VERBAL AND NON-VERBAL

COMMUNICATIONS AAMIR AQEEL

COMMUNICATION PROCESS
PAST
THIS ERA
VERBAL COMMUNICATION
Verbal communication is the use of auditory language to exchange information
with other people. It includes sounds, words, or speaking. The tone, volume, and
pitch of one's voice can all contribute to effective verbal communication.
VERBAL COMMUNICATION
We may often think that, having good communication skills is all
about the ability to speak well…..
Or all about “SPEAKING.”
But only 50% right.
Because….
Verbal Communication has another very important part……
“LISTENING”.
“Speaking” + “Listening” = “Verbal Communication.”
BROADLY, LISTENING MAY BE
CLASSIFIED INTO…
Sympathetic Listening
Empathetic Listening
SYMPATHETIC LISTENING…

In sympathetic listening we
care about the other person and
show this concern in the way
we pay close attention and
express our sorrow for their ills
and happiness at their joys.
In other words there is
“sharing” of feelings.
EXAMPLE FOR SYMPATHETIC
LISTENING…
On your way back from office, you slip and fall and hurt your
back. When you reach home your family members “Feel” for you.
They “share” your hurt feelings and maybe even shed a tear in
sympathy.
EMPATHETIC LISTENING…
When we listen empathetically, we go beyond sympathy to seek a
truer understanding of how others are feeling. When we are being
truly empathetic, we actually acknowledge what they are feeling.
EXAMPLE FOR EMPATHETIC
LISTENING …
On your way back from university, you slip and fall and hurt your
back. You visit your doctor.
Your doctor does not share your feelings.
He does not reject or trifle your feelings, but on the contrary, he
acknowledges your feelings totally and treats you for your
injuries.
Here, there is no “sharing” of feelings, but acknowledgement of
“feelings.”
SPEAKING CONSISTS OF TWO
PARTS…
1) “What to Speak.”
and
2) “How to Speak.”
“WHAT TO SPEAK.”

Content development:
The first step is Brainstorming.
The next step is to choose a Presentation Format/ Storage
System.
The Final step is the Presentation itself.
BRAIN STORMING…
Individual Brainstorming is the process of you getting your ideas
out on paper.
The idea is to put down all of / most of your ideas on paper. This
has two advantages.
1.It encourages the unrestricted flow of thoughts.
2.It facilitates the strategic or comparative evaluation of your
ideas.
PUTTING THEM ALL
TOGETHER…
Now that we know what we are going to speak, we need to put down all
our ideas in the most presentable manner.
We need a Format as per which we may present these Ideas.
We may call it a
Presentation/Display Format or a Storage System.
NEED FOR STORAGE
SYSTEMS…
Asked a question,
“Do we forget due to nervousness or Do we get nervous due to
forgetting?”

“What if you had to recite the alphabet in front of an audience?”

“would you get nervous?” … “Obviously Not!”

Or…
WHY DO WE GET NERVOUS?
Nervousness does not cause as much Forgetting as…..
Forgetting causes Nervousness.
*One of the main causes of Nervousness is “Forgetting”, or
rather, “The Fear of Forgetting”.

*In other words, we would not get nervous if we knew for

certain that we would not forget…our lines.
SO, TO PREVENT
FORGETTING, WE NEED …
A Good Storage System or A Good Retrieval System….
A Good Storage System or Display Format, also makes it easy
for our listeners to understand our Ideas easily.
Let us check out a few of these “Filing Systems.”
STORAGE SYSTEM 1
IBC…Introduction, Body, Conclusion format…
1.Introduce the Topic or what you are going to say.
2.In the Body, add a few Supporting ideas to build further.
3.End with appropriate Conclusion.
STORAGE SYSTEM 2
WHPI…
1.What… Begin with the End/Conclusion….
2.How….How do we support the Conclusion..
3.Prove It…. Using examples/Case Studies/Statistics.
4.Conclude with… I hope I have been able to…..(use conclusion used
in the beginning).
“HOW TO SPEAK.”
Guidelines…
Speed
Clarity
Punctuation
Pronunciation
Familiarity
Fluency
Expression
SPEED
Speed….number of words per minute.
While Most Pakistani speak at 170 to 180
wpm,
their foreign counterparts speak at 110 to
120 wpm.

Slowing down on rate of speech is the

first step towards better speech.
CLARITY
Clarity…if audible & free of
distortion.
Speech should be loud enough to carry
to all the listeners.
Voice Clarity can be mastered with
regular practice.
PRONUNCIATION
Pronunciation….
Always remember that English is not "phonetic". That means that
we do not always say a word the same way that we spell it.
Use a Good Dictionary or work with your Trainer to Correct
pronunciation.
PUNCTUATION
Punctuation…use of various kinds of pauses.
Pause at Full Stops.
Pause at Commas.
Pause at Semi colons.
Pause at Interjection marks.
Pause at Question marks.
FAMILIARITY
Familiarity with words
used.
Learning new words…
Using known words in new
contexts…
Understanding contexts and
situations before reading
again..
FLUENCY
Fluency…Able to express easily.
Developing Fluency is a matter of having all the other parameters
in place.
Fluency indicates that a comfortable working ability with the
language has been established.
EXPRESSION
Expression…transforming of ideas into words
Expression of different feelings with words,word stress, tone,
pitch and inflection.
NONVERBAL
COMMUNICATION
Non-verbal communication is communication between people through non-verbal
or visual cues. This includes gestures, facial expressions, body movement, timing,
touch, and anything else that communicates without speaking.
TYPES OF NONVERBAL
COMMUNICATION
Posture & Gestures
Face & Eyes
Voice
Touch
Clothing
Distance
Time
Territoriality
Environment
POSTURE & GESTURES
Kinesics (study of body movement)
Posture is a rich channel for conveying nonverbal com.

Note: Posture echoes (mirroring of subject else’s posture can have

positive effects)
FACE & EYES (OCCULISTICS)
Probably the most noticed parts of the body
Ekman & Friesen have identified six basic emotions that facial
expressions reflect:
Surprise
Fear
Anger
Disgust
Happiness
Sadness
VOICE
Paralanguage (nonverbal, vocal messages)
E.g. Sarcasm (emphasis and tone of voice can change a
statement’s meaning)
Research shows that listeners pay more attention to the vocal
messages than to the words that are spoken) and vocal message
carries more weight
Voice communicates through:
Speed
Volume
Pitch
Number/length of pauses
Disfluencies/exclamations (er, um, ah..)
TOUCH (HAPTICS)
Touch plays an important role
Consider males and females
DRESSING
Besides protecting us from the elements, clothing is a means of nonverbal
com.
We make assumptions about people based on clothing
Messages it can convey:
 Economic status
 Educational level
 Social status
 Moral standards
 Athletic ability and other interests
 Belief system (political, philosophical, religious)
 Level of sophistication
DISTANCE (PROXEMICS)
Distance zones (Edward hall)
Intimate distance (begins with skin contact -0.5 Meter) people are
emotionally close. Allowing people in this zone is a sign of trust
Personal distance (1.2 Meter). Most couples stand in public
Social distance (3 Meter). Business situations. More formal and
impersonal situations
Public distance (+ 4-5 Meter)
ENVIRONMENT
The physical environment people create can both reflect and shape
interaction
E.g. our home’s style can communicate things about us
E.g. furniture in fast food restaurants designed to be
uncomfortable
DIFFERENCE BTW VERBAL &
NONVERBAL COMM
Single vs Multiple Channels
Discrete vs Continuous
Conscious vs Unconscious
Clear vs Ambiguous
SINGLE VS MULTIPLE
CHANNELS
In Verbal Com.
 emphasis on orderly and sequential (one word after the other)
In Nonverbal Com.
messages bombard us simultaneously from a multitude of
channels (facial expressions, posture, gesture, clothing, proxemics
etc)
DISCRETE VS CONTINUOUS
Verbal messages usually have clear beginnings and endings
Nonverbal com. provides a constant flow of messages (continuous
and never ending)
Remember that “Nothing never happens” (even an unanswered
call or email is a message)
CONSCIOUS VS
UNCONSCIOUS
In Verbal Com. Usually think about what we want to say before
speaking
Most nonverbal messages aren’t deliberate (that’s why it offers so
many cues as how one is feeling)
CLEAR VS AMBIGUOUS
Verbal com can be confusing
Nonverbal even more vague
ILLUSTRATORS &
REGULATORS
Body Movement indicates attitude, conveys feelings and serves as
illustrators and regulators
Illustrators are nonverbal movements that accompany and
illustrate verbal communication
Regulators are nonverbal cues that monitor or control the speaking
of another individual
INDICATORS
You say to the store attendant "I want that one," and point to the
dress in the display window. You nod your head up and down to
indicate yes and shake it back and forth to indicate no. In other
words you imitate the movement you are verbally describing.
REGULATORS
While listening to a person you nod your head to indicate that you
understand and are in agreement with the speaker. You look away
or yawn to indicate that you are bored or would like for the
speaker to stop talking. You frown or raise your eyebrows to
indicate to the speaker that you either don't believe them or that
you don't understand.
EXERCISE: LOOK AT THESE PHYSICAL
ACTIONS. ARE THEY ACCEPTABLE IN
YOUR NATIONAL CULTURE?
Smoking Scratching your head
Touching someone on the arm as you Crossing your arms
speak to them
Looking someone straight in the eyes Putting your feet on the table
for 5’’ or more
Sitting with your legs wide apart Not looking at sb when you speak to
them
Adjusting your clothing: tie, bra, trouser Yawning
belt
Moving close to sb Whispering to a colleague
Standing with hands on hips Nodding your head emphatically
Laughing loudly Blowing your nose