World Wide Journal of Multidiscip linary Research and Development

WWJMRD 2017; 3(9): 259-262

www.wwjmrd.com
International Journal
Peer Reviewed Journal Communication: The Lifeline
Refereed Journal
Indexed Journal
UGC Approved Journal Richa Sharma
Impact Factor MJIF: 4.25
e-ISSN: 2454-6615 Abstract
We are born with the capacity to communicate. We spend more time in communicating than doing
Richa Sharma
Department of English
anything else. From birth to death, communication is central to our personal, professional, and social
University of Jammu, India lives. The word ‘Communication’ has been derived from the latin word ‘Communicare’ or
‘Communis’ which means to join, to unite, to share or to have things in common. Communication is
the art of creating and sharing ideas and the richness of those ideas make the communication process
effective. People communicate with each other in different ways that depend upon the message and
its context in which it is being sent. All human interactions are a form of communication. A human
being’s need for communication is as strong and as basic as the need to drink, eat, love and sleep.
Communication is truly a remarkable process. It is not only the basis of human thought; it is the
lifeline of every relationship whether personal, professional or social.

Keywords: Communication, communicare, encoding, decoding, feedback, barriers, importance

Introduction
We are born with the capacity to communicate. We are capable of making utterances and
gestures that enable us to send messages to other people. Being able to communicate well is,
however, a skill. We spend more time in communicating than doing anything else. We listen,
think, talk, share secrets with inmates, participate on teams, ask and answer questions,
exchange information with colleagues, attend public performances, watch television
programmes and so on. From birth to death, communication is central to our personal,
professional, and social lives.

Meaning of Communication
The word ‘Communication’ has been derived from the latin word ‘Communicare’ or
‘Communis’ which means to join, to unite, to share or to have things in common
(Communicative English For Engineers And Professionals, p. 1). When asked to define
communication, most people relate to the forms of communication- talking or listening. A
definition is a useful and logical place to start our exploration of communication. Definition
clarifies concepts by indicating their boundaries. They focus attention on what is important
about whatever it is we are defining. Unfortunately, no single definition of communication
does this to everyone’s satisfaction. However, different writers have different perspectives
about communication.
According to Newstrom & Keith Davis, “Communication is the transfer of information form
one person to another. It is a way of reaching others by transmitting ideas, feelings, thoughts,
facts and values.”
Megginson said, “Communication is the process of transmitting meanings, ideas and
understanding of a person or a group to another person or group.”
According to Fred G. Meyer, “Communication is the intercourse by words, letters or
messages”.
Theo Haiman said, “Communication means the process of passing information and
understanding from one person to another.”
Correspondence: According to William Rice-Johnson, “Communication takes place when one individual, a
Richa Sharma
sender, displays, transmits or otherwise directs a set of symbols to another individual, a
Department of English
University of Jammu, India receiver, with the aim of changing something the receiver is doing (or not doing) or changing
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World Wide Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development

his or her world view. This set of symbols is typically 10. Goal-oriented: Communication is goal-oriented.
described as a message”. Unless the receiver and sender know the purpose they
Communication is the art of creating and sharing ideas and intend to achieve through communication, it has little
the richness of those ideas make the communication practical utility.
process effective. It is communication process which 11. Foundation of management: Though communication is
allows us to interact with others; without it, we would not a directing function, it is important for other
be able to share knowledge or experiences with other managerial functions also. Designing plans and
people. It is the act of transmitting verbal and non-verbal organisation structures, motivating people to
information and understanding between sender and accomplish goals and controlling organisational
receiver. It is the process by which information, ideas and activities; all require communication amongst
feelings are shared by people through an exchange of managers at various levels.
verbal and non-verbal messages. So, it can be concluded 12. A means, not an end: Communication is not an end.
that communication is the process of exchanging feelings, Effective communication is a means towards achieving
emotions, ideas, thoughts and information through speech, the end, that is, goal accomplishment. It smoothens
gestures, words, symbols, signals, writing, behavior etc. managerial operations by facilitating planning,
According to a survey, an average person spends as much organising, staffing, directing and controlling
as 75 per cent of the day in communicating and those who functions.
are in technical jobs are estimated to spend between 50 per 13. Human activity: Since communication makes
cent and 90 per cent of their day in communicating. In the accomplishment of organisational goals possible, it is
words of Walter Loban: essential that people understand and like each other. If
‘We listen a book a day; we speak a book a week, read the people do not understand each other’s viewpoint, there
equivalent of a book a month, and write the equivalent of a cannot be effective communication.
book a year.’ 14. Inter-disciplinary: Communication is the art of how
communicators use knowledge of different fields of
Nature of Communication study like anthropology, psychology and sociology.
1. Two-way process: Communication is a two-way Making best use of these disciplines makes
process of understanding between two or more persons communication effective. It is, thus, an inter-
– sender and receiver. disciplinary area of management.
2. Continuous process: Exchange of ideas and opinion
amongst people is an on-going process in business and Types of Communication
non-business organisations. Continuous interaction People communicate with each other in different ways that
promotes understanding and exchange of information depend upon the message and its context in which it is
relevant for decision-making. being sent.
3. Dynamic process: Communication between sender and On the basis of channels, communication is of two types
receiver takes different forms and medium depending i.e. Verbal (Oral and Written) and Non-verbal (Kinesics,
upon their moods and behaviour. It is, thus, a dynamic Proxemics and Paralanguage).
process that keeps changing in different situations. Based on purpose and style, communication is of two types
4. Pervasive: Communication is a pervasive activity. It i.e. Formal, usually in a professional setting (Upward,
takes place at all levels (top, middle, low) in all Downward and Horizontal) and Informal, usually with
functional areas (production, finance, personnel, sales) family and friends.
of a business organisation. On the basis of attitude and behaviour, it is of two types i.e.
5. Two people: A minimum of two persons — sender and Defensive (aggressive, attacking, angry, passive or
receiver — must be present for communication to take withdrawing) and Non-defensive (assertive, direct and
place. It may be between superiors, subordinates and powerful).
peer group, intra or inter se. Based on the number of people involved, communication is
6. Exchange: Communication involves exchange of ideas of four types i.e. Intrapersonal (communicating within
and opinions. People interact and develop yourself), Interpersonal (interaction of two or more people),
understanding for each other. Group and Mass communication.
7. Means of unifying organisational activities:
Communication unifies internal organisational Communication Process
environment with its external environment. It also It involves multiple parts and stages. These are:
integrates the human and physical resources and 1. Sender: The source of the message is the sender. The
converts them into organisational output. sender must know why the communication is
8. Verbal and non-verbal: Though words are active necessary and why result is needed. Sender can be
carriers of information, gestures can sometimes be writer, speaker, and encoder.
more powerful than words. Facial expressions, sounds, 2. Message: The message is simply the information that
signs and symbols are the non-verbal forms of we want to communicate. Without a message, there is
communication. no cause for communicating.
9. Mutual understanding: Communication is effective 3. Encoding: It is the process in which the speaker
when sender and receiver develop mutual attempts to translate his or her thoughts and
understanding of the subject. Messages conveyed perceptions into words.
should be understood by the receiver in the desired 4. Channel: The message sent travels to the receiver via a
sense. channel, (i.e. sound waves, sign language, or video
recording, and so forth).

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World Wide Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development

5. Decoding: A process in which the listener attempts to University of Pittsburgh, organizations rated good
understand and interpret what the speaker has encoded communication as the most important factor used in
in his or her message. selecting their management staff. As per this survey, the
6. Receiver: It can be a reader, listener, perceiver, and written and oral communication skills were vital in
decoder of the message send by the sender. predicting job success, as was the ability to communicate
7. Feedback: It is receiver’s response to sender’s well with others in the workplace.
message. The receiver communicates his reaction to In the business world, nothing can be achieved without
the sender through words, symbols or gestures. It is the effectively communicating with employers, employees,
reversal of communication process where receiver customers, suppliers and clients. If we look at the most
becomes the sender and sender becomes the receiver. successful people in the world, we will see people who
Unless the receiver responds to the message, have mastered the art of communication. And there lies the
communication process is incomplete. difference between a communicator and a good
8. Context: It involves things such as our relationship communicator. It requires finesse, practice and a skill set
with the audience, the culture of organisation and that goes beyond those that the average person possesses.
general environment. Communication is the basis for planning. Planning is the
basic function of management. If plans are well designed
The human communication system can be compared with a and communicated for their implementation, it leads to
radio or telephone circuit. Just as in radio transmissions, organisational success. Planning requires extensive
where distortion can occur at any point along the circuit environmental scanning and information about internal and
(channel), there can be similar barriers in human external organisation elements. An effective system of
communication. Barriers are any difficulties or obstacles communication helps in obtaining this information.
that come in the way of communication. Barriers in Implementing the plans requires communicating them to
communication consist of language differences, cultural everybody in the organisation. Communication is, thus, the
differences, inattention, disinterest, distrust or insecurity, basis of planning.
physical disabilities such as hearing problem and speech Communication serves as a commitment to organisational
disability, use of jargon, unclarified assumptions, taboos, objectives.
differences in perception and viewpoints, physical barriers, Managers who follow an effective system of
faulty translation, unfamiliar accent, emotional or communication understand employees’ needs, adopt
psychological barriers, poor retention, premature suitable motivators to satisfy them, appraise their
evaluation, linguistic chaos, symbols or words with performance and provide them regular feedback. The
different meanings, status, lack of confidence, lack of employees also work with commitment towards
facilities, lack of proper incentive, lack of feedback, lack of organisational objectives.
interest in the subject matter, prejudices, fear, expectations, Exchange of information develops trust, confidence and
adverse environment, distance, ignorance of medium, faith amongst managers and subordinates. They understand
noise, role, misinterpretation, gender biasedness, individual their job positions better and, thus, perform better. People
differences, perceptual barriers, mechanical barriers, poor are committed to organisational objectives which promotes
expression, inference, distractions, inconsistency, poor job satisfaction,
appearance of speaker or words, poor listening skills, past Communication coordinates organisational resources
experiences, time pressure and inadequate knowledge. (human and non- human), individual goals with
organisational goals and internal environment with external
Communication: The Lifeline environment. Coordination is the key to organisational
All human interactions are a form of communication. A success and communication is an active contributor to
human being’s need for communication is as strong and as coordination.
basic as the need to drink, eat, love and sleep. It is both an Employees are motivated to work if their needs are
individual and a social need. It is both a natural demand satisfied. Communication helps managers know needs of
and a requirement of social existence to use communication their employees so that they can adopt suitable motivators
resources for a successful life. It involves active and inspire them to develop positive attitude towards the
interactions with physical, biological and social work environment.
environments. Deprived of this interaction, we would not Communication helps in performing managerial roles.
be aware of whether we are safe or in danger, whether According to Henry Mintzberg, managers perform three
hungry or satisfied, or loved or hated. major roles – interpersonal, informational and decisional
The basic human need for communication can perhaps be managers perform three major roles – interpersonal,
traced to the process of the evolution of mankind from informational and decisional (The Nature of Managerial
lower species. Animals, for instance, have to be in sensory Work, 173). Communication helps managers in performing
communication with their biological and physical these roles effectively. In interpersonal roles, managers
surroundings to find food, shelter, reproduce their species interact with superiors, peers and subordinates; in
and protect themselves such as the inability to hear a informational roles they receive and give information to
predator can mean loss of life. Those who have been people inside and outside the organization and in decisional
isolated for a period of time from human company are roles, they take important decisions and communicate them
known to have experienced nightmarish hallucinations. It is to organisational members for their effective
estimated that an individual without close friends run two implementation.
or three times the risk of developing heart disease as other Good communication facilitates leadership.
sociable individuals. Effective leaders interact with followers, guide and inspire
In a survey conducted by the Katz Business School at the them to perform the individual and organisational goals.
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World Wide Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development

Effective communication process facilitates leaders to carry interact with others, we follow rules of communication.
out the leadership functions. The ability to use language and communicate allows human
Good communication inculcates adaptability to external to create meaning in their lives.
environment:
In order to survive in the changing, dynamic environment, Conclusion
managers continuously interact with external parties like Communication is truly a remarkable process. It is not only
government, suppliers, customers, etc. This requires the basis of human thought; it is the lifeline of every
effective communication system in the organisation. relationship whether personal, professional or social. It is
Managers interact with parties internal to business the means by which each of us develops an individual
enterprises. They constantly obtain and provide information pattern of beliefs, attitudes, and values- the personal
to them. More effective the communication system, more attitudes that bring us to understand, misunderstand, accept,
accurate will be the information. or reject others who are like or unlike ourselves. Good
Communication helps in maintaining healthy industrial communication is essential for personal relationships,
relations. professional lives and cultural and social well-being. So,
Satisfied workers contribute to healthy organisations. communication is the key to a successful life; it is the
Communication brings managers and trade unions closer, lifeline and a fundamental part of life. Because
develops mutual understanding and promotes industrial communication is a cornerstone of human life, the decision
peace and harmony. This increases industrial production. to master it, serve us well.
Communication facilitates control in any organisation.
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God having designed Man for a sociable creature made him
not only an inclination, and under a necessity to have
fellowship with those of his own kind; but furnished him
with language. To create meaning with language and to
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