We all know from previous weeks that communication can be verbal or non-verbal, but how do we get to that point? How do we determine what and how we are going to say things when we are speaking to someone else? The process of communication has several parts that guide us through speaking, receiving and understanding. There are three parts of communication: encoding, storage, and retrieval (Feldman, 2014). These three parts are very important, as one is not fully functional without the other. Let’s discuss these parts and how they lead us into having casual conversations with others.
Encoding can be defined as “the process by which information is initially recorded in a form usable to memory” (Feldman, 2014, p194). We use encoding to determine what part of the conversation we are going to pay attention to. However, we cannot effectively use the information received unless the information had been stored in our memory properly.
Storage can be defined as “the maintenance of material saved in memory” (Feldman, 2014, p195). Storage can be used as a function in which the individual uses old information to assist with new information within a conversation. For example, we all learned that there are 12 months in a year. However, if we had felt that this information was useless at the time of hearing it, it would not have been stored in our memory for us to use as we got older.
“Retrieval is the process by which material in memory storage is located, brought into awareness, and used” (Feldman, 2014, p195).
Encoding is the area in which individuals can have errors within their communication. An individual may not take the time to communicate what they are saying properly, and the information can be interpreted incorrectly. For instance, you are trying to get someone’s attention, however, your current method is not working, and the only other way is for you to yell. Once you have yelled, the person finally hears you, but thinks that you are upset, due to the tone of voice that he/she heard you use. If you do not explain the situation to the person, “the message in never fully processed through working memory, it is forgotten due to encoding failure” (Melucci, 2010, p146). The receiver never has a clear understanding of why you yelled and has less chance of focusing on the information that is truly important.
Because communication has such a big impact on everyone, whether through letters, email, or conversation, we try to think about what we are going to say and how we are going to say it. This leads us to interpersonal skills and communication. “Interpersonal communication begins intrapersonally, someone has a feeling or idea to express to you” (Garner, 1997, p37). Interpersonal communciations are those that allow us to express feelings when we are communicating with others. Interpersonal communication can have errors, and these errors within communciation are identified as decoding. “Messages are often decoded incorrectly, with neither party ever knowing there has been a misunderstanding” (Garner, 1997, p39). Let’s look at an example. Some people have a strong desire for sports (they eat, breathe, and sleep sports). Anything that you ask them about sports, they are able to tell you. While communicating with these people, they may provide you more information than you want, causing you to get lost in the conversation. You do not want to be rude and tell them that what they are talking about is unclear to you, so instead, you continue with the conversation as if you are still interested in what is being said. They are never aware that you did not follow what they were saying. Watch Got a Wicked Problem? First, Tell Me How You Make Toast. In this video, Tom Wujec discusses the transformation of toast, but then explores the value of communication and how things are discussed between individuals.
This leads us to communication and social influences. Think about all the times you had your own opinion or thoughts about something and you were easily persuaded to change your mind, simply because you wanted to fit in or did not want to feel like an outcast. Many of us experienced this as we went through elementary, middle, and high school. And some of you may still be going through it as you try to fit in on campus or within a sorority or fraternity. Social influences can also be seen on television and social media. We learn phrases and words that we may never have thought about, until we see that it has become popular on a television show or viral on social media. When it comes to social influences, think about the things that occurred in the 1970s-1990s. Many of the phrases, clothing, and other trends from these years have rotated back around and are becoming popular again. This is all due to social influences. Social influences also play another major role in how we communicate with each other. Think about the last time you had a true face to face, video conversation, or a phone call with someone. Has it been a while? Many of us now communicate through social media or text messages. Whether it is about how we are feeling, what we are doing, or if there is something exciting that is going on. Being able to experience someone’s true emotions within a conversation is going away. These emotions and how we interrupt someone else’s feelings, lead us back to encoding and the misunderstanding of decoding. As we cannot always determine the true meaning of what someone is saying through a text message or email. Sometimes it is better to have a face-to-face or verbal conversation with people, just to check in and see how they are doing. Watch The Micronisation of Communication in the Workplace for a discussion about communication and the changes that communication goes through as society continues to change, especially within the workplace.
References
Feldman, R. S. (2014). Life span development: A troprical approach (2nd ed.). Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.
Garner, A. (1997). Conversationally speaking. New York: McGraw-Hill Books.
Melucci, N. P. (2010). Barron’s e-z psychology. Hauppauge: Barron’s Educational Series, Inc.
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