Learning Objectives

Refer to Pages 284–308.

11.1: Describe the communication process, and discuss sources of noise in the process.

Refer to Page 285.

Organizational communication is “the process by which individuals stimulate meaning in the minds of other individuals by means of verbal or nonverbal messages in the context of a formal organization.” The sender—This is the source transmission who selects a desired message out of a set of possible messages. Encoding—This is the transformation of the message into the signal, which is sent over the communication channel from the transmitter to the receiver. The channel is the medium that transmits the message. Decoding—The receiver then decodes the message sent through the selected channel or channels by translating what is seen and heard into an understanding of the message. The receiver is the person or persons who receive the message. Noise represents barriers to communication. Noise is any communication barrier that may affect how a person interprets a message. For example, perceptual biases, language choice, cultural differences, and the room being too hot may affect how a person decodes a message and result in errors.

11.2: Provide an example of how communication apprehension affects the communication process.

Refer to Page 282.

Communication researchers define communication apprehension (CA) as “an individual’s level of fear or anxiety with either real or anticipated communication with another person or persons.” For example, people with high CA may seek jobs with lower communication requirements and would seek less advice or assistance from their managers. People with high CA may not seek to resolve communication issues that arise. They may fear to seek clarification. Others may assume everything is all right when in reality there is great confusion.

11.3: Compare and contrast different forms of communication networks.

Refer to Page 288.

Communication flows through relatively reliable patterns in organizations. First, the Wheel network indicates all communication flows through one person who is most likely the group leader. This is the most centralized communication network shown. The next one is the Circle communication network in which each person can communicate with two others located adjacent to them. The All Channel (or Star) pattern is more decentralized and allows a free flow of information among all group members. The Chain gives a flow of information among members although the people are at the end of the chain. Finally, the Y-Pattern is slightly less centralized than the all channel network since two persons are closer to the center of the network.

11.4: Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of electronic communication.

Refer to Page 294.

E-mail has become a primary mode for communicating in organizations. Researchers found that more information is conveyed in e-mail than other communication mediums: People paid less attention to social cues that suppress information and were more uninhibited in e-mail. Due to this inhibition, harassment may be more likely to occur through e-mail compared to face-to-face interactions. Research on e-mail usage and performance is mixed. The amount of e-mail sent and received is positively related to job performance. Yet some research suggests checking e-mail frequently may result in interruptions that affect the flow of work. Frequently checking e-mail has been related to information overload and stress. High levels of e-mail use in the workplace relate to avoidant decisional styles such as procrastination. Despite the rise of e-mail as the main communication mode for organizations, there still appears to be a need for face-to-face contact. Electronic communication may be more efficient but not as robust as face-to-face communication. Being able to see another person is important since face-to-face contact is much richer due to the ability to read nonverbal messages that accompany the words.

11.5: Provide an example of how to communicate effectively across cultures.

Refer to Page 297.

[Examples will vary] The ability to communicate effectively with those from other cultures is now an essential leadership skill. There is a difference between cross-cultural and intercultural communication. Cross-cultural communication compares one culture to another, and intercultural communication focuses on the behavior of two individuals’ communication patterns. Bilingualism has been shown to improve communication efficiency, especially when both parties are at least partially fluent with respect to the language of the person they are working with. There are eight levels of differences on which cross-cultural communication can falter: when to talk, what to say, pacing and pausing, listenership, intonation and prosody, formality, indirectness, and cohesion and coherence. There are several ways to address such cross-cultural communication challenges. For example, emotional intelligence has been positively associated with communication competence. Preparation for cross-cultural communication challenges and active listening also improves communication with persons from a culture other than one’s own. Finally, training in cross-cultural communication is also effective. Another important aspect of cross-cultural communication is nonverbal communication. Gestures may not mean the same thing in different cultures. One example: In translating an English financial report, a translator from Xian, by taking the surface value of words, translated terms like red gold, green sheet, and white goods as chijin (gold in red color), ludan (paper in green color), and baihuo (goods in white color) literally so that the clients had no idea what the expressions referred to.

11.6: Discuss the significance of the percentages of verbal and nonverbal face-to-face communication.

Refer to Page 299.

When it comes to face-to-face communication, approximately 7% of a person’s understanding of others is attributed to words, whereas 38% is attributed to verbal tone and 55% is attributed to facial expressions. The meaning of a message can even be negated by a facial expression or a person rolling their eyes. On the other hand, nonverbal messages can reinforce a verbal message. Think of it this way: “Leaders are never not communicating. As a result, increasing their awareness of nonverbal communication may be a key factor in improving their communication skills and ultimately helping them to become better leaders.”

11.7: Explain why employees remain silent or withhold information and how to address this.

Refer to Page 300.

Employee silence is the intentional withholding of meaningful information from management, which includes asking questions expressing concerns and offering suggestions. Climates of organizational silence emerge due to organizational structures or policies, managerial practices, and degree of demographic dissimilarity between employees and top managers. Silence can be due to apathy, fear of reprisal, not knowing what to say or how to say it, and improper communication channels. Research on employee voice suggests formalized employee involvement and a participative climate both encourage employees to provide opinions, which reduce organizational silence. Also, ethical leadership supports employees and encourages them be more confident to speak up in a constructive way.