F. Y. B. C. A.

SEMESTER- 1

COMMUNICATION SKILLS IN ENGLISH

UNIT – 2 DEVELOPING LISTENING SKILLS

TOPIC: Listening Skills

SOURCE: https://www.skillsyouneed.com/ips/listening-skills.html

Listening is the ability to accurately receive and interpret messages in the communication
process.

Listening is a key to all effective communication. Without the ability to listen effectively,
messages are easily misunderstood. As a result, communication breaks down and the sender of
the message can easily become frustrated or irritated.

If there is one communication skill you should aim to master, then listening is it.

Listening is so important that many top employers provide listening skills training for their
employees. This is not surprising when you consider that good listening skills can lead to better
customer satisfaction, greater productivity with fewer mistakes, and increased sharing of
information that in turn can lead to more creative and innovative work.

Many successful leaders and entrepreneurs credit their success to effective listening skills.
Richard Branson frequently quotes listening as one of the main factors behind the success of
Virgin.

Effective listening is a skill that underpins all positive human relationships.

Spend some time thinking about and developing your listening skills – they are the building
blocks of success.

Good listening skills also have benefits in our personal lives, including:

A greater number of friends and social networks, improved self-esteem and confidence, higher
grades at school and in academic work, and even better health and general well-being.

Studies have shown that, whereas speaking raises blood pressure, attentive listening can bring it
down.

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Listening is not the same as Hearing

Hearing refers to the sounds that enter your ears. It is a physical process that, provided you do
not have any hearing problems, happens automatically.

Listening, however, requires more than that: it requires focus and concentrated effort, both
mental and sometimes physical as well.

Listening means paying attention not only to the story, but how it is told, the use of language and
voice, and how the other person uses his or her body. In other words, it means being aware of
both verbal and non-verbal messages. Your ability to listen effectively depends on the degree to
which you perceive and understand these messages.

Listening is not a passive process. In fact, the listener can, and should, be at least as engaged in
the process as the speaker. The phrase ‘active listening’ is used to describe this process of being
fully involved.

“The most basic and powerful way to connect to another person is to listen. Just listen. Perhaps
the most important thing we ever give each other is our attention”. Dr. Rachel Naomi Remen

We spend a lot of time Listening

Adults spend an average of 70% of their time engaged in some sort of communication.

Of this, research shows that an average of 45% is spent listening compared to 30% speaking,
16% reading and 9% writing. (Adler, R. et al. 2001). That is, by any standards, a lot of time
listening. It is worthwhile, therefore, taking a bit of extra time to ensure that you listen
effectively.

Based on the research of: Adler, R., Rosenfeld, L. and Proctor, R. (2001)

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Interplay: the process of interpersonal communicating (8th edn), Fort Worth, TX: Harcourt.

The Purpose of Listening

There is no doubt that effective listening is an extremely important life skill. Why is listening so
important?

Listening serves a number of possible purposes, and the purpose of listening will depend on the
situation and the nature of the communication.

• To specifically focus on the messages being communicated, avoiding distractions and

preconceptions.

• To gain a full and accurate understanding into the speakers’ point of view and ideas.

• To critically assess what is being said. (See our page on Critical Thinking for more).

• To observe the non-verbal signals accompanying what is being said to enhance

understanding.

• To show interest, concern and concentration.

• To encourage the speaker to communicate fully, openly and honestly.

• To develop a selflessness approach, putting the speaker first.

• To arrive at a shared and agreed understanding and acceptance of both sides’ views.

Often our main concern while listening is to formulate ways to respond. This is not a function of
listening. We should try to focus fully on what is being said and how it's being said in order to
more fully understand the speaker.

Effective listening requires concentration and the use of your other senses - not just hearing the
words spoken.

Listening is not the same as hearing and in order to listen effectively you need to use more than
just your ears.

Barriers to Effective Listening

To improve the process of effective listening, it can be helpful to turn the problem on its head
and look at barriers to effective listening, or ineffective listening.

For example, one common problem is that instead of listening closely to what someone is saying,
we often get distracted after a sentence or two and instead start to think about what we are going

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to say in reply or think about unrelated things. This means that we do not fully listen to the rest
of the speaker’s message.

This problem is attributed, in part, to the difference between average speech rate and average
processing rate. Average speech rates are between 125 and 175 words a minute whereas we can
process on average between 400 and 800 words a minute. It is a common habit for the listener to
use the spare time while listening to daydream or think about other things, rather than focusing
on what the speaker is saying.

Of course the clarity of what the speaker is saying can also affect how well we listen. Generally
we find it easier to focus if the speaker is fluent in their speech, has a familiar accent, and speaks
at an appropriate loudness for the situation. It is more difficult, for example, to focus on
somebody who is speaking very fast and very quietly, especially if they are conveying complex
information.

We may also get distracted by the speaker’s personal appearance or by what someone else is
saying, which sounds more interesting.

These issues not only affect you, but you are likely to show your lack of attention in your body
language.

Generally, we find it much harder to control our body language, and you are likely to show your
distraction and/or lack of interest by lack of eye contact, or posture. The speaker will detect the
problem, and probably stop talking at best. At worse, they may be very offended or upset.

Finally, it is important not to jump to conclusions about what you see and hear. You should
always seek clarification to ensure that your understanding is correct.

TOPIC: PROCESS OF LISTENING

SOURCE: https://www.skillsyouneed.com/ips/effective-listening.html

Effective Listening Skills

It is generally agreed that listening is not the same as hearing. Hearing is, of course, an essential
part of listening. However, listening goes beyond simply hearing, and is described as an active
process of taking in information, remembering and interpreting it, and then acting on it.

We can define effective listening as a process by which information is heard, understood,

interpreted and then acted upon—in a way that matches the speaker’s intent. In other words, for
listening to be effective, it must deliver the result that the speaker intended.

This page describes one model of effective listening, the HURIER model. This may be a useful
way of thinking about all the steps involved in effective listening.

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The HURIER model of Effective Listening

We all accept that listening goes far beyond simply hearing. However, what do we really
mean by effective listening, and what does it include?

The acronym HURIER is sometimes used in academic texts to summarise a model of effective
listening skills. This model was developed by Judi Brownell of Cornell University.

The model describes seven areas that are part of effective listening:

H – Hearing

‘Hearing’ is used here in a very broad sense to describe how you take in information when
someone speaks.

This may include both visual and auditory information, and even touch.
Hearing therefore covers the physical act of hearing, using your ears. However, it also includes
visual information, such as how you detect and pick up on non-verbal and other signals,
including tone of voice, body language and facial expressions. People may also use touch as a
way to emphasise particularly important points. This is especially true in close personal
relationships.

U – Understanding

Once the message has been ‘heard’, the next step is to understand.

This means bringing together all the information that you have gathered from the element of
‘hearing’ to create a coherent understanding of what was communicated.
Factors like language and accent may affect your understanding—and this goes far beyond the
factor of whether you share a native language. For example, a particular choice of words may
convey very different information to people brought up in different areas, or at different times.
The use of cultural references such as children’s television can also create a common language
that allows people to communicate in ways that go beyond the words chosen.
It is therefore always worth checking back with the speaker to ensure that you have understood
their message correctly. Techniques such as clarifying, questioning and reflecting are all ways
to ensure that you have understood correctly, as well as showing that you have been listening.

R – Remembering

An effective listener needs to be able to remember the message they are receiving in its
entirety.

It is no good listening and then instantly forgetting what you have heard and understood. You
have to be able to retain and use the information.

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Remembering requires focus, and is a skill in itself. Experts suggest that you may retain
information in either your short-term or long-term memory. However, these two types of
memory often have little to do with time. Instead, short-term memory is where you keep
information while you are using it. It is often known as ‘working memory’. Long-term memory
is where you store information that you think is worth keeping. Remembering information to
which you have listened is therefore a matter of using both short- and long-term memory.

I – Interpreting

The next step in the process of listening is interpreting the message.

This builds on, and enhances, understanding. Interpretation means considering factors such as
the context in which the message was sent or received, including any biases of the speaker that
may affect the meaning and purpose.

Importantly, the listener also needs to be aware of, and avoid, any preconceptions or biases of
their own that may affect how they interpret the message.

As with developing understanding, it is important to understand any cultural and intercultural

issues that may affect both the ‘coding’ of the message and your interpretation of it.

E – Evaluating

Evaluating is the process of assessing all the information collected via the listening process,
and then deciding what to do with it.

This means waiting until you have all the necessary information before you develop a response.
Here, responses include your reaction to it, as well as what you actually say in response.
Evaluating therefore requires listeners to keep an open mind about the messages they are
receiving. It is important not to jump to conclusions about what is being said. Instead, you have
to evaluate all the information before you start to formulate a response.
TOP TIP!

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R – Responding

The final element of listening is responding.

Your response should be measured and demonstrate that you have understood what was
communicated. It may be necessary to use techniques such as clarification and reflection as part
of the response.

A response ‘closes’ the immediate episode of speaking and listening. However, it is

important to remember that a response does not necessarily end the communication
process.

Your response may well result in the other person saying more—and then you will need to repeat
the process of listening again. Communication is an ongoing process of transmitting and
receiving messages: of speaking and listening.

In Conclusion

It is vital to remember that listening is an active process—and considerably more than simply
hearing. It encompasses all the processes required to make an effective response, up to and
including responding itself. All these processes require a range of skills, which explains why it
takes time and effort to develop your listening skills. However, this time and effort will be repaid
over and over again in improved interpersonal communication and relationships.

TOPIC: TYPES OF LISTENING

SOURCE: https://www.skillsyouneed.com/ips/listening-types.html

Most people, most of the time, take listening for granted, it’s something that just happens. It is
only when you stop to think about listening and what it entails that you begin to realise that
listening is in fact an important skill that needs to be nurtured and developed.

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Listening is perhaps the most important of all interpersonal skills. Effective listening is very
often the foundation of strong relationships with others, at home, socially, in education and in the
workplace.

This page draws on the work of Wolvin and Coakely (1996) and others to examine the various
types of listening.

Listening: the process of receiving, constructing meaning from, and responding to spoken
and/or non-verbal messages. – International Listening Association.

General Listening Types:

The two main types of listening - the foundations of all listening sub-types are:
Discriminative Listening
Comprehensive Listening

 Discriminative Listening

Discriminative listening is first developed at a very early age – perhaps even before birth, in the
womb. This is the most basic form of listening and does not involve the understanding of the
meaning of words or phrases but merely the different sounds that are produced. In early
childhood, for example, a distinction is made between the sounds of the voices of the parents –
the voice of the father sounds different to that of the mother.
Discriminative listening develops through childhood and into adulthood. As we grow older and
develop and gain more life experience, our ability to distinguish between different sounds is
improved. Not only can we recognise different voices, but we also develop the ability to
recognise subtle differences in the way that sounds are made – this is fundamental to ultimately
understanding what these sounds mean. Differences include many subtleties, recognising
foreign languages, distinguishing between regional accents and clues to the emotions and
feelings of the speaker.

Being able to distinguish the subtleties of sound made by somebody who is happy or sad, angry
or stressed, for example, ultimately adds value to what is actually being said and, of course, does
aid comprehension. When discriminative listening skills are combined with visual stimuli, the
resulting ability to ‘listen’ to body-language enables us to begin to understand the speaker more
fully – for example recognising somebody is sad despite what they are saying or how they are
saying it.

Example

Imagine yourself surrounded by people who are speaking a language that you cannot
understand. Perhaps passing through an airport in another country, you can probably distinguish
between different voices, male and female, young and old and also gain some understanding
about what is going on around you based on the tone of voice, mannerisms and body language of
the other people. You do not understand what is being said but using discriminative listening to
gain some level of comprehension of your surroundings.

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  Comprehensive Listening

Comprehensive listening involves understanding the message or messages that are being
communicated. Like discriminative listening, comprehensive listening is fundamental to all
listening sub-types.

In order to be able use comprehensive listening and therefore gain understanding the listener first
needs appropriate vocabulary and language skills. Using overly complicated language or
technical jargon, therefore, can be a barrier to comprehensive listening. Comprehensive listening
is further complicated by the fact that two different people listening to the same thing may
understand the message in two different ways. This problem can be multiplied in a group
setting, like a classroom or business meeting where numerous different meanings can be derived
from what has been said.

Comprehensive listening is complimented by sub-messages from non-verbal communication,

such as the tone of voice, gestures and other body language. These non-verbal signals can
greatly aid communication and comprehension but can also confuse and potentially lead to
misunderstanding. In many listening situations it is vital to seek clarification and use skills such
as reflection aid comprehension.

Specific Listening Types

Discriminative and comprehensive listening are prerequisites for specific listening types.
Listening types can be defined by the goal of the listening.

The three main types of listening most common in interpersonal communication are:

1. Informational Listening (Listening to Learn)

2. Critical Listening (Listening to Evaluate and Analyse)
3. Therapeutic or Empathetic Listening (Listening to Understand Feeling and Emotion)

In reality you may have more than one goal for listening at any given time – for example, you
may be listening to learn whilst also attempting to be empathetic.

1. Informational Listening

Whenever you listen to learn something, you are engaged in informational listening. This is true
in many day-to-day situations, in education and at work, when you listen to the news, watch a
documentary, when a friend tells you a recipe or when you are talked-through a technical
problem with a computer – there are many other examples of informational listening too.

Although all types of listening are ‘active’ – they require concentration and a conscious effort to
understand. Informational listening is less active than many of the other types of listening. When
we’re listening to learn or be instructed we are taking in new information and facts, we are not
criticising or analysing. Informational listening, especially in formal settings like in work

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meetings or while in education, is often accompanied by note taking – a way of recording key
information so that it can be reviewed later. (See Note-Taking for more information.)

2. Critical Listening

We can be said to be engaged in critical listening when the goal is to evaluate or scrutinise what
is being said. Critical listening is a much more active behaviour than informational listening and
usually involves some sort of problem solving or decision making. Critical listening is akin to
critical reading; both involve analysis of the information being received and alignment with what
we already know or believe. Whereas informational listening may be mostly concerned with
receiving facts and/or new information - critical listening is about analysing opinion and making
a judgement.

When the word ‘critical’ is used to describe listening, reading or thinking it does not necessarily
mean that you are claiming that the information you are listening to is somehow faulty or flawed.
Rather, critical listening means engaging in what you are listening to by asking yourself
questions such as, ‘what is the speaker trying to say?’ or ‘what is the main argument being
presented?’, ‘how does what I’m hearing differ from my beliefs, knowledge or opinion?’.
Critical listening is, therefore, fundamental to true learning.

Many day-to-day decisions that we make are based on some form of ‘critical’ analysis, whether
it be critical listening, reading or thought. Our opinions, values and beliefs are based on our
ability to process information and formulate our own feelings about the world around us as well
as weigh up the pros and cons to make an informed decision.

It is often important, when listening critically, to have an open-mind and not be biased by
stereotypes or preconceived ideas. By doing this you will become a better listener and broaden
your knowledge and perception of other people and your relationships.

3. Therapeutic or Empathic Listening

Empathic listening involves attempting to understand the feelings and emotions of the speaker –
to put yourself into the speaker’s shoes and share their thoughts.

Empathy is a way of deeply connecting with another person and therapeutic or empathic
listening can be particularly challenging. Empathy is not the same as sympathy, it involves more
than being compassionate or feeling sorry for somebody else – it involves a deeper connection –
a realisation and understanding of another person’s point of view.

Counsellors, therapists and some other professionals use therapeutic or empathic listening to
understand and ultimately help their clients. This type of listening does not involve making
judgements or offering advice but gently encouraging the speaker to explain and elaborate on
their feelings and emotions. Skills such as clarification and reflection are often used to help
avoid misunderstandings.

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We are all capable of empathic listening and may practise it with friends, family and colleagues.
Showing empathy is a desirable trait in many interpersonal relationships – you may well feel
more comfortable talking about your own feelings and emotions with a particular person. They
are likely to be better at listening empathetically to you than others, this is often based on similar
perspectives, experiences, beliefs and values – a good friend, your spouse, a parent or sibling for
example.

Other Listening Types

Although usually less important or useful in interpersonal relationships there are other types of
listening, these include:

Appreciative Listening
Appreciative listening is listening for enjoyment. A good example is listening to music,
especially as a way to relax.

Rapport Listening
When trying to build rapport with others we can engage in a type of listening that encourages the
other person to trust and like us. A salesman, for example, may make an effort to listen carefully
to what you are saying as a way to promote trust and potentially make a sale. This type of
listening is common in situations of negotiation.

Selective Listening
This is a more negative type of listening, it implies that the listener is somehow biased to what
they are hearing. Bias can be based on preconceived ideas or emotionally difficult
communications. Selective listening is a sign of failing communication – you cannot hope to
understand if you have filtered out some of the message and may reinforce or strengthen your
bias for future communications.

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