PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION

Chapter 1

I. Definition
Communication can be defined as a process by which information, meanings and feelings are
shared by persons through a common system of verbal and nonverbal symbols, signs or
behavior.
As a process, communication is characterized as:
1. dynamic – it is constantly changing because it relies on human perception that can change
overtime; therefore, it is irreversible and unrepeatable;
2. continuous – it is an ongoing exchange of meaning-sharing behaviors between/among
individuals who operate within a frame of experience; it does not have a beginning, an end, a
fixed sequence of events;
3. adaptive – it adjusts to the changes that occur in its physical and psychological environment;
4. systemic – it involves components that are interrelated and interacting in a cyclic order;
5. transactional – every communication is a unique combination of people, messages and
events; it consists of unending sharing (transmission and reception) of messages
between/among people on some occasion.

II. Aspects of Communication 

 The importance of communication is related to various aspects: 
1. Communication is integrated in all parts of our lives. 
Our lives consist of four domains: 
a) Academics.  Students are required to enroll a general education course in English
in order to develop their English language skill. This soft skill can help them
succeed in the academe and set them for more success in the workplace. 
b) Professional.  In such a competitive job market, being able to demonstrate
that  you have received communication instruction and training from
communication professionals can give you the edge needed to stand out from
other applicants or employees. 
            c.) Personal.  Having a vocabulary to name the communication phenomena in our lives
increases our ability to alter consciously our communication.     
Communication is crucial for a person’s success.  The skill to talk with fluency
and to write with efficiency may lead to a person’s fortune.   
          d)  Civic.  There is a connection between communication and a person’s
civic engagement.  Civic engagement refers to working to make a difference
in our communities by improving the quality of life of community members. 
  2. Communication meets needs.  Communication is far more than the transmission
of information.   
  a.  Physical needs.  The need to communicate keep our bodies and
minds functioning.  Communication, which we most often associate with our
brain, mouth, eyes and ears, actually, has many more connections and effects
on our physical body and well-being. 
b. Instrumental needs.  Communicating for instrumental needs helps us get
things done in our day-to-day lives and achieved short and long-term goals. To
meet instrumental needs, we often use communication strategically.
Politicians, parents, bosses, and friends use communication to influence others
in order to accomplish goals and meet needs.  
c. Relational needs.  Communication for relational needs helps us maintain
social bonds and interpersonal relationships. Communication forms the
building blocks of our relationships. 
d. Identity needs.  Communication allows us to present ourselves in a distinct
manner.  Identity needs include the need to present ourselves to others and be
thought of in particular and desired ways.  

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 3. Communication is guided by culture and context.   
Culture is defined by O’Neil as the full range of learned human behavior patterns. It
includes knowledge, belief, art, law, morals, custom, and any other capabilities
and habits acquired by man as a member of society.  Conversely,
context is the circumstances that form the setting for an event, statement, or
idea and in terms of which it can be fully understood.  
4.  Communication is learned.   
A skill is an ability that can be learned over time.  Hence, if communication is something good
for human beings, then everyone can learn to be good communicators for the sake of developing good
people and a good society. 
Most people are born with the capacity and ability to communicate, but everyone
communicates differently. This is because communication is learned rather than innate.   
5.  Communication has ethical implications. 
Communication ethics deals with the process of negotiating and reflection on our actions
and communication regarding what we believe to be right and wrong.  In communication ethics, we are
more concerned with the decisions people make about what is right and wrong

III. Forms of Communication

1. Intrapersonal Communication is talking to oneself (self-talk) through internal
vocalization or reflective thinking due to some internal or external stimulus. In other words, this
type of communication takes place within the person.
2. Interpersonal Communication is a form of communication wherein individuals are
engaged actively in the overt and covert transmission and reception of messages.
a) Dyadic Communication is a two-person communication such as telephone
conversation, job interview and doctor-patient conversation.
b) Small-Group Communication ideally consists of three to six persons such
as committee, buzz session and brainstorming activity.
3. Public Communication is conveying information to a large evidence. It is more sender-
focused than intrapersonal and interpersonal forms of communication.
a) Speaker-Audience Communication is talking to a large number of people
who are gathered for some occasion.
b) Mass Communication is the “process whereby media organizations
produce and transmit messages to large public

IV. Models of Communication

1. Transmission Model considers communication as a one-directional exchange in which the
message is purposely conveyed by a speaker to a listener.
2. Interaction Model describes communication as a process in which communicators change
roles as sender and receiver and produce meaning by exchanging messages within their own
environment and experiences.
3. Transaction model explains communication as a way of creating realities based on our
social, relational and cultural backgrounds. This model shows that communication is not a
mere exchange of experiences. It rather shows that we are intended to build
relationships, create intercultural understanding, form our self-identity, and interact with
others to engender societies.

V. TYPES OF COMMUNICATION
1. VERBAL COMMUNICATION – a form of transmitting messages using word symbols
representing ideas and objects. It can be defined as the exchange of ideas that occurs through
words. It comes in two forms:
a) Oral Communication – includes face-to-face interaction,
b) Written Communication – uses symbols that are hand- written or
printed with an electronic device

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 Factors that affect verbal communication:
Tone of voice
Use of descriptive words
Emphasis on certain phrases
Volume of voice
2. NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION – a form of communication which refers to the sending of
messages to another person using methods or means other than the spoken language. It is
communication without the use of words.
I. Types of Non-verbal communication
a) Paralanguage (Vocalics) refers to vocal qualities that go along with verbal
message such as pitch, volume, rate, vocal quality, and verbal fillers.
b) Action Language (Kinesics) refers to gross bodily movements such
as walking and eating. It consists of
(1) Gesture – is any act of the speaker that reinforces or
demonstrates ideas.
Classification of Gestures
a) Descriptive gestures – which help to clarify
concepts such as size, shape, speed, and others.
b) Suggestive gestures – stimulate the imagination of
the listeners such as shrug of the shoulder or a toss of the head
c) Emphatic gestures –are used to stress or reinforce an idea.
d) Locative gestures – point out persons, places or things
within the sight of the listeners or within the
imagination. Generally, the index finger is used to
point out small objects in a precise manner; while the
palm gesture is utilized for large objects or areas.
(2) Facial Expressions – One important pointer which a speaker
must always remember is to make his facial expressions
consistent with his intent and message.
(3) Eye Contact – A speaker must look at individual members of the
audience straight in the eye. Listeners must feel that the
speaker is talking to each one of them personally.
Eye contact is an important way of gauging audience reactions
to your speech.
(4) Posture – the way a speaker stands while delivering his
speech
c) Sign Language – consists of body movements that are used as substitute for
letters, words, numbers, phrases and even sentences.
d) Object Language (Objectics) refers to the intentional or unintentional
display of material things such as the clothes you wear, hair style, the
decoration of a room, jewelry
e) Tactile Language (Haptics) is communication by touch such as a kiss or a tap
on the back. It is the most elementary mode of communication and the
first an infant experience.
f) Proxemics – stand for the way people communicate by their use of space in
relation to other people.

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 Components of Proxemics
1. Physical Arrangement – refers to the layout of the venue where you will
speak. It includes the seating arrangements or the presence or the absence of a
lectern.
2. Distance. It is the degree of separation between the speaker and the
audience. It relates how far the speaker is from the audience.
g) Time (Chronemics) A person’s observation of time reveals a lot of his
personality. Punctuality and tardiness talk louder than physical
characteristics.
h) Silence is the lack of audible sound, or the presence of sounds of very low
intensity. It can be best explained by the statement “What is not said is
as important as or even more important than what is said”. Sometimes
silence can communicate better than any words.

VI. ELEMENTS OF THE COMMUNICATION PROCESS

Below are the elements of the communication process:
SENDER – a person, group, or organization who initiates the communication. The sender may
also be called the source, encoder, speaker, writer, or communicator.
MESSAGE – an element transmitted in communication consists of the idea, opinion,
information, feeling, or attitude of the sender.
CHANNEL – a pathway or medium through which the message travels to reach its
destination. It may be oral, written, visual.
Oral – more effective when an immediate feedback is needed
Written – more effective when the message must be delivered to many people
Visual/Electronic – used for distant communication
RECEIVER – a person who receives, analyzes, understands, and interprets the message.
The receiver can also be called the decoder, reader, or listener.
FEEDBACK – It is the return process in which the receiver provides both verbal and non- verbal
signals to show whether the message is understood or not.
ADJUSTMENT – done if the message is distorted or is not clearly understood by the receiver.
NOISE – a form of distortion, barrier, or obstacle that occurs in any of the phases of oral
communication process.

VII. FIVE STEPS TO THE COMMUNICATION PROCESS IN THE WORKPLACE

To communicate effectively, understanding the steps in this information exchange is vital.
1. Creation. It is forming the communicative intent where the sender generates an idea.
This requires the individual who is sending the message to decide what he wants to say and
select a medium through which to communicate this information.
2. Transmission. After a message is created, it must be transmitted.
3. Reception. After transmitting the message, the communication duties change hands and
fall upon the receiver of the message. This individual must obtain the message either
from the written format the sender selected or by listening carefully as the message is delivered
orally.
4. Translation. Once receiving the message, the recipient must translate the message into
terms the s/he can easily understand.
5. Response. Message recipients take the lead in concluding the communication process by
crafting a response to the message.

VIII ISSUES IN COMMUNICATION

Essential issues to be aware of in any communication situations are:
1. Content refers to the information and experiences that are provided to the receiver of
the communication process
2. Process refers to the way the message is presented or delivered
3. Context refers to the situation or environment in which your message is delivered.

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IX. PRINCIPLES OF COMMUNICATION
These principles will help you to make your communication more informative and will aid you to
gain positive effects:
1. Principle of Clarity – the information or message should be coded or worded clearly.
2. Principle of Attention – the receiver’s attention should be drawn to the message to make
the communication effective.
3. Principle of Feedback – there should be feedback information from the receiver to know
whether s/he understood the message in the same sense in which the sender has meant it.
4.Principle of Informality – informal communication may prove effective in situations when
formal communication may not achieve its desired results
5.Principle of Consistency – consistency avoids conflict in an organization; inconsistency leads to
confusion
6.Principle of Timeliness – communication should be done in real time so that it helps, and it
is relevant in implementing plans; delayed communication may not serve any purpose
7.Principle of Adequacy – information should be complete; is essential to take proper decisions
and make action plans; inadequate information may delay action and create confusion.

X. COMMUNICATION ETHICS
Ethics is defined as a code of moral standards of conduct for what is “good” and “right” as
opposed to what is “bad” and “wrong.”
Communication is ethical when it is utilized to enhance the way people interact with one
another to improve society’s moral life.
Ethical Standards of Communication
1. Truthfulness and honesty mean refraining from lying, cheating, stealing and deception.
2. Integrity means maintaining a consistency of belief and action.
3. Fairness means achieving the right balance of interest without regard to one’s own feelings
and without showing favor to any side in a conflict.
4. Respect means showing regard or consideration for others and their ideas, even if we don’t
agree with them
5. Responsibility means being accountable for one’s actions and what one says.