Aspects of Communication

The importance of communication is related to various aspects.

1. Communication is integrated in all parts of our lives.

A. Academics

According to researches, students who are good in writing and speaking perform better not only in the English class, but
also in other learning areas.

B. Professional

Employees who are better in communicating have the higher chance of getting hired.

C. Personal

Having a vocabulary to name the communication phenomena in our lives increases our ability to alter consciously our
communication in order to achieve our goals and avoid miscommunication.

D. Civic

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

3. Communication is learnef

The Case of the Feral Children – children who were raised by animals; children who grew up isolated from human
contact

4. Communication has ethical implications.

ISSUES IN COMMUNICATION

°1. Content

•Refers to the information and experiences that are provided to the receiver of the communication process.

•The message must be presented in a language that makes a grammatical sense.

•Words have different meanings and may be used or interpreted differently.

•Therefore, content should be tailored or edited for the public to ensure effective communication.
°2. Process

•refers to the way the message is presented or delivered.

•The non-verbal forms that we use often cause messages to be misunderstood as we tend to believe what we see
more than what we hear.

•Therefore, we should be mindful of the non-verbal cues that accompany our verbal communication.

°3. Context

•Refers to the situation or environment in which your message is delivered.

•If the sender is unaware of a specific context, the sender might say improper words or messages.

•If the receiver is unaware of the context, the message might be interpreted incorrectly.

•Therefore, it is important to assert and understand the context before saying something.

PRINCIPLES IN COMMUNICATION

1. Principle of Clarity

Messages should be worded clearly. Messages should not be ambiguous or can be interpreted in different ways. It
should be straightforward so the receiver will easily understand what the speaker is saying. It is always the responsibility
of the sender to make the message clear so that the receiver will understand the message correctly.

2. Principle of Attention

The receiver’s attention should be drawn to the message to make the communication effective. In order to achieve
successful communication, the receiver should be listening to the sender to understand the message. There are many
distractor that may cause the receiver to lose the focus on the message. Avoid any circumstances that may lead to the
loss of attention of the receiver.

3. Principle of Feedback

There should be a feedback in communication in order for the sender to know whether the message was clearly
understood by the receiver. The feedback will also indicate whether the sender needs to make adjustments on the
message for the receiver to understand the message.

4. Principle of Informality

In academic or business setting, the language used is mainly formal. However, in circumstances where formal language
fail to meet its goal, which is to make receiver/s understand the message, the sender should be flexible in switching to
informal language to code the message clearer. Informal communication is as important as formal communication.

5. Principle of Consistency

Communication should always be consistent with the policies, plans, programs and objectives of the organization and
not in conflict with them. If leaders are not following the rules, the subordinates will be confused.

6. Principle of Timeliness

Communication should be done in real time. It helps transactions to be done fast.

7. Principles of Adequacy

When communicating, information should be adequate and complete. Incomplete information may cause delay and
confusion.

COMMUNICATION ETHICS
It deals with the behavior of an individual or a group which is governed by their morals and in turn affects
communication.

The National Communication Association (NCA) formulated the Credo for Ethical Communication in November 1999. It
reminds us that ethical communication is relevant across contexts and applies to every channel of communication.

 Advocate truthfulness, accuracy, honesty and reason as essential to the integrity of communication.
 Endorse freedom of expression, diversity of perspective, and tolerance of dissent to achieve the informed and
responsible decision making fundamental to a civil society.
 Strive to understand and respect other communicators before evaluating and responding to their messages.
 Promote access to communication resources and opportunities as necessary to fulfill human potential and
contribute to the well-being of families, communities, and society.
 Promote communication climates of caring and mutual understanding that respect the unique needs and
characteristics of individual communicators.
 Condemn communication that degrades individuals and humanity through distortion, intimidation, coercion,
and violence, and through the expression of intolerance and hatred.
 Commit to the courageous expression of personal convictions in pursuit of fairness and justice.
 Advocate sharing information, opinions and feelings when facing significant choices while also respecting
privacy and confidentiality.
 Accept responsibility for the short- and long-term consequences for our own communication and expect the
same of others.

Ethics Resource Center (Free Word Press, 2017)

Communication Ethics in the Academic Context

1. Avoid plagiarism
The Instrument of Judicial Governance defines plagiarism as “the intentional representation of another person’s
words, thoughts or ideas as one’s own.”
2. Confidentiality
Data gathered from participants for a research or study should be kept confidential at all times, unless given the
permission of the participant.
3. Respect
Students should always show respect to authorities in school.
4. Never tell a lie
Don’t misrepresent facts to your teachers, classmates or any people.
COMMUNICATION AND GLOBALIZATION
Communication and globalization in the 21st century introduce us to a new dimension of perspectives.

GLOBALIZATION
  It is the structural phenomenon of increasing interdependence among various parts of the world
(Cornali & Tirocchi, 2012).
 It takes us to an understanding of transformation, advancement and interdependence in the world that
are highly evident in the economic, cultural and social changes in our society.
 The advancement of technology and numerous technology revolutions have been globalizing the world
into a closely interconnected society.
 The process of globalization is an unavoidable feature of modernity and development.
 It promotes the development and prevalence of digital technologies that make communication faster
and information more easily accessible.
 As a result, Chen (2005) claims that the flux and complexity of change will continue to increase in the
years ahead and challenge the fundamental assumptions and beliefs on which modern people have
learned to live.
Heidegger’s Prophecy
 Heidegger prophesized in 1950 that “new communication and information technologies would
spawn novel possibilities for dramatically extending the scope of virtual reality.
Major Trends in Globalization (Chen, 2005)

The Role of Media in the Globalization Process

Language and Globalization

Language continues to evolve. It keeps on developing as people are becoming more literate in the global world
WHY IS ENGLISH CONSIDERED THE “UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE”?
 It is the world’s second largest native language, the official language in 70 countries, and English-speaking
countries are responsible for about 40% of world’s total GNP.
 The causes for this universality are very well known and understandable. English first began to spread during
the 16th century with British Empire and was strongly reinforced in 20th by USA world domination in economic,
political and military aspects and by the huge influence of American movies.
Competence
According the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, competence means the quality or state of being competent. Or in simple
terms, it is the ability to do something successfully.
GLOBAL COMMUNICATION COMPETECE- Is the ability of individuals that relates effectively to self and others in daily
life.
Three Domains of Learning

Communication Competence
It is the ability to function in a truly communicative setting.

Components of Communicative Competence

Expected Skills for College Graduates (21st Century Learners)

  STATE
 COMMUNICATE
 RECOGNIZED
 IDENTIFY
 SELECT
 DEMONSTRATE
 IDENTIFY AND MANAGE
 MANAGE CONFLICT
 BE OPEN MINDED
 LISTEN ATTENTIVELY
Enlightened Global Citizenship

Four Dimensions of Global Communication Competence (Chen, 2005)

1.

2.
3.

4.

Communication is Guided by Culture and Context

The context of communication brings a better understanding about culture in general and our own culture in particular.
O-negai shimasu. Please.
おねがいします。
Arigatō. Thank you.
ありがとう。
Gomennasai. I am sorry.
ごめんなさい。
Ohayō gozaimasu. Good morning.
おはようございます。
Principle of Cooperative
1. MAXIM OF RELATION
RESPOND BASED ON CULTURAL AND CONTEXTUAL REQUIREMENTS
2. MAXIM OF RELATION
ANSWERS ARE CONNECTED TO THE QUESTIONS
3. MAXIM OF QUANTITY
OBSERVE FAIR-SHARE-TALK OF TIME
4. MAXIM OF QUALITY
THE TRUTH VALUE OF A MESSAGE IS HELD PRIMARY IN A CONVERSATION
5. MAXIM OF MANNER
THE MANNER OF SAYING THE WORD IS MORE REGARDED THAN ITS CONTENT

BODY LANGUAGE
Shaking hands Saudi Arabia
•YOU CANNOT SHAKE THE HAND OF A WOMAN
Ok sign Brazil
•MIDDLE FINGER
Ok sign Australia and France
•INSULT
Thumbs Up America except United States
•Sexual Insult
Sitting with Crossed Legs Asia and Middle East
•Disrespectful
Eye Contact Philippines
•Honesty, sincere
Nodding the Head Greece
•Yes or No
Tugging the Earlobes Italy
•Sexual Innuendos
Portugal
•Tasty Food
SPAIN
•Someone is not paying
ABC of Intercultural Communication
°Acknowledge
°Bi-level
°Clarify
Cultural Communication Barriers
•Language Barrier
•Hostile Stereotypes
•Behavior Differences
•Emotional Display

Avoid Ambiguous Expressions

 IDIOMS AND FIGURATIVE SPEECHES
 ACRONYM
 ABBREVIATION
 JARGON
 SLANG