TOPIC 1: INTRODUCTION TO COMMUNICATION

Communication is derived from the Latin word “communis” meaning common or shared. It
belongs to a group of words that include communion, communism and community, which
suggest sharing. Until you have shared information with another person, you have not
communicated it, therefore communication occurs when you share information and the other
person responds depending on the way they understand it. Communication is about sharing
information.

Communication is the process of conveying information from a sender to a receiver with the
use of a medium in which the communicated information is understood the same way by both
sender and receiver. It allows exchange of information using several methods: there are
auditory means, such as speaking, singing and sometimes tone of voice, and nonverbal,
physical means, such as body language, sign language, paralanguage, touch, eye contact, or
the use of writing.
Communication is not unique to humans. Other creatures are usually able to communicate
with members of their species.

The process of communication can be accidental (having no intent), expressive (resulting

from the emotional state of the person), or rhetorical (resulting from specific goals of the
communicator).

Human communication occurs on the intrapersonal, interpersonal and public levels.

Intrapersonal communication is communicating with oneself. It encompasses such activities

as thought processing, personal decision making, listening and determining self-concept.

Interpersonal communication – communication that takes place between two or more persons
who establish a communicative relationship. Forms of interpersonal communication include
face-to-face mediated communication, interviews and small group discussions.

Public communication is characterized by a speaker sending a message to an audience. It may

be direct, such as face-to-face message delivered by a speaker to an audience, or indirect,
such as a face-to-face relayed over radio or TV.
Human communication is therefore the process of making sense out of the world and sharing
that sense with others by creating meaning through verbal and non-verbal messages.

We make sense out of the world by listening, observing, tasting, touching and smelling, then
sharing our conclusions with others with both words and unspoken expressions. The
messages sent may not be the one that is understood because meaning is created in the heart
and mind of the listener. In reality, meaning is co-created by both the speaker and listener i.e.
all individuals who are involved in the communication process shape how a message is
understood by drawing upon their own experiences while attempting to make sense out of a
message.

1.4 COMMUNICATION SKILLS

A skill is a special ability to do something well especially as gained by learning and practice.
o Communication skills are a set of skills that enable a person to convey
information so that it is received and understood.
o Skills needed to use language (spoken, written, signed) or otherwise.
o Skills that enable people to communicate effectively with one another.

Diagram 1.1 Basic Communication Process

The main objectives of communication are -a) To be received (heard or read) b) To be

understood c) To be accepted d) To get action (change of behaviour or attitude)

1.5 IMPORTANCE OF STUDYING COMMUNICATION

As noted earlier, people don’t always accurately interpret the message we express, an
observation that has profound implications.
 1. One reason we have communication courses and academic departments that focus on
communication is because of the challenge we have in understanding one another.
2. Secondly, communication touches every aspect of our lives. To be able to express
oneself to other people is a basic requirement for living in a modern society.
3. We need communication skills in order to work with others, even if we do physical
labour.
4. When we study communication we are developing leadership skills. Daniel Quin said
“The art of communication is the language of leadership.”
5. To improve our employability – regardless of one’s specific job description, the
essence of what one does when working at any job is to communicate; jobs involve
talking, listening, relating and writing. John H. McConnel says, “Take all the speech
and communication courses you can because the world turns on communication.”
6. Enhancing one’s communication skills can significantly improve the quality of
relationships with others. Understanding the role and function of communication can
help unravel some of the mysteries of human relationships. At the heart of a good
relationship is good communication. It’s also true that losing a relationship is among
life’s most stressful events.
7. To improve our physical and emotional health - research has shown that lack of close
relationships that can help one navigate through life’s stresses can lead to ill health
and even death. Having a social support system seems to make a difference in our
overall health and quality of life therefore studying how to enrich the quality of our
communication with others can make life more enjoyable and enhance the overall
well being.

1.6 MODELS OF COMMUNICATION

Models of communication help explain the process by which we imitate and maintain
communicative relationship with others hence the understanding of the communication
process can be reflected as a picture or model.

In a simple model, information or content (e.g. a message in natural language) is sent in some
form (as spoken language) from a sender/ encoder to a destination/ receiver/ decoder. In a
slightly more complex form a sender and a receiver are linked reciprocally. In the presence of
"communication noise" on the transmission channel (air, in this case), reception and decoding
of content may be faulty, and thus the speech act may not achieve the desired effect. One
problem with this encode-transmit-receive-decode model is that the processes of encoding
and decoding imply that the sender and receiver each possess something that functions as a
code book, and that these two code books are, at the very least, similar if not identical.

Diagram 1.2: Schramm’s Model of Communication

It can be deduced that:

 Human communication is a cycle rather than a one way event
 Each party to the communication process is perceived as both an encoder and a
decoder
 Each party acts as an interpreter understanding the messages he or she receives in a
somewhat different ways.

Diagram 1.3: Gamble and Gamble’s Model of Communication

It can be deduced that: -
 Communication is a cycle.
 The sending and receiving roles are shared by the communicators.
 A message or messages may be sent though one or more channels.
 The interaction occurs in a definite context which affects it.

 Noise can affect the sending and receiving abilities of those interacting.

 Noise can also be caused by the context, can be present in the channels or can pop up in
the message itself.

1.7 EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

According to the experts, one can communicate effectively when they understand the stages
of interpersonal communication.
a) The phatic stage
 This is the initial exploratory stage, which determines the course of the conversation
 Begins with the greetings and accompanying gestures such as eye contact, the smile,
etc
 In a formal encounter there is more distance between the individuals, as compared to
in
the case of an informal encounter
 Stage is also known as the warming up stage. There is a no meaning and intention, but
just the setting for the next level of the conversation.
b) 2nd stage
 Individuals bring a more personal element into the conversation.
 Brings down social guard and begin to interact more openly.
 Professional interactions confined to this stage.
3) Intimate stage
 Mainly for conversation between friends, family and relatives
 Higher level of intimacy
 Entails opening one’s heart and sharing rather intimate details

For effective communication to take place you must know the source, receiver (target
audience), message, medium and origin of the message.
1.8 ELEMENTS OF COMMUNICATION
Whatever communication task you are undertaking, asking these simple questions before you
start your communication ensures a better chance of success and makes the task easier.
1) Why (Purpose)
- Reason for writing or speaking
- What to achieve – change of attitude, opinion, behaviour
- What purpose – inform, persuade, influence, educate, entertain, advise, explain,
provoke
2) Who (Receiver)
- Audiences
- People – personality, age, education, status
- How will they react to the content
- What do they know about the content
3) Where (Place) and When (Context)
- Office, Relationship with receiver
4) What (Subject)
- What to exactly say
- What to omit
- What information – 6C’s of effective communication – Clear, Concise, Courteous,
Constructive, Correct and Complete)
5) How (Tone and Style)
- How to communicate the message – words, pictures or both; which words, which
pictures
- Which medium – written or spoken, letter or interview, memo, telephone
- How to organise the points

Communication is therefore a process that operates as a system with integrated components.

The sentence “Did you get my message?” summarizes the communication-as-action approach
to human communication. In this model communication takes place when a message is sent
and received in the following process:

 who (sender)
 Says what (message)
 In what channel
  To whom (receiver)
 With what effect

Noise Noise Noise

Message Message
Source Channel Receiver

Source: the originator of a thought or an emotion that expresses ideas or feelings. He or she
puts a message into a code that can be understood by a receiver (encoding) by vocalizing a
word, gesturing, establishing eye contact, etc.

(Encoding: process of translating ideas, feelings and thoughts into a code.)

Receiver: the person who decodes the signal and attempts to make sense out of what the
source encoded form the communication to be accomplished. On gaining verbal and
non-verbal signals the receiver processes them through a memory search so that the
signals are translated into the receiver’s language system. The message is filtered
through past experiences, attitudes, beliefs values, prejudices and biases.

Messages: the written, spoken and unspoken elements of communication to which we assign
meaning. We can send messages intentionally e.g. speaking to a friend,
unintentionally e.g. (sleeping during a class), verbally (saying hi), non-verbally (e.g. a
smile and handshake) or in written form.

Channel: A message is communicated from sender to receiver via some pathway called a
channel. With today’s technological advancements, we receive messages from a
variety of channels:

- Through the internet or a fax transition, the channel is a telephone line.

- Cellular telephone uses a wireless channel.

- If the communication occurs face to face these channels may be some or all of the five
senses. Typically, we rely on sight and sound as channels in speaking and listening.
 - In some instances, we may choose to send a message to someone by means of
physical contact, such as tapping the person on the shoulder. In this case we use the
touch channel.

Feedback: Once the receiver assigns meaning to the received message, s/he is in a position to
respond. Feedback is the response to the message. Without it communication is less likely to
be effective. It can be a verbal (e.g reply) or a non-verbal (e.g. yawning) reaction to a
message or both.

Feedback indicates whether the receiver understands (e.g. by nodding), misunderstands (e.g.
by shrugging the shoulders and saying, “I don’t understand.”), encourages the source to
continue (e.g. by leaning forward and saying, “Yes.”) or disagrees (e.g. by pulling the chair
and saying, “No way!”) The act of responding, by which the receiver sends feedback to the
source, actually shifts the role of the receiver to that of the source.

Context: the physical, historical and psychological communication environment. All

communication takes place in some context and the interpretation of the message is done in
view of the context. The setting or environment influences the way you act towards others or
determines the nature of communication encounter you share with them. For example, you
can alter your posture, manner of speaking or attire due to the environment.

Context encompasses not only the physical environment but also the number of people
present, their past relationships with the communicators, the communication goals and the
culture in which the communicators are steeped.

The psychological context includes the impact of what is going on in the minds of the
communicators. The speaker’s and the listener’s personality and styles of interacting with
others influence how the messages are understood.

Noise: any internal or external interference in the communication process. Noise keeps a
message from being understood and achieving the intended effect. Without noise all our
messages would be communicated with considerable accuracy. But noise is always present
and a competitor in the communication process, because it gets in the way of the message and
may even distort it.

1.9 Barriers to communication

The following are types of noises and barriers to communication.
1. Physical/environment noise: outside interference that prevents the receiver from
gaining the message e.g. running water or a lawn-mover muffling your friend’s voice
when he asks you a question from an adjoining room.
2. Physiological / impairment noise – failure to gain a message as a result of some
bodily impairment e.g. deaf persons do not have the sensory capabilities to receive a
message in the same way as hearing people do. Similarly blind persons do not have
the ability to gain signed messages.
3. Psychological noise: arises out of a communicator’s state of mind. Stress, frustration
or irritation cause us to send or receive messages ineffectively, for example when one
is too angry “to think straight”. Some people have severe psychological problems that
cause them to communicate in unusual ways e.g. schizophrenia and catatonia
(immobility and speechlessness) cause sufferers to have great difficulty
communicating.
4. Semantic noise: problems may arise regarding the meanings of words (semantics),
for example when people use language that is common to only one specific group, a
particular part of a country, particular field, profession or organization (jargon).
Travellers frequently encounter semantic noise. For example in the Americas the
word “soda” means differently in the East coast and the mid-western. Clients
complain that lawyers fail to communicate clearly because they use legal jargons. To
avoid semantic problems, communicators must be aware that although they know the
meaning of the words they use, those at the receiving end must assign similar
meanings for communication to be effective.
5. Cultural noise: results from pre-conceived, unyielding attitudes derived from a group
or society about how members of that culture should act or what they should or
shouldn’t believe in. For example, the attitude that “we” are always right and “they”
are always wrong may make a person who has always voted for one political party
find it difficult to be open minded when listening to information about the opposing
political party’s candidate.
6. Organizational noise: results when the source fails to realize that certain ideas are
best grasped when presented in a structural order. For example, a geography instructor
presents ideas in a random fashion: first he talks about India, then China, then Greece,
then India, then China. After a while, his students become so confused they have
absolutely no idea which country he is discussing.
 Many methods of organization can provide a clear structure. For example, in giving
direction, a person may set a pattern by starting at the departure point and proceeding
in a geographical order e.g. go to the first street, turn left at the first junction.…

1.10 PRINCIPLES OF COMMUNICATION

The following characteristics are evident when communication occurs.

- Communication is inescapable
- Communication is irreversible
- Communication is complicated
- Communication is rule governed
- Communication emphasizes content and relationships
- Communication is dynamic

1. Communication is inescapable

The opportunity to communicate is ubiquitous, that is, it is everywhere. Even before we are
born we respond to movement and sound and with our first cry we begin to announce our
presence. Once we make contact with other humans we communicate and continue to do so
until death. Even though many of our messages are non-verbal, we nonetheless intentionally
and sometimes unintentionally, send them to others. While some scholars question whether or
not it is possible to communicate with someone unintentionally, experts do agree that
communication with others plays an ever present role in our lives. We spend most of our
working hours in thought or interpreting messages from others. For example, when we
silently stand in line in a supermarket check-out line, our lack of eye contact with others
waiting in line shows our disinterest in striking up a conversation.

Our unspoken messages may provide cues to which others respond. Even when we don’t
intend to express a particular idea or feeling, others may try to make sense out of what we are
already doing or not doing. People judge us by our behaviour, not intent.

2. Communication is irreversible

We can never really “take back” a message. In our personal conversations we may try to
modify the meaning of a spoken message by saying something like, “Oh, I really didn’t mean
it”. But in most cases the damage has already been done. Once created, communication has
the physical property of matter; it can’t be uncreated. As the helical model below suggests,
once communication begins, it never loops back on itself. Instead it continues to be shaped by
events, experiences and thoughts of the communication partner i.e. like a loop, it begins at the
bottom and then expands infinitely as the communication patterns contribute their thoughts
and experiences to the exchange.

A Russian proverb says, “Once a word goes out of your mouth, you can never swallow it
again”.

3. Communication is complicated

Communicating with others is not simple; otherwise we would know how to reduce
dramatically the number of misunderstandings and conflicts in our world.

Human communication is complicated because of the number of variables and unknown

factors involved when people interact. To illustrate the complexity of the process,
communication scholar Dean Barnland has suggested that whenever we communicate with
another person, there are really at least six people involved:

- Who you think you are

- Who you think the other person is
- Who you think the other person thinks you are
- Who the other person thinks he or she is
- Who the other person thinks you are
- Who the other person thinks you think he or she is
And when we add more people to the conversation it becomes even more complicated.

Messages are not always interpreted as we intend them. Osmo Wiio, a Scandinavian
communication scholar, points out the challenges of communicating with others when he
suggests the following maxims.

 If communication can fail, it will.

 If a message can be understood in different ways it will be understood in just
that way which does the most harm.
 There is always somebody who knows better than you what you meant by
your message
 The more communication there is the more difficult for communication to
succeed.

4. Communication emphasizes content and relationships.

What you say (your words) and how you say it (your tone of voice), amount of eye contact,
facial expression and posture can reveal much about the true nature of your message.

A shouted message may indicate anger and frustration while the same message delivered
calmly suggests the speaker is less frustrated i.e. the two messages have different relationship
cues.

The content of communication messages focuses on the new information, ideas or suggested
actions that the speaker wishes to share. The relationship aspect of a communication message
is usually more implied. It offers cues about emotions, attitudes and amount of power and
control the speaker feels towards the other.

Another way of distinguishing between the content and relationship dimensions of

communication is to consider that the content of the messages refers to what is said. The
relationship cues are provided on how it is communicated.

5. Communication is governed by rules.

There are some rules that govern how we communicate with others. Most of these rules are
embedded in our culture or are discussed verbally rather than written down. Communication
researcher Susan Shimanoff defines a rule as a “followable prescription that indicates what
behavior is obligated, preferred or prohibited in certain contexts.” These rules are developed
by those involved in the interaction and by the culture in which the individuals are
communicating. Most people learn communication from experiences by observing and
interacting with others.

6) Communication is Dynamic

Communication is a dynamic process because all its elements constantly interact with and
affect each other. People communicate as long as they live and every interaction people
engage in is part of connected happenings.

1.11 TYPES OF COMMUNICATION

Communication plays a vital role in keeping relationships updated; it can break or keep
relationships. There are many types of communication that we can use nowadays when we
try to keep in touch. The following are the usual means of communication:

1. Verbal communication

This is the most common of the communication types. It means speakers talk to one another
by written words, phrases and sentences. Verbal communication includes sounds, words,
language and speaking. One theory of language origins suggests that language originated
from sounds and gestures. There are many languages spoken in the world (different studies
indicate varying numbers, from 6,000-10,000). The bases of language formation are gender,
class, profession, geographical area, age group and other social elements. Good verbal
communication is an inevitable part of business communication. In business we come across
people from various ages, culture and races thus fluent communication is essential. Also in
business communication self- confidence plays a vital role which, coupled with fluent
communication skills, can lead to success.

2. Visual communication

This is where information is relayed visually. Visual display of information includes

topography, photography, signs, symbols and designs. Television and video clips are some of
the electronic forms of visual communication.

3. Written communication
Involves writing the words that we want to communicate. Good written communication is
essential for business purposes, emails, reports, articles and memos and some forms of using
written communication in business.

The written communication can be edited and amended many times before it is
communicated to the second party for whom it was intended. This is one of the advantages of
using writing as the major means of communication in business activity.

Written communication is used not only in business but also for informal communication
purposes e.g. mobile texts.

4. Non-Verbal Communication

This is communication other than written or spoken language that creates meaning for
someone (Beebe, Beebe and Ivy, 2004). It is composed of “all those messages that people
exchange beyond the words themselves.”

We focus on non-verbal communication because:

a) Non-verbal messages communicate feelings and attitudes. Our face, body, and
voice communicate volumes about what is going on inside of us. Non-verbal
communication is a primary tool for communicating our feelings and attitudes and
for detecting the emotional states of others.
b) Non-verbal messages are more believable than verbal. Actions speak louder
than words. While verbal communication is a conscious process, a great deal of
non-verbal communication is generated sub-consciously as we act and react to
stimuli in our environment. We can, for example, control the words we say but not
the quality of our voice when we speak, say, in anger or excitement.
When a person’s verbal and non-verbal communications contradict, the more
believable one is the non-verbal one, for example trying to hide our irritation.
c) Non-verbal messages are critical to successful relationships: it has been
suggested that 65% of the way we convey meaning in our messages is through
non-verbal communication. Of course the meaning others interpret from our
behaviour may not be the one we intended. But we begin to make judgments about
people just a fraction of a second after meeting them based on non-verbal
information. Recent studies show that we can deduce a lot about a person’s
personality from a simple handshake.
 Non-verbal cues are important not only in the early stages of a relationship, but
also as we maintain, deepen and sometimes terminate those relationships. In fact,
the more intimate the relationship, the more we use and understand the non-verbal
cues of our partner.
d) Non-verbal messages serve various functions for verbal messages.
Non-verbal cues can substitute for verbal messages e.g. nodding in the direction of
lifts when asked where they are.
Non-verbal cues delivered simultaneously with verbal messages complement,
clarify, or extend the meaning of the verbal, allowing for further information and
more accurate interpretation. E.g. waving and saying hello at the same time, or a
long hug accompanied by complimentary words.

1.11.1 Functions of Non-verbal Communication.

1) They Complement verbal communication Eg- saying that’s funny and you laugh.
2) They Emphasize the verbal communication (stressing a point in a message) May
emphasize by giving a special force to a word in the verbal message or they may give special
force to the entire message. For example: I have three pens (by showing 3 fingers on your
hand).
3) It Replaces Verbal Communication. This occurs when non-verbal communication is
used in place of the verbal communication, for example if you wave goodbye to someone
using the hand and do not say it verbally, or nodding instead of saying YES or NO.
4) It Contradicts the Verbal Message
This can be best illustrated by two people, a lady and a gentleman walking together, then the
gentleman, realizing that he might be walking too fast, asks the lady if that is so. The lady
says NO while panting hard. This is a situation where the action may speak louder than the
words.

1.12 TYPES OF NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION

The primary categories of codes of non-verbal communication include the following:
1. Appearance
2. Body movement (kinesis)
3. Eye contact (ocalics)
4. Facial expressions (fascists)
 5. Touch (haptics)

1.12.1 APPEARANCE
Many cultures in the world have place a high value on appearance, body size and shape, skin
colour and texture, hair style and clothing. A person may suffer a low self-esteem if they
realize they cannot measure up to the perceived “ideal” in appearance.

In America, people deemed to be physically attractive are elevated on a pedestal whether they
deserve it or not. All sorts of qualities are attached to attractive people: we think they are
more credible, happy, popular, socially skilled, employable, persuasive, kind, sexually warm,
etc.

While the primary purpose of clothing is to keep us warm, they also serve an important role
in conveying a sense of one’s culture e.g. the kitenge or saris.

Although clothes may not make a man, clothing and artefacts do affect how we feel about
ourselves and how we are perceived by others.

1.12.2 BODY MOVEMENT, GESTURES AND POSTURES

Kinesics is the general term for human movement, gestures, and posture. We communicate
through the gestures we use, the way we walk and stand, the expressions on our faces and in
our eyes, the manner in which we combine these variables to open or close communication
channels, and what we look like.

Communication researcher Paul Ekman and Wallace Friesen have classified movement and
gestures according to their function and have identified five categories:

- Emblems
- Illustrators
- Affect displays
- Regulators
- Adapters

a) Emblems are non-verbal cues that have specific, widely understood meanings in a given
culture and actually substitute for a word or phrase, for example making a writing motion to
ask for a bill; a librarian putting an index finger up to pursed lips to ask for silence, etc.
However emblems are culture specific, meaning that an emblem may mean different things in
different cultures. For example, extending the index finger and pointing towards oneself is
used in the US to call for a waiter. In Hong Kong the same gesture is used to call animals.

b) Illustrators are kinesic acts of accompanying speech that are used to aid in the description
of what is being said or trace the direction of speech. We frequently accompany a verbal
message with non-verbal behaviours that either contradict, accent or complement the
message. Yawning while you’re proclaiming you are not tired is an example of an illustrator
that contradicts the verbal message. Complementary cues include:
- Pointing at the door while saying, “Go out…”
- Pointing to the appropriate direction when one gives directions to a location.

c) Affect displays: facial gestures that show emotions and feelings such as sadness or
happiness. As early as 1872 when Charles Darwin systematically studied the expression of
emotion in both human and animals, humans realized that non-verbal cues are the primary
way we communicate emotions. Our faces tend to express which kind of emotion we are
feeling while our bodies reveal the intensity or how much of the emotion we are feeling. For
example, our faces reveal sadness or dejection, unless we’re very practised at masking our
emotions. Slumped shoulders and lowered head indicate the intensity of our despair.
Different people and cultures tend to use facial expressions differently. For example, many
males mask and internalize their facial expressions because they have been taught that to
show emotion is unmanly. Italian males, however, express their emotions outwardly. Pouting,
winking, raising or lowering eyelids and eyebrows are examples of affect displays.

d) Regulators are non-verbal acts that maintain and control the back and forth nature of
speaking and listening between two or more people. Nods of the head, eye movements and
body shifts are all regulators used to encourage or discourage conversation. When we are
eager to respond to a message, we are likely to make eye contact, raise our eyebrows, open
our mouths take in a deep breath and lean slightly forward. When we do not want to be part
of the conversation we do the opposite: avert our eyes, close our mouth, cross our arms and
lean back in our seats or away from the verbal action.

e) Adapters are movements that accompany boredom, show internal feelings or regulate a
situation. They are unconscious behaviors that help us to satisfy a personal need and adapt to
the immediate situation e.g.
 - Shifting frequently when we are nervous
- Checking time every few seconds

1.12.3 EYE CONTACT (OCALICS)

The eye, unlike other organs of the body, is an extension of the brain. Because of this, it is
almost impossible for a person to disguise eye meaning from someone who is a member of
the same culture. Of all our features our eyes are the most revealing; they are “windows to the
soul”. Often they communicate without our even knowing it, for example, when the pupils of
our eyes are dilated, we may be friendlier, warmer and more attractive. Winking, closing the
eyes, raising, and lowering the eyebrows and eye lids can convey meaning. A person’s eye
blinks have an effect on how he or she is perceived by others e.g. slowness or rapidity of eye
blinks can indicate nervousness; steady eye contact indicates confidence; less eye contact or
darting eyes from side to side creates a perception of being shifty, untrustworthy and lacking
credibility.

Eye contact is extremely important in many cultures in the world. Americans, for example,
make all kinds of judgment about others, especially their trustworthiness and sincerity, from
the way they make or avoid eye contact. Research shows that eye contact plays a significant
role in the judgment of a public speaker’s credibility. Studies on eye behaviour continue to
contribute to our understanding of deception and lying behaviour, with rapid eye blinking,
diminished eye contact and rapid eye movement being associated with deception.

1.12.4 FACIAL EXPRESSION (FACSICS)

Fascism is the study of how the face communicates. The 80 muscles in the face can create
more than 7, 000 expressions. The face is the exhibit gallery for our emotional displays of our
internal states, including the six universal primary ones: happiness, sadness, surprise, fear,
anger and disgust (contempt). Others include intention to interrupt, showing interest etc. The
face sends information about our personality, interests, responsiveness, and emotional states.
How we perceive another person is often based on that person’s facial expressions as we
observe or interact with them.

1.12.5 TOUCH (HAPTIC COMMUNICATION)

Haptic communication refers to the ways in which people and other animals communicate
and interact via the sense of touch. As well as providing information about surfaces and
textures, touch, or the haptic sense, is a component of communication in interpersonal
relationships that is nonverbal and nonvisual.

Touch is extremely important for humans and it is the earliest sense to develop in the foetus.
Human babies have been observed to have enormous difficulty surviving if they do not
possess a sense of touch, even if they retain sight and hearing. Babies who can perceive
through touch, even without sight and hearing, tend to fare much better.

Meanings of touch

Touch research conducted by Jones and Yarbrough (1985) revealed 18 different meanings of
touch, grouped in seven types: Positive affect (emotion), playfulness, control, ritual, hybrid
(mixed), task-related, and accidental touch.

Positive affect touches

These touches communicate positive emotions and occur mostly between persons who have
close relationships. These touches can be further classified as support, appreciation,
inclusion, sexual interest or intent, and affection.

Support: Serve to nurture, reassure, or promise protection. These touches generally occur in
situations which either virtually require or make it clearly preferable that one person show
concern for another who is experiencing distress.

Appreciation: Express gratitude for something another person has done.

Inclusion: Draw attention to the act of being together and suggest psychological closeness.

Sexual: Express physical attraction or sexual interest.

Affection: Express generalized positive regard beyond mere acknowledgment of the other.

Playful touches

These touches serve to lighten an interaction. These touches communicate a double message
since they always involve a play signal, either verbal or nonverbal, which indicates the
behavior is not to be taken seriously. These touches can be further classified as affectionate
and aggressive.

Playful affection: Serve to lighten interaction. The seriousness of the positive message is
diminished by the play signal. These touches indicate teasing and are usually mutual.

Playful aggression: Like playful affection these touches are used to serve to lighten
interaction, however, the play signal indicates aggression. These touches are initiated, rather
than mutual.

Control touches

These touches serve to direct the behavior, attitude, or feeling state of the recipient. The key
feature of these touches is that almost all of the touches are initiated by the person who
attempts influence. These touches can be further classified as compliance, attention-getting,
and announcing a response.

Compliance: Attempts to direct behavior of another person, and often, by implication, to

influence attitudes or feelings.

Attention-getting: Serve to direct the touch recipient’s perceptual focus toward something.

Announcing a response: Call attention to and emphasize a feeling state of initiator; implicitly
requests affect response from another.

Striking, pushing, pulling, pinching, kicking, strangling and hand-to-hand fighting are forms
of touch in the context of physical abuse. In a sentence like "I never touched him/her" or
"Don't you dare to touch him/her" the term touch may be meant as euphemism for either
physical abuse or sexual touching.

Ritualistic touches

These touches consist of greeting and departure touches. They serve no other function than to
help make transitions in and out of focused interaction.

Greeting: Serve as part of the act of acknowledging another at the opening of an encounter.
Departure: Serve as a part of the act of closing an encounter

Hybrid touches

These touches involve two or more of the meanings described above. These touches can be
further classified as greeting/affection and departure/affection.

Greeting/affection: Express affection and acknowledgement of the initiation of an encounter

Departure/affection: Express affection and serve to close an encounter

Task-related touches

These touches are directly associated with the performance of a task. These touches can be
further classified as reference to appearance, instrumental ancillary, and instrumental
intrinsic.

Reference to appearance: Point out or inspect a body part or artefact referred to in a verbal
comment about appearance

Instrumental ancillary: Occur as an unnecessary part of the accomplishment of a task.

Instrumental intrinsic: Accomplish a task in and out of itself i.e., a helping touch.

Accidental touches

These touches are perceived as unintentional and have no meaning. They consist mainly of
brushes. Research by Martin in a retailing context found that male and female shoppers who
were accidentally touched from behind by other shoppers left a store earlier than people who
had not been touched and evaluated

brands more negatively, resulting in the Accidental Interpersonal Touch effect.

1.13 TOPIC SUMMARY

In summary, we have established that communication is the deliberate or accidental transfer
of information. The key elements in the communication process are the participants, the
message and the channel. All communication takes place in a context which aids in its
interpretation. Noise is an unwelcome but ever-present element of communication. Feedback
interchanges the roles of the participants, and it is what indicates whether the message was
understood as intended or not. We have learnt that communication skills are very important
in academics and life in general and also we have outlined important principles underlying
the communication process as well as the various types of communication.

1.14 NOTE
Communication is a constant fact of human existence. The communication process is cyclic
and dynamic. The elements of communication are interdependent.

1.15 TOPIC ACTIVITIES

a) Discuss any two communication models, showing how the various elements interact.

b) The communication process is dynamic and cyclic. Discuss.

c) b. Discuss the barriers involved in the communication process.

1.16 FURTHER READING

i. Raims A. (2002) Keys for writers; A brief hand book (3rd edition) Houghton Co.,
Newyork.

ii. Griffin E.M (2002) A first book in communication for personal and professional
context, Clank publishing inc. Topeka.

iii. Anderson A.J (1987) Communication Research; Issues and mehods, McGraw hill
Book Co; New York

1.17 SELF ASSESSMENT

a) What are the common symbols and signs that you think will be useful to you in
interpersonal communication?

b) State five contexts in which you get involved in interpersonal communication at the
university.

c) What are the main barriers to communication you have encountered at Chuka
University?