Page 30 - Essentials of Human Communication

Principles of Communication 9

All communications contain noise. Noise can’t be totally eliminated, but its effects Communication
can be reduced. Making your language more precise, sharpening your skills for sending Choice Point
and receiving nonverbal messages, adjusting your camera for greater clarity, and improv- negative Communica-
ing your listening and feedback skills are some ways to combat the influence of noise. tion effects
You post a really negative re-
mark on your friend’s Facebook wall. The
effeCts next day you realize you shouldn’t have
Communication always has some effect on those involved in the communication act. been so negative. You want to remain
For every communication act, there is some consequence. For example, you may gain friends; you need to say something. What
knowledge or learn how to analyze, synthesize, or evaluate something. These are intel- are your options for communicating your feel-
lectual or cognitive effects. You may acquire new feelings, attitudes, or beliefs or change ings? What would you do?
existing ones (affective effects). You may learn new bodily movements, such as how to
throw a curve ball, paint a picture, give a compliment, or express surprise (psychomotor effects).

Video Choice Point
ryan Asks for a recommendation
Ryan, a communication major, needs a letter of recommendation for a summer internship. He
wants to ask Professor Starck, a popular instructor who he previously had in class, for a recommendation. But, he
isn’t sure how to approach her. He considers the effect of the various elements of communication—including con-
text, feedback, feedforward, noise, and channel–on the outcome as he contemplates composing an effective mes-
sage. In this video you’ll see Ryan try three different approaches with varying effects. See how his choices play out in
the video, “Ryan Asks for a Recommendation” .

Watch the Video “Ryan Asks for a Recommendation” at MyCommunicationLab

Objectives self-Check
● Can you draw/diagram a model of communication that contains the elements of source-receiver,
messages, context, channel, noise, and effects and that illustrates how these are related to each
other? Can you define each of these elements?

Principles of Communication

Several principles are essential to an understanding of human communication in all its forms. Watch the Video “Going Up”
These principles, as you’ll see throughout the text, also have numerous practical implications at MyCommunicationLab
to help you increase your own communication effectiveness. A summary of these principles
appears in Table 1.1.

COMMuniCAtiOn is purpOseful
You communicate for a purpose; some motivation leads you to communicate. When you
speak or write, you’re trying to send some message and to accomplish some goal. Although
different cultures emphasize different purposes and motives (Rubin, Fernandez-Collado, &
Hernandez-Sampieri, 1992), five general purposes seem relatively common to most, if not all,
forms of communication:
● to learn: to acquire knowledge of others, the world, and yourself
● to relate: to form relationships with others, to interact with others as individuals
● to help: to assist others by listening, offering solutions
● to influence: to strengthen or change the attitudes or behaviors of others
● to play: to enjoy the experience of the moment