What is

COMMUNICATION?
It occurs between humans
It is a process
It is symbolic
Different communication
 Bees instruct their hive-mates by a meaning-
laden dance.

 Chimpanzees have been taught to express

themselves with the same sign language used
by deaf humans.
 dolphins, ants communicates among

themselves
Where does communication occur

 Family members, co-worker, and friends talks

abut relationships
 Business people talk about “office

communications systems”
 Scientists study and describe communication

among animals
 Certain organizations label themselves

“communications conglomerates, publishing

newspapers ,books , and magazines and owning
radio and television.
Definition of communication:
Communication refers to the process of human
beings responding to the symbolic behavior
of other persons.
So, communication is human and we are
concerned about the verbal communication
which occurs among people.
Communication Is a Process
 communication is a continuous, ongoing
process.
Ex: Appreciation of appearance between two
friends
 Communication is like a motion picture in

which the meaning comes from the unfolding

of an interrelated series of images.
Communication Is Symbolic
 Symbols are used to represent things,
processes, ideas, or events in ways that make
communication possible.
 Symbols are arbitrary in nature.

Ex: the word book in English (stand for the

object we read)
In Spanish - libro, and in German Buch.
Communication and Communications
Traditionally, communications has been used
when referring to activities involving
technology and the mass media.
Communication is typically
used to describe face-to-face and written
messages, as well as the field as a whole.
With the growth of communication
technology, the two terms are being used
interchangeably more often.
Why do we communicate?
Communication helps satisfy a number of
needs in our lives:
 Physical needs
 Identity needs
 Social needs
 Practical needs
Physical Needs

Research demonstrates the importance of having satisfying personal

relationships. Remember: Not everyone needs the same amount of
contact, and
the quality of communication is almost certainly as important as the
quantity.
The important point here is that personal communication is essential
for our
well-being
 Physical needs
 People who lack strong relationships have two to three times the risk of early
death, regardless of whether they smoke, drink alcoholic beverages, or
exercise regularly.

 Terminal cancer strikes socially isolated people more often than those who
have close personal relationships.

 Divorced, separated, and widowed people are five to ten times more likely to
need hospitalization for mental problems than their married counterparts.

 Pregnant women under stress and without supportive relationships have three
times more complications than pregnant women who suffer from the same
stress but have strong social support.

 Socially isolated people are four times more susceptible to the common cold
than those who have active social networks.
 Identity Needs
 Communication does more than enable us to survive. It is
the way—indeed, the
only way—we learn who we are.
 Communication does more than enable us to survive. It is
the way—indeed, the only way—we learn who we are. As
you’ll read in Chapter 2,our sense of identity comes from
the way we interact with other people. Are we smart or
stupid, attractive or ugly, skillful or inept? The answers to
these questions don’t come from looking in the mirror.
We decide who we are based on how others react to us.
 Deprived of communication with others, we would have
no sense of identity
 Identity Needs
 Some scholars have argued that we are most
attracted to people who confirm our identity.
This confirmation can come in different
forms, depending on the self-image of the
communicator.
 People with relatively high self-esteem seek

out others who confirm their value and, as

much as possible, avoid those who treat them
poorly.
 Identity Needs
 Of course, relationships can change a communicator’s
identity as well as confirm it Supportive relationships can
transform feelings of inadequacy into self-respect, and
damaging ones can lower self-esteem.

 The role of communication in shaping identity works in a

second way. Besides others' messages shaping who we
think we are, the messages we create often are attempts
(some more conscious than others) to get others to view
us the way we want to be seen. For example, the choices
we make about how to dress and otherwise shape our
appearance are almost always attempts to manage our
identity.
 Identity needs
 Conversely, people who regard themselves as
unworthy may look for relationships in which
others treat them badly. This principle offers
 one explanation for why some people

maintain damaging or unsuccessful

relationships. If you view yourself as a loser,
you may associate with others who will
confirm that self-perception.
 Social Needs
Communication provides a vital link with others .A range
of social needs we satisfy by communicating: pleasure
(e.g.," because it’s fun,”“to have a good time”); affection
(e.g.," to help others”“to let others know I care”); inclusion
(e.g.," because I need someone to talk to or be
with,”“because it makes me less lonely”); escape
(e.g., "to put off doing something I should be
doing”);relaxation (e.g., "because it allows me to
unwind”); and control (e.g., "because I want someone to
do something for me,”“to get something I don’t have”).
 Social Needs
 As you look at this list of social needs for
communicating, imagine how empty your life
would be if these needs weren’t satisfied. Then
notice that it would be impossible to fulfill them
without communicating with others. Because
relationships with others are so vital, some
theorists have gone as far as to argue that
communication is the primary goal of human
existence. Anthropologist Walter Goldschmidt
terms the drive for meeting social needs as
the “human career.”
 Practical Needs
 Communication is the tool that lets us tell the
hair stylist to take just a little off the sides,
direct the doctor to where it hurts, and
inform the plumber that the broken pipe
needs attention now!
 Practical Needs
 Communication is an important key to effectiveness
in a variety of everyday settings. For example, a
survey of over four hundred employers identified
“communication skills”as the top characteristic that
employers seek in job candidates.15 It was rated as
more important than technical competence, work
experience, or academic background. In another
survey, over 90 percent of the personnel officials at
five hundred U.S. businesses stated that increased
communication skills are needed for success in the
twenty-first century.16
Good Communicator
A good communicator needs competence
which is
 Situational
 Relational
 It can be learned
Levels of communication
6 Levels of Communication

 Interpersonal/ Dydactic
 Extra personal
 Intrapersonal
 Organizational
 Mass Communication
 Cross cultural
Dyadic/Interpersonal Communication
When two persons are interacting is called a dyad,
and the term dyadic communication refers
To the interpersonal communication.
 Qualitatively interpersonal communication occurs when

people treat one another as unique individuals, regardless of

the context in which the interaction occurs or the number of
people involved .
 The impersonal nature of some two-person exchanges has

led some scholars to say that quality(Impersonal)’not

quantity, is what distinguishes interpersonal communication.
 Qualities that characterize interpersonal communication

aren’t limited to twosomes. They can be present in

threesomes or even in small groups.
Interpersonal Relationship
Mediated relationships conducted via e-mail,
instant messaging and telephone pass the
test of being contextually interpersonal.
what about their quality?
Intrapersonal Communication
 The role of intrapersonal communication can be understood by
imagining your thoughts in each of the following situations.

 You are planning to approach a stranger whom you would like

to get to know better. You pause a minute and look at the
audience before beginning a ten-minute speech.

 The boss yawns while you are asking for a raise. A friend seems
irritated lately, and you’re not sure whether you are responsible.

 The way you handle all of these situations would depend on the
intrapersonal communication that precedes or accompanies
your overt behavior
 Intrapersonal Communication

 Intrapersonal communication means

“communicating with oneself.
 We don’t always think in verbal terms, but

whether the process is apparent or not, the

way we mentally process information
influences our interaction with, even though
intrapersonal communication doesn’t fit the
“face-toface” element of our definition of
communication, it does affect those forms
ofinteraction
Content and Relational Messages
 Virtually every verbal statement contains two kinds
of messages. Content messages, which focus on the
subject being discussed, are the most obvious. The
content of such statements as “It’s your turn to do
the dishes” or “I’m busy Saturday night” is obvious.
 Content messages aren’t the only kind that are
exchanged when two people interact. In addition,
virtually all communication—both verbal and
nonverbal—contains relational messages, which
make statements about how the parties feel toward
one another.
Relational Messages
 The relational messages express communicators’ feelings
and attitudes involving one or more dimensions:
 AFFINITY :One dimension of relational communication is
affinity; the degree to which people like or appreciate one
another.
 RESPECT: Respect is the degree to which we admire others
and hold them in esteem.
 IMMEDIACY : Communication scholars use the term
immediacy to describe the degree of interest and attraction
we feel toward and communicate to others.
 CONTROL In every conversation and every relationship
 there is some distribution of control: the amount
 of influence communicators seek.
Metacommunication
 Social scientists use the term met
communication to describe messages that
refer to other messages. In other words, met
communication is communication about
communication. Whenever we discuss a
relationship with others, we are met
communicating: “It sounds like you’re angry
at me” or “I appreciate how honest you’ve
been.” Met communication is an essential
ingredient in successful relationships.
Metacommunication
 Met communication is an important method
of solving conflicts in a constructive manner.
It provides a way to shift discussion from the
content level to relational questions, where
the problem often lies.
 Met communication isn’t just a tool for

handling problems. It is also a way to

reinforce the good aspects of a relationship:“
 Mass Communication

Mass communication consists of messages that

are transmitted to large, widespread
audiences via electronic and print media:
newspapers, magazines, television, radio, and so
on.
 Mass messages are aimed at a large audience
without any personal contact between sender
and receivers.
 Most of the messages sent via mass
communication channels are developed, or at
least financed, by large organizations
 In this sense, mass communication is far less
personal and more of a product than the
other types we have examined so far.
 Mass communication is almost always

controlled by many gatekeepers who

determine what messages will be delivered to
consumers, how they will be constructed, and
when they will be delivered.
Masscommunication
 Sponsors (whether corporate or
governmental), editors, producers, reporters,
and executives all have the power to
influence mass messages in ways that don’t
affect most other types. Because of these and
other unique characteristics, the study of
mass communication raises special issues
and deserves special treatment.