Demonstrative Communication

Demonstrative Communication

BCOM/275

Laurie Brown

Demonstrative Communication

When we think about communication, lots of things come to mind. We may think about verbally telling someone something, we may think about sending a text message or writing an email. We can communicate through the internet and verbally through our cell phones; there are many ways in which we communicate. There is a lesser known form of communication called “demonstrative communication” which is a communication form other than written and verbal.

Demonstrative communication can be expressed in many forms such as facial expressions or hand gestures. The way someone is dressed says a lot about a person, and is also a form of communication. When you are meeting for a job interview, the way you shake the interviewers’ hand can speak volumes about you, these are all forms of demonstrative communication. We do this every day and don’t even realize that we are all communicating demonstratively. There are many pros and cons to this form of communication, for example when we watch baseball games on TV. The pitcher and catcher communicate using hand signals so that the opposing team does not understand what they are trying to accomplish. Another example would be a group of soldiers patrolling in the enemy territory, the soldiers must communicate demonstratively in order to keep noise discipline and not arouse suspicion.

Another example would be when in a church setting when you want to remain quiet and convey a message to someone either by hand gesture, body language or facial expression. There are many instances when demonstrative communication might not be the best choice of communication. Such as when at a social event where you may need to speak in order for you to get your message across. Or when you may want to communicate with your learning team, you write them an email or give them a call, demonstrative communication will not work in these cases. You have to be very careful when communicating demonstratively because your message may be interpreted in the wrong way by the receiver. For example, you may want to be especially careful in a work environment where your message might be taken offensively by a coworker, these things may have a very negative impact in your work relationships. Communicating demonstratively can be and is a very effective tool when wanting to get your message across.

References
Moore, B. N., & Parker, R. (2009). Critical thinking (9th ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill.
http://speakingspecialist.com/articles/28-nonverbal-communication-says-a-lot

References: Moore, B. N., & Parker, R. (2009). Critical thinking (9th ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill. http://speakingspecialist.com/articles/28-nonverbal-communication-says-a-lot