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Module 1
The Speech Communication Process

Introduction

Communication is a human element done on a daily basis and that deals on forming
relationships with others through how messages are received and interpreted. The term stems
from the Latin word “communis” which means ‘common’. Thus, this implies that people must
reach out in order to share something in common.
Technically speaking, it is a process by which information is exchanged between
individuals through a common system of symbols, signs, or behavior or it is a process in which a
source/speaker transmits a message through a channel to a destination/receiver, creating an
effect and providing opportunity for feedback in the presence of noise and occurring within a
context.
Communication dramatically changed by new technologies. In the 20th century, we have
seen the effects of the telephone, radio and television, film, high-speed printing, xerography,
desk-top publishing, electronic mail. These communication technologies have changed our
national political life, corporate management styles, family connections, individual work habits.
Additional change in the next century is inevitable, as we adopt video conferencing, multimedia,
and internet technologies. Many of the effects of new technologies are unpredictable: the
predicted “paperless office” has failed to materialize, for example, and word-processing software
has transformed the labor of writing in a way that was never anticipated (and later was resisted)
by computer developers.
But some aspects of communication, both oral and written, have not changed.
Communication is still the social glue that holds together nations, corporations, scientific
disciplines, and families. Social psychologist Karl Weick once noted that the key tool for
effective leadership is the “management of eloquence” because “fluent, forceful, moving
expression” affects the ways followers think, speak, and act. Communication also remains the
source of problems when people fail to understand each other, fail to agree, and fail to act.

Objectives:

At the end of the lesson, you will be able to:

 have a thorough understanding of communication processes and principles of

communication, and
 understand the importance of communication as well as the ethics in communication and
academic writing.

Discussion

5 Skills of Communication

1. Writing 2. Reading 3. Listening 4. Speaking 5. Viewing

Effective Communication

1. Learn how to organize one’s thoughts

2. Control one’s emotions
3. Use one’s words to articulate concepts and arguments

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 4. Express oneself in the best way possible

Lesson 1: Functions of Communication

Communication functions refer to how people use language for different purposes also refers to how
language is affected by different time, place, and situation used to control the behavior of people used to
regulate the nature and amount of activities people engage in
The most basic functions of communication in an organization are to regulate/ to control, to inform, to
interact socially, to express and to motivate.

1. REGULATION/CONTROL

Communication can be used to control human behavior. It can be used to regulate the nature and
amount of activities humans engage in. It ranges from simple requests to laws governing countries and large
territories. The main focus of Regulation or Control as a function of communication is to influence one’s
behavior. That means that if anyone behaves in such a way the other one wanted it to be, it’s a behavioral
influence.

Basic Forms of Regulation/Control

 Doctors’ prescriptions
 Parents’ instructions to their children
 Friends giving advice on what course of action to take
 Scolding
 Employers orders to their employees
 Customers making orders

Language Forms
COMMANDS OR IMPERATIVES
 Please come in
 Get a chair
 Take your seat
 Run
RHETORICAL QUESTIONS
 Why don’t we go to the lobby now?
 Can you pass the salt?
 Can I have a moment of silence?
STATEMENTS OR DECLARATIVES
 I want to be alone.
 It’s hot in here.
 You need to hurry.

2. SOCIAL INTERACTION

Social interaction as a function of communication refers to the use of communication to socialize or interact
with other people. The interaction could be positive or negative.
Basic Forms of Social Interaction

 Invitations
 Greetings
 Appreciations
 Encouragement
 Marriage proposals etc.

3. MOTIVATION

Motivation as a function of communication refers to a person using language to express desires, needs, wants,
likes and dislikes, inclinations, choices, and aspirations. Motivation could either be extrinsic or intrinsic. An
individual may communicate within self if he uses intrinsic motivation.

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Basic Forms of Motivation

 Expressing one’s ambitions (I dream of…)

 Talking about preferences (This is good over the other)
 Ordering in a fast food restaurant (I want…)
 Asking for milk (Can I…?)
 Making petitions
 Expressing a need (I need…)

4. INFORMATION

Communication can be used in giving and getting information. In this function of communication, it has to be
two-way. That means that an individual cannot only get information, he has to give also so that there will be
reciprocation. Part of this function is to make sure that the information an individual gives and gets is accurate
and clear.

Basic Forms of Information

GIVING INFORMATION USING STATEMENTS

 I have three sisters

 For every action, there is a reaction.

GIVING INFORMATION USING RHETORICAL QUESTION

 Did you know that some earphones can be used as microphones?

GETTING INFORMATION USING QUESTIONS

 Where is Mrs. Ching?
 Did it rain last night?
 Is it windy outside?

GETTING INFORMATION USING IMPERATIVES

 Show me how to tie a knot.
 Give me information regarding the weather.

GETTING INFORMATION USING DECLARATIVES

 I don’t know where to find the city hall.
 I need to understand how my bill was computed.

5. EMOTIONAL EXPRESSION

Emotional expression as a function of communication refers to the use of expressions such as love, fear, anger,
joy, hope, or any other emotion.

Basic Examples of Emotional Expression

 Yes!
 Oh no!
 Ouch!
 Expletives
 Really?

Lesson 2: Levels of Communication

The classical theory of communication involves four distinct levels: intrapersonal, interpersonal,
group, and cultural. Often the best way to learn about these four levels is to consider examples of each one.
Basically human communication takes place at five levels:

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1. Extrapersonal communication
2. Interpersonal communication
3. Intrapersonal communication
4. Organizational communication (SGDs/BGDs)
5. Public communication
6. Mass communication

Extrapersonal Communication

Communication is a process that takes place with human. entities and non-human entities as well.
When communication is done with non-human entities it is called to be extra personal communication.
The perfect coordination and understanding between human and non—human entities results to extra
personal communication. In this communication one participant of the communication process uses sign
language and the other is verbal.

For example, the bark of a pet dog when something happens to the master, wagging of the tail when
master shows bone to the pet dog, licking of cheek at the returning of master from the work field, chirping of
birds when a stranger is at the door, Parrot calling the name of the master in the morning.

Intrapersonal Communication
Prefix ‘intra’ means ‘within’ hence intrapersonal communication is ‘self talk’. It is the active internal
involvement of the individual in symbolic progressing of messages. The internal thought process keeps on
working even at the sleeping hour. Intrapersonal communication is all about talking to ourselves. We use
phrase like, ‘telling ourselves the truth’ or ‘admitting the truth to ourselves” reflects human self-awareness.
You may be surprised to learn that thinking, writing notes to remind yourself of things you
need to do, and talking to yourself are all forms of intrapersonal communication. In this level of
communication, you are both the person 'sending' and 'receiving' the message. Because you play
this dual role, the chances of misinterpretation or miscommunication are essentially non-existent.
There are various example in our day-to-day life related to intrapersonal communication. Like asking
the solution for the problem, introspecting about any episode in which you should not have done that particular
act, if you are . overweight you see and admit it and then decide to plan a diet for you, if you need to forgive
someone, you’ll have to talk to yourself about it first, etc.
Well, are there barriers to intrapersonal communication?

Interpersonal Communication
It involves two parties-a sender and a receiver who use common language to transit message either
through oral communication or written communication. Talking with another individual, exchanging text
messages or emails, video conferencing, even nonverbal like a shrug of the shoulders or a meaningful glance,
are all examples of interpersonal communication. In order for interpersonal communication to be considered
successful, the person receiving the message has to receive and comprehend the message that the sender
intended to send.

Organizational Communication
In a team-based business organization, communication becomes its lifeblood where people communicate
with one another. The flow of communication inside an organization may filter in up, down and horizontal
directions. Besides internal communication. companies depend on external communication also. Companies
exchange messages with people outside the organization through external communication.

Public Communication
In public communication, a speaker addresses an audience to either inform, persuade, entertain, or do
all three. Public communication is strategic communication used when a person or group of people muster and
share information to a group of people to deliver a message on a specific topic. It is one of the crucial forms of
communication, usually done for a specific purpose.

Mass Communication

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 Newspapers, magazines and periodicals, the means of mass communication. are frequently used for
oral or written communication. Besides, technologies such as the intemet, e-mail. voicemail, faxes, audiotape,
teleconferencing, videoconferencing and closed circuit televisions have increased options for internal and
external communication. These fast means help people from all parts of the world to work together.

However, with the progressing time, mass media has transformed immensely from being a medium of
public communication to becoming a global platform of social communication where people can freely express
themselves. The new technologies and social media platforms have changed the way we perceive the world
around us. Further, this outbreak of innovations and technologies has also boosted the media industry leading
to colossal career opportunities emerging in this field.

Lesson 3: Communication Model

What is a Model?

A model is widely used to depict any idea, thought or a concept in a simpler way through
diagrams, pictorial representations etc. Models go a long way in making the understanding of any
concept easy and clear. Through a model one can easily understand a process and draw conclusions
from it. In simpler words a model makes the learning simple.

6 Types of Communication Model

1. Aristotle’s Model of Communication

Aristotle was the first to take an initiative and design the communication model. Let us first go
through a simple situation.
In a political meeting, the prospective leader delivers speech to the audience urging for more
votes from the constituency. He tries to convince the crowd in the best possible way he can so that he
emerges as a winner. What is he actually doing?

He is delivering his speech in a manner that the listeners would get convinced and cast their
votes only in his favor, or in other words respond in the same manner the speaker wanted to. Here the
leader or the speaker or the sender is the centre of attraction and the crowd simply the passive listeners.

The example actually explains the Aristotle model of communication.

According to this model, the speaker plays a key role in communication. He is the one who
takes complete charge of the communication. The sender first prepares a content which he does by
carefully putting his thoughts in words with an objective of influencing the listeners or the recipients, who
would then respond in the sender’s desired way. No points in guessing that the content has to be very
impressive in this model for the audience or the receivers to get convinced. The model says that the
speaker communicates in such a way that the listeners get influenced and responds accordingly.

The speaker must be very careful about his selection of words and content in this model of
communication. He should understand his target audience and then prepare his speech. Making eye
contact with the second party is again a must to create an impact among the listeners. Let us again go
through the first example. The politician must understand the needs of the people in his constituency like
the need of a shopping mall, better transport system, safety of girls etc and then design his speech. His
speech should address all the above issues and focus on providing the solutions to their problems to
expect maximum votes from them. His tone and pitch should also be loud and clear enough for the
people to hear and understand the speech properly. Stammering, getting nervous in between of a
conversation must be avoided. Voice modulations also play a very important role in creating the desired
effect. Blank expressions, confused looks and similar pitch all through the speech make it monotonous
and nullify its effect. The speaker should know where to lay more stress on, highlight which words to
influence the listeners.

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 One will definitely purchase the mobile handset from that store where the sales man gives
an impressive demo of the mobile. It depends on the sales man what to speak and how to speak in a
manner to influence the listeners so that they respond to him in a way he actually wants i.e. purchase the
handset and increase his billing.

The Aristotle model of communication is the widely accepted and the most common model of
communication where the sender sends the information or a message to the receivers to influence
them and make them respond and act accordingly. Aristotle model of communication is the golden rule
to excel in public speaking, seminars, lectures where the sender makes his point clear by designing an
impressive content, passing on the message to the second part and they simply respond accordingly.
Here the sender is the active member and the receiver is passive one.

2. Berlo’s Model of Communication

While the Aristotle model of communication puts the speaker in the central position and suggests
that the speaker is the one who drives the entire communication, the Berlo’s model of communication takes
into account the emotional aspect of the message. Berlo’s model of communication operates on the SMCR
model.

Let us now study the all the factors in detail:

S – Source

The source in other words also called the sender is the one from whom the thought originates.
He is the one who transfers the information to the receiver after carefully putting his thoughts into words.

How does the source or the sender transfer his information to the recipient?

It is done with the help of communication skills, Attitude, Knowledge, Social System and Culture.
 Communication Skills

An individual must possess excellent communication skills to make his communication

effective and create an impact among the listeners. The speaker must know where to take
pauses, where to repeat the sentences, how to speak a particular sentence, how to pronounce a
word and so on. The speaker must not go on and on. He should also make a point to cross check
with the recipients and listen to their queries as well. An individual must take care of his accent
while communicating. A bad accent leads to a boring conversation.

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  Attitude

It is rightly said that if one has the right attitude, the whole world is at his feet. There is
actually no stopping for the person if he has the right attitude. A person might be a very good
speaker but if he doesn’t have the right attitude, he would never emerge as a winner. The sender
must have the right attitude to create a long lasting impression on the listeners. An individual must
be an MBA from a reputed institute, but he would be lost in the crowd without the right attitude.

 Knowledge

Here knowledge is not related to the educational qualification of the speaker or the
number of degrees he has in his portfolio. Knowledge is actually the clarity of the information
which the speaker wants to convey to the second party. One must be thorough in what he is
speaking with complete in-depth knowledge of the subject. Remember questions can pop up
anytime and you have to be ready with your answers. You need to be totally familiar with what
you are speaking. Before delivering any speech, read as much you can and prepare the subject
completely without ignoring even the smallest detail.

 Social System

Imagine a politician delivering a speech where he proposes to construct a temple in a Muslim

dominated area. What would be the reaction of the listeners? They would obviously be not
interested. Was there any problem in the communication skills of the leader or he didn’t have the right
attitude? The displeasure of the listeners was simply because the speaker ignored the social set up
of the place where he was communicating. He forgot the sentiments, cultural beliefs, religious
feelings of the second party. Had it been a Hindu dominated society, his speech would have been
very impressive.

 Culture

Culture refers to the cultural background of the community or the listeners where the speaker
is communicating or delivering his speech.

M – Message
When an individual converts his thoughts into words, a message is created. The process is
also called as Encoding.

Any message further comprises of the following elements:

 Content
One cannot show his grey matter to others to let him know what he is thinking. A thought has
to be put into words and content has to be prepared. Content is actually the matter or the script of
the conversation. It is in simpler words, the backbone of any communication.

-“We are really exhausted today; let’s have the synchronous class next
meetimng”.

Whatever has been communicated is actually the content of the message. It is very important
for the speaker to carefully choose the words and take good care of the content of the speech. The
content has to be sensible, accurate, crisp, related to the thought to hit the listeners bang on and
create an immediate impact.

 Element
It has been observed that speech alone cannot bring a difference in the communication. Keep
on constantly speaking and the listeners will definitely lose interest after some time. The speech
must be coupled with lots of hand movements, gestures, postures, and facial expressions, body
movements to capture the attention of the listeners and make the speech impressive. Hand
movements, gestures, postures, facial expressions, body movements, gestures all come under the
elements of the message.

 Treatment

Treatment is actually the way one treats his message and is conveys to the listeners. One

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 must understand the importance of the message and must know how to handle it. If a boss wants to
fire any of his employees, he has to be authoritative and can’t express his message in a casual way.
This is referred to as the treatment of the message. One must understand how to present his
message so that the message is conveyed in the most accurate form.

 Structure
A message cannot be expressed in one go. It has to be properly structured in order to convey
the message in the most desired form.

 Code
Enter a wrong code and the locks will never open. Enter a wrong password; you will not be
able to open your email account. In the same way the code has to be correct in the communication.
Your body movements, your language, your expressions, your gestures are actually the codes of the
message and have to be accurate otherwise the message gets distorted and the recipient will never
be able to decode the correct information.

C – Channel
Channel - Channel actually refers to the medium how the information flows from the sender to the
receiver.

 How does one know what the other person is speaking? - Through Hearing.
 How does one know whether the pasta he has ordered is made in white sauce or not? - Through
Tasting.
 How does one know that there is a diversion ahead or it’s a no parking zone? - Through Seeing.
 How will an individual come to know that the food is fresh or stale? How do we find out the
fragrance of aperfume? - Through Smelling.
 How will you find out whether the milk is hot or not? - Through Touching.

All the five senses are the channels which help human beings to communicate with each other.

R – Receiver
When the message reaches the receiver, he tries to understand what the listener actually wants
to convey and then responds accordingly. This is also called as decoding.
The receiver should be on the same platform as the speaker for smooth flow of information and
better understanding of the message. He should possess good communication skills to understand what
the speaker is trying to convey. He should have the right attitude to understand the message in a
positive way. His knowledge should also be at par with the listener and must know about the subject. He
should also be from the same social and cultural background just like the speaker.
There are several loopholes in the Berlo’s model of communication. According to the Berlo’s model
of communication, the speaker and the listener must be on a common ground for smooth conversion
which is sometimes not practical in the real scenario.

3. Shannon and Weaver Model

Shannon and Weaver model is the most popular model of communication and is widely accepted
all over the world.

Let us first go through the following example to understand the model better.

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 Mark Anthony is working as Vice president - Marketing with a reputed multinational firm. He is
currently heading Mike who in turn is taking care of a small team. Mark Anthony wanted Chelsea to
prepare an exhaustive report on marketing strategies which can be employed to achieve the goals of the
organization. He also wanted a detailed study on the competitor’s activity by end of the day. While he
was speaking, the company peon interrupted to take the lunch order. Finally when Chelsea got the
complete information, she in turn delegated the responsibility to his team members. She tried her level
best to convey what Mark Anthony actually expected the team to prepare. At the end of the day, the
team did prepare the report and submitted to Mark Anthony but there were few errors which they rectified
later on.

Let us now understand the example in a more detailed away.

Who is Mark Anthony?

Mark Anthony is actually the person who thought of preparing the detailed report for better output
of the organization. He is actually the one from whom the thought came. It was Mark Anthony’s brain
who came up with this idea of preparing marketing strategies for the organization. Thus Mark Anthony is
actually the source of information.

Had Mark Anthony kept the idea in his mind only without sharing it with his team the organization
would have never been benefited out of it? It is very important for the individual to share his ideas as well
as information with others to make the best possible use of the information. Do you think, Chelsea and
her team would have come to know about Mark Anthony’s idea if he had stored it in his brain only?
Obviously NO. Mark Anthony had to convert his thoughts into words and bring out the information
through his mouth. Here, mouth is actually working as a transmitter which helps in transmitting the
information, message from the brain to the mouth after carefully putting the thought into words. Mark
Anthony spoke about some reports which he wanted from his team, the words or Peter’s voice is actually
the signal being sent to Chelsea about what he is expected to do. Without signal or without content how
will Chelsea know what she is supposed to do? Go through the example once again. The conversation
was interrupted by the peon who came for the lunch order. In the same way signals get interrupted by
various noises and distractions while traveling from the sender and finally reaching to the recipient.
Horns at crowded streets, hustle bustle of the market place, babies wailing, people screaming are all
various types of noises which get coupled with the signal or in other words the information. Finally,
Chelsea could gather all the information from Mark Anthony after ignoring what the peon spoke and
downloaded it to his team who were supposed to prepare the report.

Shannon and weaver model simply proposes that a message actually originates from the person
who gets the thought or has the information. The sender is also called the Source of information or the
Information Source. The information then gets transmitted from the brain to the mouth and comes out as
a signal which then reaches the recipient after joining hands with several noises and other disturbances.
The recipient then further passes on the message to its final destination or other minds of other
individuals.
Let us go through the above example once again. The team did prepare the report but there were
some errors which got rectified later. This is the loophole of Shannon Weaver model. The message while
reaching the final destination might get distorted sometimes as different people interpret messages
in a different way. For Mark Anthony marketing strategy could be branding strategy but for the team
marketing strategies could be simple sales techniques to increase the output. Thus even a simple
message can get a different meaning after finally reaching its destination.

4. Schramm’s Model of Communication

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 After learning the Shannon weaver model, let’s find out about Schramm’s model of
communication which has its roots from the Shannon weaver model itself.

Wilber Schramm proposed the model of communication in 1954.

Information is of no use unless and until it is carefully put into words and conveyed to others.
Encoding plays a very important role because it initiates the process of communication by converting the
thought into content. When the information reaches the recipient his prime responsibility is to understand
what the speaker intends to convey. Unless and until the second party is able to understand or decode
the information what the sender wants to communicate, the message is actually of no use. Thus
encoding and decoding are two most important factors of an effective communication without which
information can never flow between two individuals. Schramm’s model also revolves around the above
principle. According to the Schramm’s model, coding and decoding are the two essential processes of an
effective communication.

He also emphasizes that the communication is incomplete unless and until the sender receives a
feedback from the recipient. Imagine a person sharing his thoughts with his friend and his friend not
responding to him. Is the communication complete? NO. Schramm believed that communication is
actually a two way process between the first party and the second party.
Let us understand more with the help of an example

Trisha to Sigmund -“Will you accompany me for a movie?”

Sigmund kept mum and did not respond and hence the communication between Sigmund and
Trisha was not complete. If Sigmund was not interested for the movie, he could have responded or
given the feedback to Trisha about his unwillingness. According to Schramm’s model, whenever the
information reaches the recipient, it becomes his responsibility to give the feedback and let him know if
he has downloaded the message in exactly the same manner the speaker wanted. If he is not clear with
anything or has any doubts, it must be cleared with the speaker. Thus when the speaker conveys any
message to the listener, the listener, decodes the message and once again passes the message to the
speaker after understanding it and completing the full circle.
Sende
r M↓
↑M
Recei
ver

M - Stands for message

Schramm believed that an individual’s knowledge, experience and cultural background also play
an important role in communication. Individuals from diverse cultures, religion or background tend to
interpret the message in different ways.

Mother(who just went home from 10 years work abroad) to Child –

“Please bring something hot for me to drink as I am suffering from sore throat.”

The child brought her a glass of lukewarm water but the mother actually wanted a cup of hot
chocolate coffee. Hence, different interpretation by the child. He was not on the common grounds with
the mother and failed to understand the mother’s information. It was neither child’s nor the mother’s
fault but actually the differences in both their backgrounds which was to blame.

Go through another example:

John to Teddy -“I get late for my office, please buy me a clock”

Teddy went to a local market and gifted a clock to John and John was never late to office after
that. He could have also misinterpreted the message, then how come he could understand his friend’s
desire? A Clock is always a clock whether Teddy has to bring it or any other individual has to bring it. A
clock can never be confused with a wrist watch or for that matter something else. There are some
messages which are more or less same for everyone. They are called as messages with a Denotative
meaning which are almost the same for all individuals and in such cases chances of misinterpretation
and misunderstanding gets nullified.
Please once again refer to the above situation of John and Teddy and slightly modify the
situation. When John wanted a clock, Teddy brought two clocks for him as he was two concerned for

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John and didn’t want him to get late. In this case John actually wanted a single clock but Teddy brought
his emotional quotient and personal affection in between. Such meanings are called Connotative
meaning which are affected by emotional factors. A message can also get distorted due to wrong body
movements, gestures, facial expressions and many other factors.
To conclude according to this model of communication when a sender passes on the information
to the receiver, the receiver must interpret it in the desired form the sender wants and give him the
feedback or respond accordingly. Any communication where the sender does not get the feedback, the
communication is not complete and thus ineffective.

5. Helical Model of Communication

Another very important model of communication

is the Helical Model of communication. The Helical
Model of communication was proposed by Frank
Dance in 1967 to throw some more light on
communication process.
Dance thought of communication process similar to helix.

What is a helix ?

A Helix is nothing but a smooth curve just like a spring

which if goes upwards also comes downwards. The Helical
model of communication was designed by Frank Dance
keeping the simple Helix in mind.

Let us understand the model with the help of an example.

A child from the very moment he comes to this world starts

communicating. When a baby is born, the nurse rubs his back to make the child cry. If the child doesn’t
cry, it is an indication of a still born child.

What does crying in this case refer to?

It is actually a way the child is communicating to his parents that he is alive, absolutely hale and
hearty and ready to face the challenges of the world. As the child grows up, he cries whenever he is
hungry or expects something from his parents and sometimes simply for his parent’s attention. It is again
a child’s own way of conveying his message to the whole world. When the same child grows up and
starts going to school, he soon interacts with his parents, teachers, friends in the form of words. Now
crying actually gets replaced by words or his speech but one thing which is common is the process of
communication which existed since the child’s birth.

Thus the child actually started communicating from the very first day of his life and has been
communicating all through till the present day. This explains one part of helical model of communication.

According to the Helical model of communication, the process of communication evolves from the
very birth of an individual and continues till the existing moment. All living entities start communicating
from the very first day of their origin. When seeds are planted, they convey the message to the gardener
that they need to be watered daily and should be treated well with fertilizers and manure. When a plant
emerges from the seed it also starts communicating its need for water, sunlight, manure and fertilizers,
thus supporting the Helical model of communication. The same also applies for animals, birds, fishes
and all living creatures.

Now let us throw some more light on a real life situation

An individual in his elementary classes learns to pronounce a particular word or react to a

particular situation. It has been observed that even though the child grows up, he continues to pronounce
that particular word in the same way as he did during his growing up days or for that matter, if the same
situation arises again he would under all circumstances react in the same way as he did in the past. The
fear of the child when suddenly the light goes off at night resulting in a complete blackout is present in
his younger days as well as when he grows up.

The above example again makes the Helical model of communication clear. According to the

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Helical model as the process of communication moves forward it also comes back and is largely
dependent on the past behavior of the individual. The model believes that communication process is just
like a helix which moves forward as well as comes backward and is dependent on the behavior
patterns of the past definitely with some modifications and changes. As the child grows up, he does
make slight changes in his past body movements or past pronunciation or facial expressions. He makes
certain changes, modifications in his communication and tries to get rid of the communication errors. An
individual will definitely get less nervous in his teenage days as compared to his childhood days, thus a
slight change in his behavior.

The Helical model of communication understands communication in a broader perspective and

considers almost all the activities of an individual from day one to till date. It cumulates all the activities
occurring in the complete span of an individual that affects the process of communication, which in turn
goes forward and also depends on the past activities.

Factors that should be considered TO BE A GOOD COMMUNICATOR:

1. How the message is organized?

2. What fields of experience it comes from should be taken into consideration?
3. When it comes to the sender , the best communication is the one that involves feedback
4. There are several kind of “ noise ” that may severely affect the reception of the message
and should be considered and avoided
5. Cultural differences, technology, and interpretation need to be considered as well.
6. One needs to pay attention to how people are responding to the message and adjust
technology, rather than being preoccupied with simply expressing oneself.

Lesson 4: Principles of Communication

completeness

Clarity correctness
consideration concreteness
concision Courtesy

1. Principle of Clarity:

The idea or message to be communicated should be clearly spelt out. It should be worded in
such a way that the receiver understands the same thing which the sender wants to convey. There
should be no ambiguity in the message. It should be kept in mind that the words do not speak
themselves but the speaker gives them the meaning. A clear message will evoke the same
response from the other party. It is also essential that the receiver is conversant with the language,
inherent assumptions, and the mechanics of communication.

2. Principle of Attention:

In order to make communication effective, the receiver’s attention should be drawn towards
message. People are different in behavior, attention, emotions etc. so they may respond differently to
the message. Subordinates should act similarly as per the contents of the message. The acts of a

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 superior also draw the attention of subordinates and they may follow what they observe. For example,
if a superior is very punctual in coming to the office then subordinates will also develop such habits. It
is said that ‘actions speak louder than words.

3. Principle of Feedback:
The principle of feedback is very important to make the communication effective. There
should be feedback information from the recipient to know whether he has understood the message
in the same sense in which the sender has meant it.

4. Principle of Informality:
Formal communication is generally used for transmitting messages and other information.
Sometimes formal communication may not achieve the desired results, informal communication may
prove effective in such situations. Management should use informal communication for assessing the
reaction of employees towards various policies. Senior management may informally convey certain
decisions to the employees for getting their feedback. So this principle states that informal
communication is as important as formal communication.

5. Principle of Consistency:

This principle states that communication should always be consistent with the policies, plans,
programmes and objectives of the organization and not in conflict with them. If the messages and
communications are in conflict with the policies and programmes then there will be confusion in the
minds of subordinates and they may not implement them properly. Such a situation will be
detrimental to the interests of the organization.

6. Principle of Timeliness:

This principle states that communication should be done at proper time so that it helps in
implementing plans. Any delay in communication may not serve any purpose rather decisions
become of historical importance only.

7. Principle of Adequacy:

The information communicated should be adequate and complete in all respects. Inadequate
information may delay action and create confusion. Inadequate information also affects efficiency of
the receiver. So, adequate information is essential for taking proper decisions and making action
plans.

Lesson 5: Communication Ethics

It has been said that ethical communication is fundamental to responsible thinking, decision
making , and the development of relationship and communities within and across contexts , Cultures ,
channels , and media. Ethical communication is a type of communication that is predicated upon certain
business values, such as being truthful, concise, and responsible with one’s words and the resulting
actions. As a set of principles, ethical communication understands that one’s thoughts must be conveyed
and expressed effectively and concisely, and that the resulting actions or consequences will [potentially]
be based solely on how the message was communicated. Thus, ethical communication defines a
framework or set of acceptable communication principles that align with an enterprise’s overarching code
of conduct or code of ethics.

Fundamentals of Ethical Communication

Perhaps the main principle of ethical communication is honesty, as other factors stem from this
core value of presenting information in the most reliable and factual way possible. Any attempt to mislead
or present confusing information is not ethical communication. Additionally, the “honesty” principle of
ethical communication is linked inexorably to other core principles – consistency and responsibility. This
entails that information presented to different parties be consistent, and that short-term and long-term
consequences of honest communication are to be accepted as one’s responsibility.

Ethical communication also assumes that communicated information is always presented (and
received by the listener) according to one’s subjective perception, even if only in the most minimal way,
and thus the goal of ethical communication is to be as objective as possible when communicating with

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 others and to ensure that every recipient receives the same message.

Moreover, ethical communication enhances human worth and dignity by fostering truthfulness,
fairness, responsibility, personal integrity and respect for self and others.
We believe that unethical communication threatens the quality of all communication and
consequently the well-being of individuals and the society in which we live

Four Ethical Principles of Communication

1. Advocate truthfulness, accuracy, honesty, and reason as essential to the integrity of communication.
2. Endorses “Freedom of expression, diversity of perspective, and tolerance of dissent to achieve
the informed and responsible decision-making fundamental to a civil society.
3. States that they “Condemn communication that degrades individuals and humanity
through distortion, intimidation, coercion, and violence and through the expression of
intolerance and hatred”.
4. Lastly, states that communicators should “accept responsibility for the short and long term
consequences of our own communication and expect the same of others”.

Every time we communicate, we should consider the consequences of our actions. If people were
more responsible in their use of communication, there would be less conflict in this world, Even though
the four principles above are short and concise they are important, because they help us discern
between ethical and unethical communicators.

References:

Agravante and Buenaventura. 2020 Speech Communication. UP Open University

https://www.managementstudyguide.com/seven-cs-of-effective-communication.htm

https://leverageedu.com/blog/types-of-mass-communication/

pdf.coffeemodules

https://paradoxmarketing.io/capabilities/knowledge-management/insights/ethical-communication-the-
basic-principles/

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