BUSINESS COMMUNICATION Chapter 1 Introduction to Business Communication

BUSINESS COMMUNICATION

Chapter 1 Introduction to Business Communication

Contents Defining Communication Process of Communication Model Objectives of Communication Principles of effective communication Importance of Business Communication Importance of Feedback

What is Communication? Communication is the process of exchanging information, usually through a common system of symbols. It takes a wide variety of forms – from two people having a face to face conversation to hand signals to message sent over the global telecommunication networks.

Interpersonal context : Direct exchange between individuals who can be designated into roles as source and audience Types: FACE-TO-FACE : occurs between two persons MEDIATED: occurs when a device such as a telephone or computer is placed in between the source and audience. Ex: telephone conversation, email, online chat, and letter writing

Group or organizational context: Happens within and between groups, organizations and institutions. TYPES: FACE-TO-FACE: group meetings, lectures, messages with or without the use of microphones MEDIATED: some forms of media or communications technologies are used to disseminate messages; may be external or internal

Mass context: Directed to the general public and, therefore, is highly impersonal; allow large-scale dissemination of messages to audiences who are dispersed over a wide geographical area. FORMS: TRADITIONAL TRI-MEDIA: print, BC and film OTHER FORMS: music recordings, advertising and other strategies for mass marketing and publicity

Mehrabian's communication study The studies Mehrabian and his colleagues were seeking to understand the relative impact of facial expressions and spoken words. Study 1 Subjects were asked to listen to a recording of a female saying the single word 'maybe' in three tones of voice to convey liking, neutrality and disliking. The subjects were then shown photos of female faces with the same three emotions and were asked to guess the emotions in the recorded voices, the photos and both in combination. The photos got more accurate responses than the voice, by a ratio of 3: 2. Study 2 Subjects listened to nine recorded words, three conveying liking (honey, dear and thanks), three conveying neutrality (maybe, really and oh) and three conveying disliking (don’t, brute and terrible). The words were spoken with different tonalities and subjects were asked to guess the emotions behind the words as spoken. The experiment finding was that tone carried more meaning than the individual words themselves.

Mehrabian concluded the following formula from these studies: Total Liking = 7% Verbal Liking + 38% Vocal Liking + 55% Facial Liking This is subsequently generalized to mean that in all communications: 7% happens in spoken words. 38% happens through voice tone. 55% happens via general body language.

Effective Business Communication Language used should be effective. The message conveyed should be clear. The predetermined purpose should be achieved. It can be defined as The use of effective language to convey a clear business message to achieve a predetermined objective.

Importance of Business Communication Business communication encompasses not only communicating with external contacts but also with employees within the organization. This will aid the business in being well-organized and every matter whether it is a problem, an inquiry or a sales letter will be attended to properly and promptly. It does not mean that only a client’s inquiry should be responded promptly but also feedbacks or problems arising inside and outside the business as well. This is done to have a balance within the internal and external factors, especially in relation to dealing with people, whether they are employees or other external contacts.

Benefits of Effective Communication Lesser Misundersta nding Increased awareness among employees Better quality of documents Effective Communication Enhanced Professional image Increased productivity Stronger Decision Making Improved customer relations Healthier business relationships Quicker Problem Solving

Functions of Communication Control – communication acts to control member behavior in several ways. Organization have authority hierarchies and formal guidelines that employees are required to follow. Motivation – communication fosters motivation by clarifying to employees what is to be done, how well they are doing, and what can be done to improve performance. Emotional expression – communication, provides a release for the emotional expression of feelings and for fulfillment of social needs. Information – it provides the information that individuals and groups need to make decisions by transmitting the data to identify and evaluate alternative choices.

The Communication Process The communication process includes: sender or encoder, receiver or decoder, message, channel or medium, feedback, and environment.

The Communication Process Step 1 Feedback also needs to be encoded, transmitted, and decoded Sender Has An Idea Step 2 Sender Encodes Idea Step 6 Receiver Sends Feedback Step 3 Step 4 Channel Sender Receiver Transmits Message Gets Message Step 5 Receiver Decodes Message

The Communication Process Sender or Encoder ◦ The sender initiates a communication-and determines the intent of the message, how to send it, and what if any response is required. ◦ The sender bears the burden in this process, communicating not only the content of the message, but information about history and attitude toward the receivers as well.

The Communication Process Receiver or Decoder ◦ Receivers comprise the target audience of a message transmitted by the sender. ◦ The message the sender encodes may not be the message received. ◦ Receivers interpret messages based upon their frame of reference: includes their life experiences, their cultural background, and the values and beliefs they hold. ◦ Feedback may help to prevent misunderstandings.

Receiver or Decoder

The Communication Process Message ◦ Contains ideas expressed to other individuals ◦ Messages generally take one or more of three forms: informative, persuasive, and actuative.

The Communication Process Channel or Medium ◦ The channel conveys the message to the receiver, either verbally and face-to-face, or in another mediated fashion. ◦ The medium can impact the message positively or negatively, so the sender must choose the best medium for assuring effective communication.

The Communication Process Feedback ◦ Reports back to the sender that the receiver, the decoder, received and understood the message. ◦ Feedback makes communication a two-way process, allowing the sender to become a receiver and vice versa.

Tips for Improving Feedback should occur immediately Supervisory feedback should complement work-related behavior Positive feedback produces the best results, but neg. feedback can be better than no feedback Verbal feedback should accompany and support or verify nonverbal signals Workers remember what they hear first and last in a message Feedback allows us to learn how people think and feel about things

The Communication Process Environment ◦ The environment in which the communication process occurs may influence the probability of success or failure ◦ This environment includes room color, temperature, lighting, furniture, and timing, as well as organizational climate and superior-subordinate and peer relationships.

Objectives of Business Communication Information- The main objective of a business is to pass on information and making people more informed, E. g. - all the advertisement activity that we see around as are an attempt to inform and pass the information on to others, and in case of business houses this information is mostly about the product or services that they have to offer. But the mode of communication may be verbal, written, visual or any other.

Objectives of Business Communication Motivation- communication in business is also necessary to increase the motivation in the workers. So if the communication is done properly and is successful in motivating the workers and workers are motivated enough the work gets done easily, efficiently and they will work independently and with out supervision.

Objectives of Business Communication Raising Morale - Another very important objective of business communication (internal) is to keep the moral of the workers high so that they work with vigor and confidence as a team. This is a major factor that can have very serious impact on the success of a business house.

Objectives of Business Communication Order and instructions – An order is an oral or written command directing the start, end or modifying an activity. This form of communication is internal and is carried out within a business house. Order may be written or verbal. Written orders are given when the nature of work is very important or the person who would perform the task is far away. We should always be careful while handing out written orders and should always keep a copy of the order so that follow up action can be taken.

Objectives of Business Communication Education and training- Now communication can also be used in business to increase the circle of knowledge. The objective of education is achieved by business communication on three levels (a) Management (b) employees (c) general public

Principles of effective communication Principle of clarity: The message must be as clear as possible. No ambiguity should creep into it. The message can be conveyed properly only if it has been clearly formulated in the mind of the communicator. Principle of objective: the communicator must know clearly the purpose of communication before actually transmitting the message. The objective may be to obtain information, give information, initiate action, and change another person’s attitude and so on. If the purpose of communication is clear it will help in the choice of mode of communication.

Principles of effective communication Principle of understanding the receiver: understanding is the main aim of any communication. The communication must crate proper understanding in the mind of the receiver. Principle of consistency: the message to be communicated should be consistent with plans, policies, programmes and goals of the enterprise. The message should not be conflicting with previous communications. It should not create confusion and chaos in the organisation.

Principles of effective communication Principle of completeness: the message to be communicated must be adequate and complete, otherwise it will be misunderstood by the receiver. Principle of feedback: this principle calls for communication a two-way process and providing opportunity for suggestion and criticism. Since the receiver is to accept and carry out the instructions, his reactions must be known to the sender of message.

Communication Models

Lasswell Model Harold Dwight Lasswell, the American political scientist states that a convenient way to describe an act of communication is to answer the following questions Who Says What In Which Channel To Whom With what effect?

Lasswell model: According to Lasswell there are three functions for communication: Surveillance of the environment Correlation of components of society Cultural transmission between generation Advantages It is Easy and Simple It suits for almost all types of communication The concept of effect

Disadvantage of lasswell model: Feedback not mentioned Noise not mentioned Linear Model

Shannon and Weaver's model They were Engineers working for Bell Telephone Labs in the United States. Their goal was to ensure the maximum efficiency of telephone cables and radio waves. They developed a model of communication which was intended to assist in developing a mathematical theory of communication.

C & W's original model consisted of five elements: An information source, which produces a message. A transmitter, which encodes the message into signals A channel, to which signals are adapted for transmission A receiver, which 'decodes' (reconstructs) the message from the signal. A destination, where the message arrives. A sixth element, noise is a dysfunctional factor

Example For the telephone the channel is a wire, the signal is an electrical current in it, and the transmitter and receiver are the telephone handsets. Noise would include crackling from the wire. In conversation, my mouth is the transmitter, the signal is the sound waves, and your ear is the receiver. Noise would include any distraction you might experience as I speak.

Shannon and Weaver's model Levels of problems in the analysis of communication The technical problem: how accurately can the message be transmitted? The semantic problem: how precisely is the meaning 'conveyed'? The effectiveness problem: how effectively does the received meaning affect behaviour?

Advantages of Shannon and Weaver's model simplicity, generality, and quantifiability. It also drew serious academic attention to human communication and 'information theory', leading to further theory and research.

Weaknesses Not analogous to much of human communication. it is relatively static and linear. It conceives of a linear and literal transmission of information from one location to another.

Berlo’s Model (SMCR)

Berlo’s Model (SMCR) The idea of “source” was flexible enough to include oral, written, electronic, or any other kind of “symbolic” generator-of-messages. “Message” was made the central element, stressing the transmission of ideas. The model recognized that receivers were important to communication, for they were the targets. The notions of “encoding” and “decoding” emphasized the problems we all have (psycho-linguistically) in translating our own thoughts into words or other symbols and in deciphering the words or symbols of others into terms we ourselves can understand.

Weaknesses Tends to stress the manipulation of the message—the encoding and decoding processes it implies that human communication is like machine communication, like signal-sending in telephone, television, computer, and radar systems. It even seems to stress that most problems in human communication can be solved by technical accuracy-by choosing the “right” symbols, preventing interference, and sending efficient messages. But even with the “right” symbols, people misunderstand each other. “Problems in “meaning” or “meaningfulness” often aren’t a matter of comprehension, but of reaction, of agreement, of shared concepts, beliefs, attitudes, values. “

Osgood-Schramm Model of Communication It is a Circular Model, so that communication is something circular in nature

Osgood-Schramm Model of Communication Encoder – Who does encoding or Sends the message (message originates) Decoder – Who receives the message Interpreter – Person trying to understand (analyses, perceive) or interpret Note: From the message starting to ending, there is an interpretation goes on. Based on this interpretation only the message is received.

Osgood-Schramm Model of Communication It can happen within our self or two people; each person acts as both sender and receiver and hence use interpretation. It is simultaneously take place e. g. encoding, interpret and decoding. Semantic noise is a concept introduced here it occurs when sender and receiver apply different meaning to the same message. It happens mostly because of words and phrases for e. g. Technical Language, So certain words and phrases will cause you to deviate from the actual meaning of the communication.

Advantage of Osgood- Schramm model of communication Dynamic model- Shows how a situation can change It shows why redundancy is an essential part There is no separate sender and receiver, sender and receiver is the same person Assume communication to be circular in nature Feedback – central feature.

Ritual model of communication Early models were based on a transmissive or transportation approach (ie assuming that communication was one-way). James Carey in 1975 was the first to challenge this. He suggested an alternative view of communication as ritual in which communication is “linked to sharing, participation, association, fellowship … the maintenance of society in time; not the act of imparting information but the representation of shared beliefs”. there is more emphasis on signs and symbols. Medium and message are harder to separate. Communication is seen as timeless and unchanging.

Example The Christmas tree represents the model – it symbolises ideas and values of friendship and celebration but has no instrumental purpose. The tree is both medium and message.

Paulo Freire’s theory It takes communication as a means to liberation, participation in collective life and creation of awareness. Marxism Based Model – Comm as a power-relationship It focus on the fact that communication is, at times, an exercise of the power one has over others. It considers the inequalities among classes, castes, economic and social groups. It is a reflection of the power relation in family, a factory, or b/w sender and receiver of mass communication.

Indian Communication Theory Indian Sage Bharat Muni calls sadharanikaran the key process in communication. He said that the right communication is between the sahridayas(i. e. those whose hearts are attuned to each other’s). To be Sahridayas, the sender and receiver have to have a common culture, common learning and be adapted to each other. His Rasa theory states that human mind has nine permanent moods and these can be aroused to create nine rasas- i. e. bhayanak rasa(fierce mood), hasya rasa(jocular mood), karun rasa (Compassionate mood) and so on…

Indian Communication Theory The message by producing the desired mood in the audience achieves sadharanikaran(unity of spirit). This theory emphasises the receiver’s mental conditioning by which he/she can in tune with the msg. While Indian model focusses on the interpretation by the receiver, western models stress expression.

Principles of effective communication Principle of time: information should be communicated at the right time. The communicator must consider the timing of communication so that the desired response is created in the minds of the receivers.

Chapter 2 Factors affecting Communication

Contents Barriers to Communication Effective Listening – Types and essentials of effective listening. Perception and reality

Barriers to Communication Mechanical Barriers Physical Barriers Psychological Barriers Semantic and language Barriers. Status Barriers

Barriers Anything that prevents successful communication from occurring Complex and multi-layered Can be technical or generated by the medium used, etc.

Mechanical Barriers Some Possible mechanical failures are: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. A weak microphone or poor sound spread of the meeting place. Defective telephone lines. Electricity/computer breakdown. Poor printing quality or paper, spread of link, overlap of colors. Atmospherics on radio or T. V, especially in cloudy weather.

Physical Barriers Background noise reduces audibility. Distance Time taken for the message to reach its destination.

Psychological Barriers A person of weak hearing or eyesight. The age of the listener. A person’s educational level. Gender Barriers. A wandering mind. Ideological loyalties. Loyalty to a brand or organisation. Emotional states of the person. One’s Prejudice- A prejudice is the judgment formed without proper information. Fixed images about other people. Poor retention power is a barrier.

Semantic & Language Barrier Semantics is the study of how words convey meanings. A basic principle of communication is that the symbols the sender uses to communicate messages must have the same meaning in both the sender’s and receiver’s minds You can never be sure that the message in your mind will be clearly sent to your receiver. The world is full with errors, as a result of differences in semantic (meaning) understanding.

Semantic Barriers arise when The Sender’s and receiver’s experience with the word differ. Words from one environment are taken out and put into an environment where they don’t fit. Opinions are given as facts. An Abstract word is used when concrete word is required. example- One may want to say that student of that particular college is rowdy but in order to avoid naming names, one may abstract generalise and put the blame on the college students as a whole.

Semantic Barriers arise when Complex phrases and long constructions are used. Also when idioms are meant to be understood in the idiomatic sense but are taken in the literal sense.

Language Barriers As for language barriers, we all experience how different regional groups, sometimes due to their previous regional habits distort pronunciations. Example: He is good at Batting. He is good at betting. Lack of proper language skills may lead to wrong choice of words. Speakers with different accents find it hard to understand in India while Americans may have hard time making sense of Indianised English.

Example Shiny Abraham at the 1986 Asian Games at Seoul. Despite coming first by a very wide margin in the 800 m. Race, she was disqualified and lost her gold medal for having crossed the track at the place where should not have gone. According to her she mistook the symbol, i. e. , the colour of the flag. Whereas in our country the red flag indicates danger, in South Korea white flag is used for the same purpose. Misinterpreting the white flag which had been put up at that point, she crossed the track at the wrong place and suffered a setback.

Example A very interesting example of a communication made effective by the use of words appropriate to the environment in which they were used is provided by the following incident that took place in one of the agricultural states of the USA. A proposal for raising the salaries of the faculty members of an agricultural college was under discussion. The farmers' bloc was totally against giving the raise to the college teachers - they could not see why they should pay those college teachers $5000 a year just for talking 12 to 15 hours a week Faculty representatives made no headway in their negotiations until one of them who had some farming experience, got an inspiration. "Gentlemen", he told the members of the administrative body, "a college teacher is a little like a bull. It's not the amount of time he spends. It's the importance of what he does!"

Rules for Overcoming Barriers Planning and clarifying ideas Four strategies can be followed for clarity of ideas: a) Test thinking b) Collect ideas and suggestions from others c) Support the decision of those responsible for carrying out the communication d) Increase the level of motivation Create a climate of trust and Confidence Time your message carefully

Rules for Overcoming Barriers Reinforce Words with Action Use Feedback Use of simple and meaningful language Communication should be directed to a purpose and person.

What Is Perception, and Why Is It Important? Perception A process by which individuals organize and interpret their sensory impressions in order to give meaning to their environment. • People’s behavior is based on their perception of what reality is, not on reality itself. • The world as it is perceived is the world that is behaviorally important.

Why We Study Perceptions To better understand how people make attributions about events. We don’t see reality. We interpret what we see and call it reality. The attribution process guides our behaviour, regardless of the truth of the attribution.

Factors Influencing Perception The Perceiver The Target The Situation

Factors That Influence Perception E X H I B I T 2– 1

Perceptual Errors Attribution Theory Selective Perception Halo Effect Contrast Effects Projection Stereotyping

Person Perception: Making Judgments About Others Attribution Theory When individuals observe behavior, they attempt to determine whether it is internally or externally caused. Distinctiveness: shows different behaviors in different situations. Consensus: response is the same as others to same situation. Consistency: responds in the same way over time.

Attribution Theory Fundamental Attribution Error ◦ The tendency to underestimate external factors and overestimate internal factors when making judgments about others’ behaviour. Self-Serving Bias ◦ The tendency to attribute one’s successes to internal factors while putting the blame for failures on external factors.

Attribution Theory E X H I B I T 2– 2

Exhibit 2 -2 Attribution Theory Observation Interpretation Distinctiveness (How often does the person do this in other situations? ) High (Seldom) Attribution of cause Low (Frequently) High (Frequently) Individual behaviour Consensus (How often do other people do this in similar situations? ) Low (Seldom) High (Frequently) Consistency (How often did the person do this in the past? ) Low (Seldom) External Internal External

Perceptual Errors Selective Perception ◦ People selectively interpret what they see based on their interests, background, experience, and attitudes. Halo Effect ◦ Drawing a general impression about an individual based on a single characteristic. Contrast Effects ◦ A person’s evaluation is affected by comparisons with other individuals recently encountered.

Perceptual Errors Projection ◦ Attributing one’s own characteristics to other people. Stereotyping ◦ Judging someone on the basis of your perception of the group to which that person belongs. Prejudice ◦ An unfounded dislike of a person or group based on their belonging to a particular stereotyped group.

Why Do Perceptions and Judgment Matter? Self-Fulfilling Prophecy ◦ A concept that proposes a person will behave in ways consistent with how he or she is perceived by others.

Effective Listening The art of hearing and understanding what someone is saying. Listening: It is an active process. It involves the conscious desire to determine the meaning of what is heard. While listening, one is engaged in processing the date, reconstructing the data and also giving meaning to the data.

Types of Listening Different situations require different types of listening. We may listen to obtain information, improve a relationship, gain appreciation for something, make discriminations, or engage in a critical evaluation. Informative Listening Relationship Listening Appreciative Listening Critical Listening Discriminative Listening

Informative Listening Informative listening is the name we give to the situation where the listener’s primary concern is to understand the message. Listeners are successful insofar as the meaning they assign to messages is as close as possible to that which the sender intended. Much of our learning comes from informative listening. For example, we listen to lectures or instructions from teachers—and what we learn depends on how well we listen. In the workplace, we listen to understand new practices or procedures—and how well we perform depends on how well we listen.

Informative Listening 1. 2. We listen to instructions, briefings, reports, and speeches; if we listen poorly, we aren’t equipped with the information we need. There are three key variables related to informative listening. Vocabulary. increasing your vocabulary will increase your potential for better understanding. Concentration is difficult. You can remember times when another person was not concentrating on what you were saying—and you probably can remember times when you were not concentrating on something that someone was saying to you.

Informative Listening Concentration: There are many reasons people don’t concentrate when listening. 1. Listeners are preoccupied with something other than the speaker of the moment. 2. Sometimes listeners are too ego-involved, or too concerned with their own needs to concentrate on the message being delivered. 3. they lack curiosity, energy, or interest. 4. Many people simply have not learned to concentrate while listening. 5. Others just refuse to discipline themselves 6. Lacking the motivation to accept responsibility for good listening.

Informative Listening Memory: you cannot process information without bringing memory into play. More specifically, memory helps your informative listening in three ways. a. It allows you to recall experiences and information necessary to function in the world around you. b. You would be unable to drive in heavy traffic, react to new situations, or make common decisions in life without memory of your past experiences. c. It allows you to understand what others say. Without simple memory of the meaning of words, you could not communicate with anyone else. Without memory of concepts and ideas, you could not understand the meaning of messages.

Relationship Listening The purpose of relationship listening is either to help an individual or to improve the relationship between people. Therapeutic listening is a special type of relationship listening. Therapeutic listening brings to mind situations where counselors, medical personnel, or other professionals allow a troubled person to talk through a problem. But it can also be used when you listen to friends or acquaintances and allow them to “get things off their chests. ” Although relationship listening requires you to listen for information, the emphasis is on understanding the other person.

Relationship Listening Three behaviors are key to effective relationship listening: attending, supporting, and empathizing. 1. Attending. Much has been said about the importance of “paying attention”. In relationship listening, attending behaviors indicate that the listener is focusing on the speaker. Nonverbal cues are crucial in relationship listening; that is, your nonverbal behavior indicates that you are attending to the speaker— or that you aren’t! on, ” or “attending” behavior.

Relationship Listening Eye contact is one of the most important attending behaviors. Head nods, smiles, frowns, and vocalized cues such as “uh huh, ” “I see, ” or “yes”—all are positive attending behaviors. A pleasant tone of voice, gentle touching, and concern for the other person’s comfort are other attending behaviors.

Relationship Listening 2. Supporting: Many responses have a negative or nonsupportive effect; for example, interrupting the speaker, changing the subject, turning the conversation toward yourself, and demonstrating a lack of concern for the other person. Giving advice, attempting to manipulate the conversation, or indicating that you consider yourself superior then other behaviors that will have an adverse effect on the relationship.

Relationship Listening Three characteristics describe supportive listeners: (1) discretion—being careful about what they say and do; (2) belief—expressing confidence in the ability of the other person; (3) patience—being willing to give others the time they need to express themselves adequately. 3. Empathizing: Empathy is feeling and thinking with another person. The caring, empathic listener is able to go into the world of another—to see as the other sees, hear as the other hears, and feel as the other feels.

Relationship Listening Obviously, the person who has had more experience and lived longer stands a better chance of being an effective empathic listener. You cannot be an effective empathic listener without becoming involved, which sometimes means learning more than you really want to know. commanders can’t command effectively, bosses can’t supervise skillfully, and individuals can’t relate interpersonally without empathy.

Relationship Listening Empathic behavior can be learned. First, you must learn as much as you can about the other person. Second, you must accept the other person—even if you can’t accept some aspects of that person’s behavior. Third, you must have the desire to be an empathic listener. And you must remember that empathy is crucial to effective relationship listening.

Appreciative Listening Appreciative listening includes listening to music for enjoyment, to speakers because you like their style, to your choices in theater, television, radio, or film. It is the response of the listener, not the source of the message, that defines appreciative listening. That which provides appreciative listening for one person may provide something else for another. For example, hard rock music is not a source of appreciative listening for me. I would rather listen to gospel, country, jazz, or the “golden oldies. ”

Appreciative Listening The quality of appreciative listening depends in large part on three factors: presentation, perception, and previous experience. Presentation: Presentation encompasses many factors: the medium, the setting, the style and personality of the presenter, to name just a few. Sometimes it is our perception of the presentation, rather than the actual presentation, that most influences our listening pleasure or displeasure. Perception is an important factor in appreciative listening.

Appreciative Listening Perception: Perceptions influence all areas of our lives. Certainly, they are crucial determinants as to whether or not we enjoy or appreciate things we listen to. Obviously, perceptions also determine what we listen to in the first place. As we said earlier, listening is selective. Previous experience: In some cases, we enjoy listening to things because we are experts in the area. Sometimes, however, expertise or previous experience prevents us from enjoying a presentation because we are too sensitive to imperfections. Previous experience plays a large role in appreciative listening.

Critical Listening The ability to listen critically is essential in a democracy. On the job, in the community, at service clubs, in places of worship, in the family—there is practically no place you can go where critical listening is unimportant. Politicians, the media, salesmen, advocates of policies and procedures, and our own financial, emotional, intellectual, physical, and spiritual needs require us to place a premium on critical listening and the thinking that accompanies it. The subject of critical listening deserves much more attention There are three things to keep in mind.

They are as follows: ethos, or speaker credibility; logos, or logical arguments; and pathos, or psychological appeals.

Thanks