Verbal Communication
Human Languages
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Language is the archives of history.
(Ralph Waldo Emerson)
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By words the mind winged.
(Aristophanes)
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Language has created the word ‘loneliness’ to
express the pain of being alone and the word
‘solitude’ to express the joy of being alone.
(Paul Tillich)
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We can receive, store, manipulate, and generate
symbols to represent things, feelings and ideas.
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Common language evokes group identity; signals
ingroup linkage and outgroup differentiation
Major Topics
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Understanding human languages
Understanding verbal communication
Communication styles: comparisons
Studying critical incidents
Audience expectations: differences
Human language: distinctive features
A. Language: arbitrary symbolic system that names
feelings, experiences, ideas, objects, events,
groups, people, and other phenomena
B. Arbitrariness: words have no innate meaning
C. Abstractness: allows abstract hypothetical
thinking: Experiential context and Cultural context
D. Meaning-centeredness: five levels of meaning
1. Discourse meaning: denotative and connotative
meanings
a. Denotative: objective, dictionary meaning
b. Connotative: subjective, informal meaning
2. Communicative meaning: intention or goal behind the
utterance
3. Relational meaning: relational distance and intimacy
4. Situational meaning: physical and social context
5. Conventional meaning: coordinate the verbal message
with cultural norms
E. Creativity: using language to:
1. Talk about things far away in space and
time (displacement feature)
2. Say things never said before (productivity
feature)
3. Pass on heritage and wisdom (traditional
transmission feature)
Understanding multiple language rules
A. Phonological rules (or phonology): combining of
phonemes (basic sound units of a word)
B. Morphological rules (or morphology): combining
phonemes to make morphemes (smallest units of meaning,
a word or part or a word)
C. Syntactic rules (or syntactics): word sequence and
grammar practices
D. Semantic rules (semantics): features of meaning attached
to words (including two levels: denotative and connotative
meanings)
E. Pragmatic rules (pragmatics): contextual rules that
govern language use
Understanding communication
and verbal styles
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Communication personality: the manner in which you
present yourself.
Communication style: the way someone prefers to give and
receive information; it develops from personality and
cultural influences.
Pragmatics of language usage: the cultural expectations of
how, when, where, with whom, and under what situational
conditions certain verbal expressions are preferred,
prohibited, or prescribed
Verbal style: the tone of voice, the speaker’s intention, and
the verbal content reflect our way of speaking, and our
verbal style in turn reflects our cultural and personal values
and sentiments.
Verbal communication
Verbal communication enables children to
learn: see handouts.
Verbal communication: example
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Assumptions about
communication styles
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Minor communication style differences can have a
major negative impact on relationships.
Communication style differences well-utilized can
have a positive synergistic effect.
Multiple communication styles exist in every
culture.
Every person can exhibit multiple styles,
depending on the context. Communication styles
are adaptive, not static.
All communication styles have advantages and
disadvantages.
Components of
Communication styles
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Orientation to interaction:
individualistic Vs interpersonal
(goal- or process-oriented)
objective Vs subjective
(sender- or receiver-oriented)
Code preference: verbal Vs nonverbal
Interaction format:
persuasive Vs harmonizing
quantitative Vs holistic
pragmatic Vs process-oriented
Differences in
the Thinking Pattern
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Western Vs Oriental
Straight line Vs a spiral
Speaker/writer’s responsibility Vs Listener/
reader’s responsibility
Explicit and plain Vs highly figurative, imagery
Inductive (experiential) Vs deductive (didactic)
Proof and evidence Vs assertion without proof
Five Communication Contrasts
Linear versus Circular = straight line discussion
versus a more circular approach
Direct versus Indirect = meaning conveyed by
words versus through suggestion
Detached versus Attached = objective presentation
versus expressive style
Intellectual Engagement versus Relational
Engagement = Discussion is about the task versus
discussion about the task and the person
Concrete versus Abstract = example driven versus
theory driven discussion
Linear: Discussion is conducted in a straight
line, almost like an outline, with the
connections among the points stated as you
move towards an end point, which is stated
explicitly. There is a low reliance on context
and a strong reliance on words.
Cut to the chase, where the rubber meets the
road!
Circular (contextual) Discussion is conducted in
a circular manner, telling stories and developing a
context around the main point, which is often
unstated because the listener will get the point
after I give them all the information. There is a
high reliance on context.
Once you have the relevant information, you’ll
know what I mean.
Direct: Meaning is conveyed through
explicit statements made directly to the
people involved with little reliance on
contextual factors such as situation and
timing.
What you see is what you get! Tell it like it
is!
Indirect: Meaning is conveyed by suggestion,
implication, nonverbal behavior, and other
contextual cues; for instance, statements intended
for one person may be made within earshot of a
different person. It is possible that messages will
be sent through a third-party intermediary. Mostly,
however, this style allows one to avoid
confronting another person or cause them to lose
face.
What you get is what you manage to see!
Attached: Issues are discussed with feeling
and emotion, conveying the speaker's
personal stake in the issue and the outcome.
This shows the passion someone feels in a
situation or for an issue.
If it’s important, it’s worth getting worked
up over!
Detached: Issues are discussed with
calmness and objectivity, conveying the
speaker's ability to weigh all the factors
impersonally. It is important to be objective.
If it’s important, it shouldn’t be tainted by
personal bias!
Intellectual Engagement: Any
disagreement with ideas is stated directly,
with the assumption that only the idea, not
the relationship, is being attacked. This is an
intellectual style found in some European
countries.
We’re just arguing-don’t take it personally!
Relational Engagement: Relational issues and
problems are confronted directly, while
intellectual disagreement is handled more subtly
and indirectly. If you have a problem with
someone, it helps to talk things over, albeit in an
non-confrontational manner. In an intellectual
debate, it is important to be tread softly.
Be authentic about your feelings and respectful of
other's ideas.
Concrete: Issues are best understood through stories,
metaphors, allegories, and examples, with
emphasis on the specific rather than the general.
What’s an example?
Abstract: Issues are best understood through
theories, principles, and data, with emphasis on
the general rather than the specific.
What’s the principle?
Intercultural low-context and high-context
communication framework
A. Defining low-context and high-context
communication
1. Low-context communication (LCC): intention or
meaning is best expressed through explicit verbal
messages
a. Communication patterns of direct verbal mode
b. Speaker is responsible for clear message
decoded easily
2. High-context communication (HCC): intention
or meaning is best conveyed through the context
and nonverbal channels
a. Communication patterns of indirect verbal mode
b. Receiver assumes the responsibility to infer the
hidden or contextual meanings of the message
c. May be understated to emotionally animated in
tone
B. Low-context and high-context
communication examples
1. LCC: speakers say everything on their
minds with no restraints
2. HCC: indirect hints, nonverbal signals to
preserve face and relationship
Low-context and high-context
verbal style comparisons
A. Direct and indirect verbal styles
1. Direct: statement in forthright tone
clearly reveals speakers intentions
2. Indirect: statement in softer tone
camouflages speakers actual intentions (no
need to hurt feelings)
B. Complementary, animated, and understated
verbal styles
1. Complementary: matter-of-fact tone in
delivering verbal message
2. Animated: conveys emotional
expressiveness and vitality
3. Understated: displays more emotional
restraint or stoicism
C. Informal and formal verbal styles
1. Informal: upholding informality, and
casualness, and role suspension
2. Formal: status-based, formal interaction
reflects large power distance
D. Beliefs expressed in talk and silence
1. High-context cultures: silence can make
understanding possible
2. Western rhetorical model: silence viewed
as empty pauses
Intercultural persuasion process
A. Linear-logic versus spiral-logic persuasion
1. Linear persuasion style has two forms:
a. Factual-inductive: present facts, then
draw conclusion
b. Axiomatic-deductive: present general
principles then move to fill in specific
details
2. Spiral persuasion style ranges from the
dramatic to the subtle
a. Dramatic style: effusive metaphors,
adjectives, stories
b. Subtle style: hints, implicit analogies,
subtle nonverbal gestures
B. Self-credentialing and self-humbling verbal
modes
1. Self-credentialing: draw attention to
ones abilities, accomplishments
2. Self-humbling: verbal restraints,
hesitations, and use of self-deprecation
concerning ones performance
C. Face-negotiation and requesting strategies
1. Face: a claimed sense of social self-worth a
person wants others to have of her or him
2. Two types of face concerns in conversations:
a. Self-face concern: interest in upholding our
own identities and favorable self-images
b. Other-face concern: interest in providing
identity respect and support for the other persons
interests or needs
3. Facework: verbal and nonverbal behaviors
to maintain or restore face loss and to
uphold and honor face gain
a. Face loss: treated in a way that
challenges, threatens, or ignores our identity
claims
b. Face-saving issues: how to protect our
own or others face from being embarrassed
4. Requesting strategies:
a. U.S. managers: open invitation, promises,
direct compliments
b. Japanese managers: altruistic strategies or
appeals to duty
What’s your communication style?
Test Your Communication Styles
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
I deal with problems in a systematic way.
I may take the opposite view on a topic just for
the sake of discussion.
I like to give lots of information before stating
my main point.
I find the step-to-step approach very effective.
It is necessary to give background for any topic
that is discussed.
6.
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9.
10.
It is easier to understand a topic if the speaker
gives examples of what he or she is talking about.
I use my hands a lot when expressing myself.
I feel strongly about some topics and I say so.
Debating is a good way to get things sorted out.
I need proof to accept statements that are made.
Types of communication styles
Bennet and Paige (1993, 1996)
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Linear – circular
Direct – indirect
Low context – high context
Detached – attached
Intellectual – relational
Task-centered – person-centered
Procedural - personal
Types of communication style
Ting Toomey (1999)
 Direct – indirect
 Person-oriented – status-oriented
 Self-enhancement – self-effacement
 Talk - silence
Types of communication style
Gudykunst and Ting-Toomey (1988)
 Direct – indirect
 Elaborate – succinct
 Personal – contextual
 Instrumental - affective
Studying the critical incidents
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Are you mad at me?
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A motivational speech?
Audience expectations
What makes a presentation successful?
Summary
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Language permits us to remember the past, deal
with the present, and anticipate and plan for the
future.
Language serves as a guide to how a culture
perceives reality.
Each of us learns and uses language as we do
because of our cultural background.
Communication style varies from culture to
culture, but one’s communicative style is adaptive
and can be developed.