Language- Its Role In Communication Process

Language- Its Role In Communication Process

There are a wide number of sources of noise or interference that
can enter into the communication process. This can especially occur
when people don’t know each other very well and do not
understand the sources of error. For example, in a seminar
environment, it is even more common since interactions involve
people who do not know each other; communication is also
complicated by the complex and often conflictive cultural
differences. The following suggests a number of potential sources of
noise:

Choice of words or language

What the presenter uses to transmit a message will influence the
quality of communication. Because language is a symbolic
representation of a phenomenon, room for interpretation and
distortion of the meaning exists. Meaning has to be given to words,
and many factors affect how an individual will attribute meaning
to particular words. It is important to note that no two people will
attribute the exact same meaning to the same words.

Perceptual biases

People attend to stimuli in the environment in very different ways.
We each have shortcuts that we use to organize data. Invariably,
these shortcuts introduce some biases into communication. Some of
these shortcuts include stereotyping, projection, and self-fulfilling
prophecies. Stereotyping is one of the most common. This is when
we assume that the other person has certain characteristics based on
the group to which they belong without validating that they in fact
have these characteristics.

Interpersonal relationships

How we perceive communication is affected by the past experience
with the individual. Perception is also affected by the
organizational relationship two people have. For example,
communication from a superior may be perceived differently than
that from a subordinate or peer.

Cultural differences

Effective communication requires deciphering the basic values,
motives, aspirations, and assumptions that operate across
geographical lines. Given some dramatic differences across cultures,
approaching areas such as time, space, and privacy in cross-cultural
situations has the potential to increase the opportunity for
miscommunication.