaviour. Schramm and other
researchers had greater interest in learning “why communicators do what they do” as well as
exploring system models to describe “how a society, organization, or other group affects the
performance of its communicators at the same time as it is affected by them”. This phase of
understanding in communication science became known as the concept of mutual causation
which later opened a new horizon for understanding many communication patterns. Schramm
argues:
[T]he mass media contributes to changes in taste, and audience feedback
contributes to changes in program policy; policies change public opinion and
public opinion changes policies; persuasion changes attitudes, which can change
behaviour, which reinforces attitude change; economic development brings about
increases in communication and communication facilities, which bring about
increases in economic development; and so forth. These ideas of communication
as a relationship (rather than a target-shoot) and an interaction (rather than an
action) now require us to fill in some neglected areas in the process (Schramm,
1977: 11-12).
Thus, understanding communication as relationship and as an interaction paved the way for a
paradigm shift in the communication research and development. In the wake of the renewed
understanding Schramm defined communication as “the sharing of an orientation toward a set
of informational signs”. And, information according to him is any content that reduces
uncertainty or the number of alternative possibilities in a situation. It could be emotions, facts
or opinions, guidance or persuasion, and it does not have to be in words, or even explicitly
stated (the latent meanings, “the silent language”, are important information). Yet, another
important feature of this information is that “it does not have to be precisely identical in both
sender and receiver (Schramm, 1977: 13).
The core of Schramm’s interactive
theory of communication is thus based
on a relationship. This relationship
may exist between two persons, or
Person A
A
Person B
B
between one person and many, or may
take place between a group and an
individual, a collective society and an
individual, or a society and a group or
A Model for Schramm’s Interactive
Communication Theory
organization. However, the essence of
this relationship is found in what Schramm calls, being “in-tune” with each other, focusing on
the same information (Schramm, 1977: 13-14).
This central element of the communication relationship is usually embedded in certain social
relationships that contribute to the use and interpretation of information. Into the
communication relationship all participants bring a well-filled life experience, and it is
against this stored experience that they interpret the signals that come to them and decide
how to respond to them. When two people, for example, A and B are going to communicate,
their stored experiences have to intersect over some points of common interest. As indicated
in the above Figure, the overlapping area, AB, is the realm of shared experiences where
meaningful communication takes place. Schramm adds:
The most typical and frequent pattern of communication is therefore an extended
two-way relationship…a relationship in which signs are shared although they do
not mean precisely the same thing to any two participants, but as a result of which
the understanding is likely to grow closer and closer as the exchange continues”
(Schramm and Porter, 1982: p. 42).
So, the process is best understood as a relationship rather than as something A does to B or B
to A, a relationship that involves sharing of signs (messages) that lead toward a convergence
of understanding.
To conclude, Schramm’s model of communication and of his Interactive Theory stands today
as a fundamentally valid and accepted premise for further study. The nucleus of interactive
theory, therefore, ensures communication as: a) a relationship, b) a process of sharing, and c)
interaction, where both the communicator and the receiver are equally important and active.
2.2.4 THE OSGOOD MODEL OF COMMUNICATION
The Osgood Model of communication is quietly different from the conventional models of
communications in the earlier days. In this exclusive model, Osgood considered a circular
form of the communication process. Here both sender and receiver are assumed to have equal
contributory role as well as importance in the process of communication. As per the model
Osgood wanted to point out that, the sender sends message to get response from the receiver
as well as the receiver accepts the message from the sender to respond as well. The sender
encodes any message to deliver to the receiver where, the receiver decodes the message in
meaningful manner and finally, after encoding a message, delivers to the sender as an
answers or response. Now the sender accepts the message after decoding it in same manner.
So, it is clear from the model, that the sender performs both encoding and decoding as well as
the receiver does the same to complete the process of communication as well. Encoding and
decoding both are the important part of the communication as performed by the sender as
well as the receiver, in making the transmitted messages understandable to fulfill their
purposes.
2.4
SELF-AWARENESS & THE JOHARI WINDOW
Self-awareness is basic to all communications. Self awareness can be explained by examining
the several aspects of yourself as they might appear to others as well as to yourself.
Accrding to Joseph Looft & Harington Edham human self is divided into four areas or
“panes”. Each window pane pictures different aspects or versions of the self. The versions are
the open self, the blind self, the hidden self and the unknown self. However, it is important to
note that these areas are not separate from one another but rather are independent.
2.4.1 The Open Self
This self represents all the information, behaviors, attitudes, and feelings about yourself that
you and others know. This could include your name, skin color, sex, age, religion and
political beliefs among other matters. The ‘size’ of the open self varies according to your
personality and according to whom you are relating. With some people you may be open and
with others not. Probably you are selectively open-open about some things and not about
others.
2.4.2 The Blind Self
The blind self represents knowledge about you that others have but you do not. This might
include your habit of finishing other people’s sentence or rubbing your nose when you
become anxious. It may include your tendency to overact to imagined insults or to compete
for attention. Blind areas – like famous blind spots – interfere with communication, so it is
important to reduce your blind self as much as possible.
2.4.3 The Unknown Self
The unknown self represents those parts of yourself that neither you nor other know. This is
information that is buried in your subconscious or that has somehow escaped awareness. You
gain insight into the unknown self in several ways. Sometimes this area is revealed through
hypnosis, dreams, or psychological tests, like the inkblot test devised by the Swiss
Psychiatrist Herman Rorschach. Another way is to explore yourself in an open, honest, and
understanding way with those whom you trust – parents, lovers, and friends.
2.4.4 The Hidden Self
The hidden self represents all the knowledge you have of yourself but keep from others. This
window pane includes all your successfully kept secrets. It may include your dreams and
fantasies, experiences about which you are embarrassed, and attitudes, beliefs, and values of
which you may be ashamed. You probably keep secrets from some people and not from
others. For example, you might not tell your parents you are dating someone of another race
or religion, but you might tell a close friend. So too, you might not let your friends know you
have difficulty asking for a date, but you might discuss this problem with a brother or sister.
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