Relevant barriers to communication
Scenario
In a 1950 article for Fortune, journalist and best-selling author William H. Whyte noted “the great enemy of communication, we find, is the illusion of it. We have talked enough; but we have not listened. And by not listening we have failed to concede the immense complexity of our society–and thus the great gaps between ourselves and those with whom we seek understanding.” The illusion of communication in the workplace has become even more of an issue with the proliferation of communication tools, greater workforce diversity, political polarization and globalization.
Your Task
Scan the news for coverage of a communications failure or select a scenario from your readings—a few that come to mind are the Boeing 737 Max crashes and the Covid-19 pandemic—and analyze the scenario using the communication process model. Using terminology from the module, identify the relevant barriers to communication. Conduct additional research—for example, reading post-ops of the situation—and briefly comment on how the barriers were overcome—or not.
Scenario: Boeing 737 Max Crashes
Communication Process Model
The communication process model is a framework for understanding how communication works. It consists of the following steps:
- Sender: The sender is the person who initiates the communication.
- Encoding: The sender encodes their message into a form that can be understood by the receiver.
- Message: The message is the information that is being communicated.
- Channel: The channel is the medium through which the message is transmitted.
- Decoding: The receiver decodes the message into a form that they can understand.
- Receiver: The receiver is the person who receives the communication.
- Feedback: Feedback is the receiver's response to the communication.
- Sender: The sender may not have a clear understanding of what they want to communicate. They may also be biased or prejudiced, which can affect their communication.
- Encoding: The sender may not encode their message effectively. For example, they may use jargon or technical language that the receiver does not understand.
- Message: The message may be too complex or too long. It may also be ambiguous or contradictory.
- Channel: The channel may be noisy or unreliable. For example, if the sender and receiver are in different time zones, it may be difficult to communicate effectively.
- Decoding: The receiver may not decode the message correctly. This can happen for a variety of reasons, such as language barriers, cultural differences, and personal biases.
- Receiver: The receiver may not be paying attention or may be distracted. They may also be biased or prejudiced, which can affect their interpretation of the message.
- Feedback: The receiver may not provide feedback or may provide feedback that is not constructive.