Lecture Two Chapter Two The Managerial Communications Process

Lecture Two Chapter Two The Managerial Communications Process Note this lecture contains material not covered in your text.

COMMUNICATION MODEL ENCODING Choose Best Symbol: Words, Voice, Gesture, Facial Expression, Action Meaning is in Significance to Decoder FEEDBACK Determines if communicating to or with people DECODE Perceived : Selective Perception (What is Pleasant Meaning - Words don’t have meaning only people do.

SYMBOLS DEFINED • “Objects, acts, relationships, or linguistic formations that stand ambiguously for a multiplicity of meanings, evoke emotions, and impel men to actions. ” (Cohen, 1976)

SYMBOLIC ACTS • “Actions that call forth a larger and usually more complex set of ideas than the basic meaning of the action, in which the intrinsic subject is primarily a vehicle for conveying a broader message. ” (Hinckley, 1990) • Symbolic acts need to be dramatic “and empty of realistic detail. ” (Edelman, 1964)

CATEGORIES OF SYMBOLS (Vaughn, 1995) • • • STORIES RITUALIZED EVENTS SPECIALIZED LANGUAGE MATERIAL MANIFESTATIONS METAPHORS ACTIONS

WHY ONE-WAY COMMUNICATION • FASTER • SENDER MAY FEEL UNDER ATTACK • NOISY AND DISORDERLY VERSUS APPEARANCE OF NEAT AND EFFICIENT

INTERNAL PERSONALITY FACTORS • MENTAL FILTERS – KNOWLEDGE • Seek Common Knowledge – CULTURE • Country and Company – STATUS • Power Issues – ATTITUDES • How do people see themselves, people and things. Prejudice – EMOTIONS • Whole Person – COMMUNICATION SKILLS

STRATEGIES • ANALYSIS – LAYER ONE • CLIMATE (Trust, Open/Closed) • CULTURE (Shared Values, Beliefs, Informal, Power Structures) Multicultural (Polycultural) – LAYER TWO • SENDER – Comfort, Skill, Personality, Power, Knowledge • DECODER – Relationship, Status, Audience Interest, Emotional State, Skill • PURPOSE – Social, Present Information, Persuade, Gain Information, Defend One’s Self

STRATEGIES/ANALYSIS (2) – Third Layer • SPECIFIC CONTENT – Positive (Good News First), Negative (Buffer Message), Neutral – Fact (Concrete Information) / Opinion (Assumption) – Importance to Receiver – Controversial – Polarization (Either-or Alternative) • CHANNELS – Oral – Written – Both – Visual

STRATEGIC/ANALYSIS (3) • Physical Environment – Privacy (Public and Private Behavior) – Formality (Status and Propriety - Dr. Mr. Dean) – Physical Distance (Geographic/Time) – Familiarity (Degree of Comfort) – Time (Power, Status, Time is Money in USA) – Feedback – Affect on overall strategy – Determine if strategy was effective

Metacommunication • • Unworded messages cannot be avoided Unworded messages have different meaning Unworded messages may be intentional or unintentional Unworded messages may get more attention than worded message Unworded message may provide clues (Intent, background) Unworded messages are influenced by circumstances Unworded messages can contradict Unworded messages can be good or bad

CRITICAL ERRORS IN COMMUNICATION • ALLNESS ILLNESS (People who think it is possible to know an say everything about something. ) (Intolerant of other’s viewpoints) • ASSUMPTION-OBSERVATION ERROR (Acceptance as valid without requiring proof) • FAILURE TO DISCRIMINATE (Hardening of Categories) Fix - Internalize premise that people, things, or situations are unique, Develop separate index for unique characteristic. Avoid either or view of the world. Avoid Frozen evaluation (been there done that)