Communicating for
Results
9e
4
Effective Listening
Key Ideas
•Importance of effective
listening
•Signs of poor listening
•Causes of poor listening
•Improving listening skills
•Payoffs of effective listening
Copyright Cengage © 2011
1
Consider this…
Every time you communicate two things
happen. First your behavior either
contributes to or hinders the
accomplishment of your task. Second,
Your relationship with the other person is
either strengthened or harmed. Your
listening ability . . . affects both of these
dimensions.
Brownell, Listening, Allyn and Bacon, 2002, p. 9
Copyright Cengage © 2011
2
Engineer’s Listening Experience
Citigroup Case Study
Read or describe the case study
Answer the following questions:
Evaluate LeMessurier’s listening skills.
Which communication style in Chapter 3 fits
LeMessurier?
Was it ethical for LeMessurier to withhold
this information from the public?
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3
Effective Listening in Organizations
Listening to customers
Listening to employees
Listening to supervisors
Listening to coworkers
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4
Listening to Customers
Advantages include . . .
 Discover needed product & service
changes
 Learn about competition
 Increase sales and customer
satisfaction
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5
Listening to Employees
Advantages include . . .
 Increases employee satisfaction
 Shows support
 Creates open climate
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6
When Listening to the Boss
Glatthorn & Adams suggest the following . . .
 Listen to know your boss
 Use this knowledge to guide interactions
 Develop expertise your boss values
 Be wary of giving advice
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7
When Listening to the Boss
Glatthorn & Adams suggest the following . . .
 Build off supervisor’s ideas
 Praise appropriately
 Don’t criticize superiors
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8
Listening to Coworkers
 Listening helps develop strong
relationships
 Types of listening
 Comprehension
 Therapeutic
 Critical
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9
Listening to Coworkers
Global tips include . . .
 Focus on information gathering & sharing
 Use humor as morale booster
 Learn to tolerate ambiguity
 Explain ideas completely
 Show you are listening
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10
Responses That Can Indicate Non-acceptance
Listener’s Response
Implied Message
Ordering, demanding: You must try . . .
You have to try . . .
Don’t feel, act or think that way. Do it my
way.
Criticizing, blaming disagreeing: You
aren’t thinking about this properly . . .
You are wrong if you have that feeling, act
or think that way,
Advising, giving answers: Why don’t
you . . . Let me suggest . . .
Here’s a solution so you won’t have that
feeling, act or think that way.
Praising, Agreeing: But you’ve done such
a good job . . . I approve of . . .
Your feelings, actions, and opinions are
subject to my approval
Reassuring, Sympathizing: Don’t worry. .
. You’ll feel better . . .
You don’t need to have that feeling, act or
think that way.
Interpreting, diagnosing: What you need
is . . . Your problem is . .
Here’s the reason you have for feeling,
acting or thinking that way.
Diverting, avoiding: We can discuss this
later . . . That reminds me of . . .
Your feelings, actions, and opinions aren’t
worthy of discussion
Kidding, using sarcasm: That will be the
day. . . Bring out the violins . . .
You’re silly if you persist is having that
feeling, acting or thinking that way.
Copyright Cengage © 2011
Norma Carr-Raffino, 1985
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Signs of Poor Listening
Are you guilty of any of these signs?
 Learning of events too late
 Information must be repeated
 Always putting out fires
 Tasks given to others
 Increase in written
communication
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12
Habits of Poor Listening
Are you guilty of any of these habits?
 Calling the topic boring
 Criticizing the speaker’s delivery
 Orally or mentally interrupting to disagree
 Listening only for facts
 Takes detailed notes of
everything
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13
Bad Listening Habits (con’t)
 Pretending to listen
 Tolerating or creating distractions
 Avoiding listening to difficult material
 Reacting emotionally by tuning out
 Daydreaming
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14
Barriers to Poor Listening
 Physical Barriers
 Personal Barriers
 Physical well-being
 Psychological distractions
 Attitudinal biases
 Gender Barriers
 Semantic Barriers
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15
Awareness Check: Listening Skills
How are your listening skills? To check your listening effectiveness, take the following
quiz. Compare your answers with those in the back of this book. You can also take this
quiz and view the answers online at your Premium Website for Communicating for
Results.
Directions: For each of these statements about your listening skills, select one of the
following: A = yes, B = sometimes, or C = no.
___1. I feel uncomfortable when listening to or responding to my supervisor.
___2. When I disagree with a person, I pretend to listen to what they are saying.
___3. I usually focus on facts when people are speaking.
___4. I have difficulty concentrating on the instructions that others give me.
___5. When speakers say something that makes me mad, I usually tune them out.
___6. I seldom seek out the opportunity to listen to new ideas.
___7. I find myself daydreaming when others seem to ramble on.
___8. I often argue mentally or aloud with what someone is saying even before he or she
finishes.
___9. I find that others are always repeating things to me.
___10. When listening to speakers, I often concentrate on what they are wearing or on
their mannerisms.
Number of times you answered A
______
Number of times you answered B
______
Number of times you answered C
______
Copyright Cengage © 2011
16
Awareness Check: Gender Barriers
How accurate are you in determining gender differences? To find out, take the following
quiz and check your answers against those in the back of this book. You can also take
this quiz and view the answers online at your Premium Website for Communicating for
Results.
Directions: For each question, write “M” if you think the answer is men; write “W” if you
think it is women; write “S” if you think it is the same for both men and women. Then
compare your responses with the answers and explanations drawn from the latest
research (questions adapted from Rozema & Gray, 1989, and updated from current
research).
___1. In office discussions, who usually talks more often?
___2. Who is better at interpreting nonverbal cues while listening?
___3. When speaking to others, who tends to attach more tag questions (such as “Don’t
you agree?” and “Right?”) to statements?
___4. Who is more likely to view a conversation in a competitive rather than cooperative
manner?
___5. In office discussions, who usually works harder to keep the conversation going?
___6. During a conversation, who tends to interrupt more often?
___7. While listening, who is less likely to ask questions, especially if asking will reveal a
lack of knowledge?
___8. Whom do colleagues consider the better listener?
Copyright Cengage © 2011
17
Stages of Listening
 Sensing
 Interpreting>
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18
Attribution Theory
Explains problems in the Interpretation
Phase
Original Theorist: Fritz Heider, The
Psychology of Interpersonal Relations, 1958.
Definition: The process of drawing
inferences or how people process
information and use it to explain the
behaviour of others and self.
Copyright Cengage © 2011
19
Attribution Theory
Involves a Three-Step Process:
 Perceive an action
 judge intent of action
Attribute reason for action.
Fundamental Attribution Error (Ross, 1977)
Overestimate the role of the person’s
character
Underestimate the role that the situation has
on behaviour
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20
Stages of Listening
 Sensing
 Interpreting
 Evaluating
 Responding
 Memory
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21
Improving Listening Skills
 Listen for facts and feelings
 Identify speaker’s main points
 Take brief notes
 Constantly summarize previous points
 Relate information to current
policies & procedures
 Avoid prejudice
Copyright Cengage © 2011
22
Payoffs of Effective Listening
 Discovering values, needs expectations
and goals of supervisors and co-workers
 Better management-employee relations
 Better decisions in emergencies
 Constantly summarize previous points
 Learning from others experience
Copyright Cengage © 2011
23
Communicating for
Results
9e
4
Effective Listening
Key Ideas
•Importance of effective
listening
•Signs of poor listening
•Causes of poor listening
•Improving listening skills
•Payoffs of effective listening
Copyright Cengage © 2011
24