Download Communication - Craig W. Fontaine, Ph.D.

Business Leadership
and
Organizational Behavior
Communication
Craig W. Fontaine, Ph.D.
What is Communication?
Communication
• The transference and the understanding of
meaning.
• Language is a sign and symbol system. It involves a
set of rules regarding the linking of symbols to
referents and their meanings and the linking of
symbols to each other.
The Importance of Communication
Communication
helps
organizations
Accomplish individual and
organizational goals
Implement and respond to
organizational change
Coordinate activities
Engage in virtually all
organizational relevant behaviors
The Importance of Communication
• Today’s complex business environment depends on
effective communication
• Managers spend 80% of their day communicating
• 48 minutes of every hour is spent:
•
•
•
•
In meetings
On the telephone
Communicating online
Talking informally
• In short, communication permeates every
management function
Elements of the Communication Process
 The sender
 Encoding
 The message
 The channel
 Decoding
 The receiver
 Noise
 Feedback
A Perceptual Model of Communication
Encoding
Sender
Transmitted
on medium
Message
Receiver
decodes
Receiver
creates
meaning
Noise
Source
decodes
Transmitted
on medium
Message
Feedback
Encoding
Barriers to Effective Communication
Filtering
A sender’s manipulation of information so that it will
be seen more favorably by the receiver.
Selective Perception
People selectively interpret what they see on the
basis of their interests, background, experience, and
attitudes.
Information Overload
A condition in which information inflow exceeds an
individual’s processing capacity.
Barriers to Effective Communication (cont’d)
Emotions
How a receiver feels at the time a message is received
will influence how the message is interpreted.
Language
Words have different meanings
to different people.
Semantics
The different understanding and interpretations of
the words we use to communicate
Communication Channels
 Channel
– The medium selected by the sender through which the
message travels to the receiver.
 Types of Channels
– Formal Channels
• Are established by the organization and transmit
messages that are related to the professional activities of
members.
– Informal Channels
• Used to transmit personal or social messages in the
organization. These informal channels are spontaneous
and emerge as a response to individual choices.
Choice of Communication Channel
Channel Richness
The amount of information that can be transmitted
during a communication episode.
Characteristics of Rich Channels
1. Handle multiple cues simultaneously.
2. Facilitate rapid feedback.
3. Are very personal in context.
Information Richness of Communication
Channels
Low channel richness
High channel richness
Routine
Source: Based on R.H. Lengel and D.L. Daft, “The Selection of Communication Media as an Executive Skill,”
Academy of Management Executive, August 1988, pp. 225–32; and R.L. Daft and R.H. Lengel, “Organizational
Information Requirements, Media Richness, and Structural Design,” Managerial Science, May 1996, pp. 554–72.
Reproduced from R.L. Daft and R.A. Noe, Organizational Behavior (Fort Worth, TX: Harcourt, 2001), p. 311.
Nonroutine
Informal Communication – The Grapevine
• The Grapevine: represents the unofficial
communication system of the informal
organization.
• Informal, not controlled by management.
• Perceived by most employees as being more believable
and reliable than formal communication
• Faster than formal channels
• About 80% accurate
• Used when people are insecure and faced with
organizational change
• Used by employees to acquire the majority of their on-thejob information
Grapevine Patterns
E
C
K
H
Y
G
I
X
F
B
D
J
D
E
G
J
C
D
C
F
B
B
H
I
J
A
Gossip—one tells all
B
A
Probability—each randomly tells
others
D
K
C
A
Single strand—each tells one other
I
Cluster—some tell selected others;
most typical
F
A
Direction of Organizational Communication
Downward
Lateral
Upward
Downward Communication
•
Managers provide five types of information
through downward communication
•
•
•
•
•
Job instructions
Job rationale
Organizational procedures and practices
Feedback about performance
Indoctrination of goals
Upward Communication
• Upward Communication
• Communicator is at lower level than receiver
• Includes: brief meetings, memos, e-mails, suggestion
boxes, group meetings, and appeal or grievance
procedures
Functions of Upward Communication
– Is management’s primary source of feedback
operational issues
– Provides managers feedback about problems,
organizational issues, day-to-day operations
– Relieves employee tension by allowing lower-level
organization members to share relevant information
with superiors
– Encourages employees’ participation and involvement,
thereby enhancing organizational cohesiveness
Lateral(Horizonal) Communication
Overlooked in most organizational designs
Necessary for coordination and integration
of diverse organizational functions
Often necessary for coordination
Can provide social need satisfaction
Facilitation often left to individual managers
Communication Styles
Communication
Style
Description
Nonverbal
Verbal Behavior
Behavior Pattern Pattern
Assertive
Pushing hard
without attacking;
permits others to
influence outcome:
expressive and selfenhancing without
intruding on others

Good eye
contact
 Comfortable,
but firm posture
 Strong, steady,
and audible
voice
 Facial
expressions
matched to
message
 Appropriately
serious tone
 Selective
interruptions to
ensure
understanding
Direct and
unambiguous
language
 No attributions
or evaluations of
other’s behavior
 Use of “I”
statements and
cooperative
“we” statements

Communication Styles
Communication
Style
Description
Nonverbal
Verbal Behavior
Behavior Pattern Pattern
Aggressive
Taking advantage of
others; expressive
and self-enhancing
at others’ expense

Glaring eye
contact
 Moving or leaning
too close
 Threatening
gestures
 Loud voice
 Frequent
interruptions
Swear words and
abusive language
 Attributions and
evaluations of
others’ behavior
 Sexist or racist
terms
 Explicit threats or
put-downs

Communication Styles
Communication
Style
Description
Nonverbal
Verbal Behavior
Behavior Pattern Pattern
Nonassertive
Encouraging others
to take advantage
of us; inhibited;
self-denying

Little eye contact
 Downward glances
 Slumped posture
 Constantly shifting
weight
 Wringing hands
 Weak or whiny
voice



Qualifiers
Fillers
Negaters
Communication Barriers Between Men and
Women
 Men talk to:
– Emphasize status,
power, and
independence.
– Complain that women
talk on and on.
– Offer solutions.
– To boast about their
accomplishments.
 Women talk to:
– Establish connection
and intimacy.
– Criticize men for not
listening.
– Speak of problems to
promote closeness.
– Express regret and
restore balance to a
conversation.
Nonverbal Communication
 Messages expressed by other than linguistic means
 Messages transmitted by vocal means that do not
involve language
 Sign language and written words are not considered
nonverbal communication
 Experts estimate 65 to 90% of every conversation
nonverbal
Common Types of Nonverbal Communication
 Nonverbal Communication
–
–
–
–
–
Proxemics
Haptics
Facial Expressions
Eye Contact
Paralanguage
Proxemics (or Personal Space) - History



1966: Edward Hall wrote “The Hidden
Dimension”
Introduced the concept of “proxemics”
Definition: “the scientific study of human
spatial behavior”
Commonly cited observations of PROXEMICS
 Different cultures have different comfort levels
of distance
 Men tend to take up more space than women
Example: When you sit in the movies or on an
airplane with someone of the opposite sex
who usually gets the armrest?
PROXEMICS - Personal Space
 Four zones of Proxemics
–
–
–
–
Intimate Distance
Personal Distance
Social Distance
Public Distance
Personal Space in U.S.
Public Distance
 Public distance
– 12-25+ feet
– Very formal
– Evasive or defensive
action can easily be
taken
– Used with strangers
– Deference when
approaching important
public figures
Social Distance
 Social distance
– 4’ – 12’
– Closer distance (4-7’)
used by people who work
together/informal
business
– Longer distance (7-12’)
requires raising the voice
– more formal business
and social interaction
Personal Distance
 Personal Distance
– 18” – 4’
– Sensory cues begin to
fade here
– More aware of person’s
body rather than just the
face
– Touching is still possible
– Common distance for
casual conversation
between friends
Intimate Distance
 Intimate Distance
– 0-18”
– Head and face are all
that is seen
– Can get additional
sensory signals
– Usually not OK in
public except for sports
HAPTICS (Touch)
The power of touch:
 A (1997) study found that strangers that were
touched were more likely to return change left in a
phone booth(Klienke)
 A (1992) study found that food servers who used
touch received larger tips (Hornick)
 Library study (1976) found that students who were
slightly touched by clerk while checking out library
books evaluated the library much more favorably
than those who were not touched.
Facial expressions
 The face is capable of conveying 250,000
expressions (Birdwhistle, 1970)
 Smiling increases sociability, likeability, and
attraction(LaFrance & Hecht, 1995)
 Food servers who smile more often earn increased
tips (Heslin & Patterson, 1982)
 Studies conducted on students caught cheating
found that students who smiled were treated with
more leniency (LaFrance & Hecht, 1995)
Eye contact
 Eye contact conveys a sense of sincerity
 Eye contact establishes a connection between
persons
 Successful pan handlers establish eye contact
(Beebe, 1974)
 People are more likely to comply when more eye
contact is used
 Eye contact that is “too long” causes discomfort
Paralanguage
• The set of properties of
speech used to communicate
attitudes or other shades of
meaning:
• Vocal pitch
• Tone/intonations
• Tempo of speak
Nonverbal Leakage of Deception—Lying
 BASE LINE: Behavior
before judging
 MOVEMENT
– Hand-to-face (cover
mouth)
– Nose rub
– Lip biting
– Foot tapping
– Open gestures show
comfort.
 DRESS
– Close and open coat
– Play with collar
– Picking at lint on clothing
 PROXEMICS
– Moving away
“Politically Correct” Communication
 Certain words stereotype, intimidate, and insult
individuals.
 In an increasingly diverse workforce, we must be
sensitive to how words might offend others.
– Removed: handicapped, blind, and elderly
– Replaced with: physically challenged, visually impaired,
and senior.
 Removing certain words from the vocabulary makes
it harder to communicate accurately.
– Removed: death, garbage, quotas, and women.
– Replaced with terms: negative patient outcome,
postconsumer waste materials, educational equity, and
people of gender.