BARRIERS TO

COMMUNICATION

For Class Room Discussion

Discuss the meanings of:

Communication Barrier

What do you understand by the term “barriers to communication”.

State all the barriers that you can think of that impact your day-to-day communication.

Which of the barriers to effective communication is the most difficult to deal with? Explain.

IntroductionCommunication is the process of transferring knowledge, ideas, information and thoughts from one person to another or a group of people.

Though we live in the Information Age, communication barriers always exist.

What is a barrier?

Barrier is something that obstructs or blocks.

What is barrier in communication?

Barriers to communication are the hindrances or difficulties involved in the process of communication which distort the message from being properly understood by the receiver.

Task: List any 5 barriers to communication.

Barriers – An Analysis

A barrier can occur at any point in the communication process.

Barriers keep us from understanding other’s ideas and thoughts.

Have you ever been talking to some one and they misunderstood what you were saying?

Why do you think that happens?

Common Barriers To Communication

Physical barriers

Psychological barriers

Semantic barriers

Personal barriers

Organizational barriers

Social barriers

Cultural barriers

Ethical barriers

Physical Barriers Noise

Any sound that prevents a person from being heard.

Example: Ringing telephones inside the room or noise of traffic/aeroplanes outside the building or noise of machines in factories.

(Physical noise interferes with a speaker's ability to send messages and with an audience's ability to receive them.)

Time & Distance

Receiver has no time to listen Too much distance between the sender and

receiver

Defects in the medium of communication

Example: Bad network, interruptions in telephone)

Psychological Barriers Emotions

Play an important role on how we perceive a message. The same message can be interpreted in a different way when we are angry or when we are in a calm and composed mood.

► Play Audio No.1

Lack of Self Confidence

When there is distrust due to fear, suspicion, dishonesty between the sender and receiver of communication, the sender will lack confidence in conveying the message.

Psychological Barriers Selective Perception

We all perceive only the part of message which is of our interest based on our past experiences and background.

Laziness

Authorities/managers sometimes assume that a message has already been spread and hence will not pass the message formally.

What To Do

Consider the cultural make up of the intended audience.

Seek to understand the differences.

Frame the message in such a way that it conveys what you mean and also takes those differences into account.

Semantic/Language Barriers

Semantic/Language Barriers

Lack of common language

Two persons cannot communicate properly unless they have a common language.

Variance in expression or colloquialism is common even among those who speak the same language.

Example:

When Betty moved to Canada from England, she realized that many expressions she used were interpreted differently in her new country.  One day she was sitting around a table with her co-workers discussing the time each got up in the morning to get ready for work. When it came to her turn, she said, “My husband knocks me up every morning at 7:30”.

It was only after the laughter had died down did someone explain to her the North American meaning associated with what she had just said.

Semantic/Language Barriers

Poor vocabulary

If a person fumbles or cannot use right word at the right time, his/her messages cannot be received correctly.

Poor grammar, punctuations

Essential in framing correct sentences without distorting the message

Use of jargons

Avoid technical words and metaphors as far as possible.

What To Do

Minimize the use of slang and idioms when delivering the message

Keep the language simple and free from jargons and metaphors.

Make clarity and simplicity the goal over showcasing linguistic ability.

Social Barriers This is a huge barrier to communication and includes many

factors such as, conflict, violent and abusive situations, ability to read and write in a particular language or style.

In any conversation, it will be almost impossible to converse with the other person if one part of the conversation is violent or abusive.

This violent or abusive nature may be because they have a troubled past, and as a result they will have low self esteem which could have caused them to be abusive and violent.

How to Overcome?

To overcome the social barrier,

First, you have to build a good relationship with the person so that he/she will feel more secure in your company and will also trust you more.

Or, if the person did not want to communicate with you at that time you could always delay the time until he/she has calmed down.

Personal Barriers

Personal Attitude

When the person who delivers the message is not comfortable with the message, he/she cannot deliver it properly.

Lack of Confidence in Subordinates

If there is no good relationship between managers and subordinates, subordinates will not communicate effectively.

Message Overload

If too many messages are going on in the mind, one cannot communicate information to others properly.

Few Other Personal Barriers

Level of interpersonal trust between people

Stereotypes and prejudice

Egos

Poor listening skills

Tendency to evaluate or judge a sender’s message

Inability to listen with understanding

Organizational Barriers

Wrong Choice of Medium

Can choose from oral, written, visual communication

Status Relationships

Messages will not be reported properly if subordinates are scared of the managers

Lengthy ProcessIf the hierarchy is too long, any communication (upward or downward) will take a long time to reach persons.

Cultural Barriers Cultures provide people with ways of thinking--ways of

seeing, hearing, and interpreting the world. Thus the same words can mean different things to people from different cultures, even when they talk the "same" language.

Many factors make up what we refer to as “culture”, but mainly the cultural difference is about attitudes and beliefs that come from our personal environment and experience. 

Two people could get the same message but interpret it in two entirely different ways because their cultures and language differ.

Example:

Scandinavian vacuum manufacturer, Electrolux used the following advertisement in an American campaign: "Nothing sucks like an Electrolux”.

This was developed for the Scandinavian advertising campaign and used in America without any modification. (In American English, “sucks” is very bad or very annoying)

Ethical Barriers

Barriers to ethical behaviour in business organizations are:

moral silence - failing to speak up about issues that are known to be wrong

moral deafness - failing to hear or attend to moral concerns raised by others

moral blindness – failing to recognize the moral implications of actions

Overcoming the Barriers

Take the receiver more seriously

Think more clearly about the message

Deliver messages skillfully

Focus on the receiver

Use multiple channels and encoding

Secure appropriate feedback

THANK YO

U ALL

…!!!