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Barriers to communication Inroduction: Communication is complete and perfect when the receiver understands the message in the same sense and spirit as the communicator intends to convey, Here, idea and information reached to and responded by receiver remain unaltered and undistorted. But practically it has been noticed that such perfect and complete communication does not take place because of certain obstacles or other factors known as communication barriers. "There are a lot of causes of misunderstanding and misinterpretations of message communicated. As the process of communication involves sender, channels and receiver, the problem of communication usually lies with either one or more of them. Definition “Errors, misunderstandings and several other factors that prevent us transmit our ideas meaningfully causing communication co mmunication failure.” Levels of Barriers to Communication: Very often we say “I meant to say this and not that” even with the best intentions, communication barriers crop up and our written and spoken messages are misunderstood. If classify the barriers according to the process of message formation and delivery, we get them at three levels:
Intrapersonal
Interpersonal
Organizational
Intrapersonal Barriers: Individual are unique because of their idiosyncrasies. This is mainly because of differences in experience, education, values, and personality. Each of us interprets the same information in different ways as our thinking varies. Certain common causes are responsible for an individual‟s in built barriers like;
Wrong Assumptions
Varied Perceptions
Deferring Backgrounds
Wrong Inferences
Impervious Impervious Categories
Categorical Thinking
Wrong Assumptions: Assumption means something that you accept as true without question or proof. Many barriers in communication stem from wrong assumptions. Wrong assumptions are generally made because the sender or the receiver does not have adequate knowledge about each other‟s backgrounds or entertain certain false notions which are fixed in their mind. Sometimes the speaker does do es not realize that background, education educat ion and experiences of different people can be different. A skilled communicator keeps this issue in mind to prevent them from becoming barriers. To strengthen your skills as communicator try to put yourself in the shoe of o f listener.
Varied Perceptions: We all know the story of six blindmen and their perception of an elephant. The elephant is perceived by each man as a fan, a rope, a wall, a sword, a snake and a tree trunk. None of the blindman is wrong here as the part of the elephant body touched by each man was compared with carious objects they were knowing. This is how an individual perceives reality. Similarly an individuals in an organizations also perceive situations in different ways. It is all a matter of perceptions. The best way to overcome this barrier is to step back and take a wider perspective of the issue. Differing Backgrounds: No two persons have a similar background; even siblings differ in their genetic inheritance. People vary in terms of their education, culture, language, environment, age, sex, financial status etc. Our background plays a significant role in how we interpret the message. At times which is not experience by you earlier e arlier will be difficult to interpret or appreciate. To enhance our communication skills it is important to know the background of our audience. Empathy or identification with the listener is the only solution of this barrier. Make an effort to understand whether listener finds it difficult to comprehend the message because of the difference in your and your listener‟s background Wrong Inferences: Inference is the process of drawing a conclusion by applying heuristics (based on logic, statistics etc.) to observations or hypotheses; or by interpolating the next logical step in an intuited pattern. The conclusion drawn is also called an inference. Sometimes So metimes we fail to distinguish between what actually exist and what we assume to exist. Inferences are more dramatic than fact, and for this reason they give wide scope for gossip and rumour to grow or develop. Inferences supported by facts are essential for professionals when they analyse material, solve problems and plan procedures. Impervious Categories: In general, we react positively to information only if it is in consonance with our own views and attitudes. Conversely, when we receive information that does not confirm to our personal views, habits, attitudes, or appears unfavourable to us, we tend to react negatively or even disbelieve. Rejection, distortion, and avoidance are three common, undesirable and negative reactions to unfavourable information. People who are rigid in their opinions may face problems in communicating effectively. Categorical Thinking: People who feel that they „know it all‟ are called pansophists. A know-it-all or know-all is a person who believes that he/she has an accurate comprehension of a topic and/or situation when in reality; his/her comprehension is inaccurate and limited and therefore s/he refuses to accept
any further information on the topic. This type of thinking poses a major barrier, leading to a failure in communication. To sum up, good communication should:
Be non-judgmental
Be empathetic
Not assume anything
Stick to the subject
Listen and above all paraphrase
Interpersonal Barriers to Communication: Intrapersonal barriers stem from an individual‟s attitude habits; where as interpersonal barriers occur due to the inappropriate transaction of words between two or more people. The two broad categories into which this barrier can be classified are: 1. Inefficiency in communication skills 2. Negative aspect nurturing in the climate Interpersonal barriers creep as a result of the limitations in the communication skills of encoder or decoder or both. In addition they also may occur due to some disturbance in the channel. The most common reasons for interpersonal barriers are:
Limited Vocabulary
Incongruity between Verbal & Non-verbal messages
Emotional Outbursts
Communication Selectivity
Cultural Variations
Poor Listening Skills Sk ills
Noise in the Channel
Limited Vocabulary: As inadequate vocabulary can be a major hindrance in communication. At times the pen falters, tongue fumbles as we search for the exact words or phrases. In communication the connotative and denotative meanings of the words should be clear to the receiver. During the speech, if the speaker is at the loss of words, the communication will be very ineffective and will leave a poor impression on the audience Do remember also that merely having a good vocabulary is of no use unless the communicator knows how to use it. Therefore one should make constant efforts to increase one‟s vocabulary by regularly reading a variety of books and listening to native speakers of the language. Incongruity between Verbal & Non-verbal messages: Incongruity means a lack of harmony. The stark difference between Verbal & Non-verbal aspects of communication leaves the listeners feeling confused and puzzled. Emotional Outburst: Emotions are an integral part of our being, whether in business or personal encounters. By sharpening self-awareness, intuition, and empathy, emotions can help in highly conductive to good communication. In most cases, a moderate level of emotional involvement intensifies communication, making it more personal. However intensive emotional involvement can be an
obstacle in communication. For an example, extreme anger can create such an emotionally charged environment where rational discussion is not possible. Positive emotions like happiness and excitement also interfere in communication co mmunication but, to a lesser extent than negat ive feelings. Communication Selec S electivity: tivity: If a receiver in communication process pays attention only to a part of the message which may be of use to him, he imposes a barrier to communication known as communication selectivity. Here, in this situation, sender is not at fault, it is the receiver who breaks the flaw of communication. Cultural Variations: This is one of the predominant factors in communication failure. People constantly interact with people who have similar views and who reinforce their beliefs. To be able to distinguish between the in-group and the out-group is of central importance for individuals because it allows them to find an identity as to who they are and who they are not. To overcome successfully in today‟s globalised business environment, we must overcome the communication inadequacy arising from different languages and culture. Poor Listening Skills: The common obstacle to communication is poor listening usually occurs due to lack of control over the speed at which speakers speak, not being able to get things repeated, the listener's limited vocabulary, failure to recognize the "signals", problems of interpretation, inability to concentrate, and even may be due to some established learning habits. Noise in the Channel: Noise interferes greatly in the transmission of signals. Noise is any unwanted signal which acts as a hindrance in the flaw of communication. It is not necessarily limited to cacophony, but can also occur in visual, audio-visual, written, physical or psychological forms. All these forms of noise communicate extraneous matter which allay the receiver‟s interest in the message, even irritate him. Technical or physical noise refers to the din of machines, the blare of music from a stereo system, or other such sounds which make the task of the listener difficult. Human noise can be experienced when, for instance, employees gather for a meeting and a member arrives late distracting everybody‟s attention. Disturbances in telephone lines, poorly designed acoustics of a room, dim typescripts and illegible writing are some more examples of technical no ise.
Organizational Barriers to Communication: Communication barriers are not only limited to an individual or two people but exist in entire organization. Every organization, irrespective of its size, has its own communication techniques, and each nurtures its own communication climate. Irrespective of size, all organizations have communication policies which describe the protocol to be followed. It is the structure and complexity of this protocol that usually causes communication barriers. The major causes for organizational barriers are as follows:
Too Many Transfer Stations
Fear of Superiors
Negative Tendencies
Use of Inappropriate Media
Information Overload
Too Many Transfer Station: The more links there are in communication chain, the greater are the chances of communication loss that will occur. The messages get distorted in huge organization, with several layers of communication channels. The message gets distorted at each level not only because of poor listening or lack of concentration, but also because of several other reasons. Having too many transfer stations is always a deterrent to effective communication and should be avoided. avoided. Fear of Superior: In rigidly structured organization, fear or owe of the superiors prevents subordinates from speaking frankly. An employee may not be pleased with the way his boss works but is unable to put the point across because of losing his boss‟s goodwill. As a superior it is essential to create an environment which enables people to speak freely. An open environment is conducive to increasing the confidence and goodwill of communicator. Negative Tendencies: Many organizations create work groups according to the demands of task for a particular project. Some small groups are also formed for recreational, social or community purpose. These groups may be formal or informal and generally consists of people who share similar values, attitudes, opinions, beliefs, and behaviours. It is possible to have a communication barrier due to confliction of ideas between members and non-members of a group. Use of Inappropriate Media: Some of the common media used in organization are graphs and charts, telephones, facsimile machines, boards, e-mails, films and slides, computer presentation, teleconferencing and video conferencing. While choosing the medium one should therefore keep in mind the advantages, is advantages and pot ential barriers to communication. Before sending a message one should consider the following factors while choosing the medium.
Time
Cost
Type of Message
Intended Audience
Information Overload: One of the major problems faced by the organization today is the availability of huge amount of data which the receiver is unable to handle effectively. This is known as information overload. The usual results of information overload are fatigue, disinterest and boredom. In these circumstances further communication is simply not no t possible. It is observed that communication falls into two categories; either it is successful or it is not successful. Bearing in mind the possibilities and reasons for communication failures you can take primitive measures to avoid these barriers. barr iers.
