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Introduction

As a human being, you have to communicate because human beings are social beings that needs constant communication and interacts with each other through communication. Communication helps you to relate effectively with other people and human beings depend on their communication skills to help them meet their needs, find happiness and attain personal fulfillment.In the course of our life, we get involved in many types of communication. A challenge with human communication is to communicate as effectively as possible and to build communication skills so that communication works for you and not against you. Your knowledge of communication theory will help you understand better the different ways of communicating first as a human being and secondly as scholar.

Defining Communication

Different people have defined communication variously. Gamble and Gamble (1993) define communication as a desirable or accidental transfer of meaning.

The Oxford Dictionary defines communication as the activity or process of expressing ideas and feelings or process of giving information to people.

Wilber Schramm defines communication as a mechanism through which human relations exist and develop through sharing of experience on basis of commonness.

Another meaning of communication according to Oxford dictionary is methods of sending information especially telephones, radio, computers or other media or through roads, railway and air.

Communication is more than mere transferring of ideas or thoughts. It is not a static act as some definitions suggest but it is a dynamic process of action and interaction towards a desired goal. Recent definitions look at communication as a process of sharing or exchange of ideas, information, knowledge, attitude or feeling among two or more persons through certain signs, symbols and behavior.

Elements of Communication

In every act or encounter of communication, there are certain common elements that together help define the communication process. If you understand these elements they will help you to develop your own communication abilities.

Communication involves the following elements:

This refers to the communicator or originator of a message. This person is also called the sender. The sender at times becomes the receiver of a message. Source is where communication process is initiated.

Context

This refers to place and time communication takes place in some context or setting. The setting or environment influences the way you act towards others or determines the nature of communication encounter you share with them. For example, you can change your posture, manner of speaking or attire due to environment. The environment can reduce your confidence, blur your thinking or increase tension and confusion. In other hand, environment can encourage you to communicate effectively if it is friendly.

Message

message is what is being communicated.

In every communication, we all send and receive both verbal and non-verbal
messages. A message is the content of a communication act.

Channel

Channel is where message will pass through in order to move from the sender to the receiver. It refers to the medium of transmission like, voice and radio. Messages may be sent and received through both verbal and non-verbal channels. In effect, we are multi-channel communicators. For effective communication, use more than one channel at any given time.

Receiver

This is the target of the message relayed by the sender through the communication channel and is the one who is supposed to receive and comprehends the message. The receiver can understand or misunderstand the message in totality or part of it. This can distort the whole communication process and even lead to misuderstanding and possible conflicts. A lot of conflicts among people have resulted from misinterpretation of messages. A receiver at times in communication becomes a source or sender.

Feedback

This is the response a message sender receives from the target as the reaction of the message sent. When we communicate with one or more persons, we also receive information in return. Verbal or non-verbal cues that we perceive in reaction to our communication are feedback. Feedback tells us how we are progressing. Feedback can be positive or negative.

Barriers

Anything that interferes or distorts our ability to send or receive messages is called a barrier. It could be created by physical state, psychological state, intellectual ability and environment. Barriers to effective communication can therefore be grouped as follows:

Physical:- for example, size of room, position or location, gestures of speaker in case of verbal communication.
Psychological:– for example predisposition of receiver, attitude to subject, speaker, race, education level. etc.
Intellectual ability: – level of education, background and knowledge on the subject.
Physiological state:- for example, sickness, hungry, tired.
Linguistic: – Ability of the receiver of the communication to understand words and expressions used in the communication.

FUNCTIONS OF COMMUNICATION

Understanding And Insight

We depend on communication to develop self-awareness. Communication helps us in understanding others and self.

Meaningful Relationships

It is through communication contacts that human beings basic physical and social needs are met. Psychology tells us that you need other people just as you need water, food and shelter. If you are cut from human contact, you become disoriented and maladjusted. Communication offers us the chance to satisfy our needs for inclusion, control and affection.

Influence And Persuasion

In every communication, people have ample chances to influence each other subtly and overtly. We spend much time trying to persuade one another to think as we think, do what we do, like what we like.

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COMMUNICATION THEORY