Bus. Comm - Business English & Correspondence Gbs for Week No. 1

OBJECTIVES:
At the end of this lesson, the learner is expected to:  Give and describe communication and its types, components, and elements.  Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of written communication.  Identify the models of written communication.
TOPIC:
Communication and Forms of Communication Elements, Components, and Process of Communication Advantages and Disadvantages of Written Communication Models of Written Communication
DISCUSSION/READINGS:
Communication is a process of exchanging verbal and non verbal messages. It is a continuous process. Pre-requisite of communication is a message. This message must be conveyed through some medium to the recipient. It is essential that this message must be understood by the recipient in same terms as intended by the sender. He must respond within a time frame. Thus, communication is a two way process and is incomplete without a feedback from the recipient to the sender on how well the message is understood by a person.
Communication Process Elements
Here are the elements of the communication process:
• A message: what need to be communicated
• A messenger: the person who has something to communicate
• A receiver: the person who will receive the message
• Encoding: verbal and non-verbal convention of communication
• Decoding: reading by the receiver of the encoding done by the messenger
• Channel: the means of communication
This process works as follows: The messenger has something to communicate, a message. This message has intent. The messenger will encode his message with words, behavior and body language that he senses will help him to best communicate this message according to his intent. The message will go through a channel, a means of communication such as e-mail, face to face or phone conversation, letter, presentation. The receiver will then decode the message using conventions, cultural or contextual background, and language skills. The message he receives might or might not meet the intent of the messenger.
Components of Communication Process
The main components of communication process are as follows:
1. Context - Communication is affected by the context in which it takes place. This context may be physical, social, chronological or cultural. Every communication proceeds with context. The sender chooses the message to communicate within a context.
2. Sender / Encoder - Sender / Encoder is a person who sends the message. A sender makes use of symbols (words or graphic or visual aids) to convey the message and produce the required response. Sender may be an individual or a group or an organization. The views, background, approach, skills, competencies, and knowledge of the sender have a great impact on the message. The verbal and non verbal symbols chosen are essential in ascertaining interpretation of the message by the recipient in the same terms as intended by the sender.
3. Message - Message is a key idea that the sender wants to communicate. It is a sign that elicits the response of recipient. Communication process begins with deciding about the message to be conveyed. It must be ensured that the main objective of the message is clear.
4. Medium - Medium is a means used to exchange / transmit the message. The sender must choose an appropriate medium for transmitting the message else the message might not be conveyed to the desired recipients. The choice of appropriate medium of communication is essential for making the message effective and correctly interpreted by the recipient. This choice of communication medium varies depending upon the features of communication. For instance - Written medium is chosen when a message has to be conveyed to a small group of people, while an oral medium is chosen when spontaneous feedback is required from the recipient as misunderstandings are cleared then and there.
5. Recipient / Decoder - Recipient / Decoder is a person for whom the message is intended / aimed / targeted. The degree to which the decoder understands the message is dependent upon various factors such as knowledge of recipient, their responsiveness to the message, and the reliance of encoder on decoder.
6. Feedback - Feedback is the main component of communication process as it permits the sender to analyze the efficacy of the message. It helps the sender in confirming the correct interpretation of message by the decoder. Feedback may be verbal (through words) or non-verbal (in form of smiles, sighs, etc.). It may take written form also in form of memos, reports, etc.
Different Forms of Communication
a. Verbal Communication
Verbal communication includes sounds, words, language and speaking. Language is said to have originated from sounds and gestures. There are many languages spoken in the world. The bases of language formation are: gender, class, profession, geographical area, age group and other social elements. Speaking is an effective way of communicating and is again classified into two types, viz: interpersonal communication and public speaking.
Good verbal communication is an inseparable part of business communication. In a business, you come across people from various ages, cultures and races. Fluent verbal communication is essential, to deal with people in business meetings. Also, in business communication self-confidence plays a vital role which when clubbed with fluent communication skills can lead to success.
b. Non-Verbal Communication
Non-verbal communication involves physical ways of communication, like, tone of the voice, touch, smell and body motion. Creative and aesthetic non-verbal communication includes singing, music, dancing and sculpturing. Symbols and sign language are also included in non-verbal communication. Body language is a non-verbal way of communication. Body posture and physical contact convey a lot of information. Body posture matters a lot when you are communicating verbally to someone. Folded arms and crossed legs are some of the signals conveyed by a body posture. Physical contact, like, shaking hands, pushing, patting and touching expresses the feeling of intimacy. Facial expressions, gestures and eye contact are all different ways of communication. Reading facial expressions can help you know a person better.
c. Written Communication
Written communication is writing the words which you want to communicate. Good written communication is essential for business purposes. Written communication is practiced in many different languages. E-mails, reports, articles and memos are some of the ways of using written communication in business. The written communication can be edited and amended many times before it is communicated to the second party to whom the communication is intended. This is one of the main 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. Mobile SMS is an example of informal written communication.
d. Visual communication
The last type of communication is the visual communication. Visual communication is visual display of information, like topography, photography, signs, symbols and designs. Television and video clips are the electronic form of visual communication.
Effective communication is essential for the success of any type of business. Informally too, nothing can be achieved without proper communication. Therefore, developing communicative skills is a must. One must understand that all the four types of communication are equally important and one must develop communicative skills in all the mediums. Communicative media is growing day by day to ensure clarity and to eliminate the ambiguity in communication.
Written Communication
Written communication has great significance in today’s business world. It is an innovative activity of the mind. Effective written communication is essential for preparing worthy promotional materials for business development. Speech came before writing. But writing is more unique and formal than speech. Effective writing involves careful choice of words, their organization in correct order in sentences formation as well as cohesive composition of sentences. Also, writing is more valid and reliable than speech. But while speech is spontaneous, writing causes delay and takes time as feedback is not immediate.
Advantages of Written Communication
1. Written communication helps in laying down apparent principles, policies and rules for running of an organization.
2. It is a permanent means of communication. Thus, it is useful where record maintenance is required.
3. It assists in proper delegation of responsibilities. While in case of oral communication, it is impossible to fix and delegate responsibilities on the grounds of speech as it can be taken back by the speaker or he may refuse to acknowledge.
4. Written communication is more precise and explicit.
5. Effective written communication develops and enhances an organization’s image.
6. It provides ready records and references.
7. Legal defenses can depend upon written communication as it provides valid records.
Disadvantages of Written Communication
1. Written communication does not save upon the costs. It costs huge in terms of stationery and the manpower employed in writing/typing and delivering letters.
2. If the receivers of the written message are separated by distance and if they need to clear their doubts, the response is not spontaneous.
3. Written communication is time-consuming as the feedback is not immediate. The encoding and sending of message takes time.
4. Effective written communication requires great skills and competencies in language and vocabulary use. Poor writing skills and quality have a negative impact on organization’s reputation.
5. Too much paper work and e-mails burden is involved.
Models of Written Communication
These models allows one to conceptualize the process of written communication. Models are metaphors and representation of a situation.
a. Claude Shannon 's Model
Claude Shannon 's concept of a communication system is formulated in a commonly found diagram. The information is transmitted from an information source through a channel to a receiver. Shannon 's diagram emphasizes the encoding of information to be transmitted and the decoding of received information. It also indicates the effect of noise on the channel through which the information is transmitted.
The value of Shannon 's model for the theory of writing is its emphasis on encoding/decoding and on the effect of noise. Shannon 's model is limited for the theory of writing in that it overlooks the motives of both the sender (writer) and receiver (reader). People have reasons for writing and reading; Shannon 's model does not take the reasons into account.
b. Roman Jakobson 's Model
Roman Jakobson was a Russian linguist. His model of the communication process represents spoken rather than written communication, and there are some who argue that it doesn 't apply to writing. Nevertheless, it is often applied to writing.
Jakobson 's model is often represented in a diagram. The elements of the diagram (changed to apply to writing) are: the writer, the reader, the context, the message, the contact, and the code. By naming the writer and reader as parts of his model, Jakobson does make an opening for motives and other "subjective" factors.
The contact is the medium through which the message is transmitted. In the case of a web page, for instance, the contact is complex: It includes the server which houses the file which you 're reading, the computer and software with which you 're reading it, and the means by which they are connected. This same information could be transmitted through a different channel, a printed book, a chalk board, or a speech.
The code is the language which, presumably, writer and reader share. The code includes the type of writing as well as other conventions of written language.
Jakobson 's model helps to chart the purposes of a piece of writing, according to which part of the model a purpose relates to. Jakobson 's model incorporates some features of Shannon 's (the transmission of information via a channel). Jakobson 's model is limited in that it doesn 't represent the discovery processes that writers engage in nor does it indicate the recursiveness of both writing and reading.
b. Ulric Neisser 's Model
Ulric Neisser does not supply the kind of diagram of the communication process that Shannon and Jakobson do. Neisser 's model applies the psychology of cognition and perception to the writing process. Neisser emphasizes the exploratory and recursive nature of perception.
Guided by our desires, needs, ideas, images of the world, etc, we explore it. Our exploration produces new information. This new information affects the needs, desires, images, etc. with which we began. Our changed needs and desires guide a new round of exploratory activity which in turn produces new information.
This model fits the writing process well. We begin writing motivated by our current ideas, beliefs, motives, etc. As we write, we explore and discover information. This new information feeds back into our starting ideas and motives, changing or reinforcing them. From this point, we can engage in another round of exploratory writing.
d. Michael Polanyi 's Model
Polanyi 's work has valuable suggestions for the theory of writing. His philosophy emphasizes the engagement of the person in the act of knowing. It also highlights the importance of the "tacit dimension," of the fact that we know more than we can say and that we often say more than we realize.
This model is simple: A person discovers meaning in an experience. Subsequently, the person writes something (a poem, a novel, an essay, a letter, a journal entry . . .) that expresses the meaning found in the experience. Finally, someone reads the text and discovers meaning in it. The reader may be the writer himself or herself; the reader may be a complete stranger.
An important implication of this model is that the text does not convey the original experience to the reader. Instead, it conveys meaning to the reader. Further, the meaning the reader discovers in the text may not be the meaning intended by the writer. In other words, a text can not convey an experience; it can only convey meanings. Many texts do not convey a single, unequivocal meaning to all readers: These are the texts we call literature. Together with the model based on Neisser 's work, this one highlights the importance of interpretation.
EVALUATION/ASSIGNMENT:
1. How do communication forms and elements work in a communication process? Discuss it fully? 2. Give at least two (2) advantages and two (2) disadvantages of written communication. 3. Draw a diagram that will represent the four (4) models of written communication. Give one (1) communicative situation for each model.
REFERENCES:
Roman Jakobson, "Closing Statement: Linguistics and Poetics." In Thomas A. Sebeok (ed), Style in Language. M.I.T. Press, 1960: 350-377.
Ulric Neisser, Cognition and Reality: Principles and Implications of Cognitive Psychology. W. H. Freeman, 1976.
Michael Polanyi, Knowing and Being. University of Chicago Press, 1969.
OTHER SOURCES: The Internet

References: Roman Jakobson, "Closing Statement: Linguistics and Poetics." In Thomas A. Sebeok (ed), Style in Language. M.I.T. Press, 1960: 350-377. Ulric Neisser, Cognition and Reality: Principles and Implications of Cognitive Psychology. W. H. Freeman, 1976. Michael Polanyi, Knowing and Being. University of Chicago Press, 1969. OTHER SOURCES: The Internet