Table of Contents
Q.1. Explain the aspects of Non-Verbal Communication. (10)
Non-verbal communication refers to all those messages excluding spoken words. Those messages are body languages such as gesture, facial expressions, eye contact and body posture etc. For instance, a smile on our friends faces on seeing us, before they utter even a greeting word when we go to meet them after long time indicates that he or she is happy to see us.
Here is seven major aspects of Non-Verbal Communication:-
1. Facial Expressions
The most common—and telling—nonverbal means of communication is through facial expressions. Human faces are able to make more than 10,000 different expressions, and each one articulates volumes of information with ease. Smiling, frowning, blinking, and every teenager’s favorite, eye-rolling, are the strongest and most relatable expressions, but even the smallest eyebrow twitch or nostril flare can be read with minimal effort. The most surefire way to establish a connection with a stranger, client, or even long-time acquaintance: Smile! A smile is welcoming, warm, and establishes you as a person who people want to spend time with.
2. Body Movements
Body movements, or kinetics, include common practices like hand gestures or nodding. Very often, body movements convey enthusiasm or excitement. For instance, we all know someone who “talks with his hands.” However, other aspects of kinetics include actions that we commonly perceive with nervousness or anxiety like involuntary tremors, frequent clearing of the throat, or a shaking leg.
3. Posture
Posture is critical in making a strong impression. How you stand or sit is one of the important elements in how you are perceived by others. Someone who stands with their back straight and head held high exudes confidence, assurance, and strength, while, conversely, someone who is slouched or facing the floor demonstrates uncertainty, indifference, or even weakness.
4. Eye Contact
Perhaps the best way to build rapport with a stranger is by maintaining eye contact. Eyes can indicate interest, attention, and involvement, while failing to make eye contact may be interpreted as disinterested, inattentive, or rude. However, this doesn’t mean you have to stare directly into the face of another person—quite the opposite, in fact. There is nothing more aggressive than staring intensely into someone’s eyes. Experts suggest that healthy eye contact consists of looking semi-randomly at the area around the eyes, which includes the eyelids and eyebrows.
5. Para-language
Any parent with small children is familiar with the phrase “don’t use that tone of voice with me.” This is a perfect example of how para-language—the aspects of the voice that differ from the words—affects the message. The most obvious example is sarcasm, in which the tone of what’s being said conveys the opposite of the message. Odds are that someone who drawls “Grreeeattt” in a laconic tone is less than thrilled at what’s being presented. Less obvious para-language includes the speed, volume, and pitch of speaking. For example, a presentation mumbled too quickly suggests that the salesman is, at best, nervous, or, at worst, being disingenuous.
6. Proxemics
Humans use space while communicating. How close we stand to someone, whether we touch them, and how comfortable we feel at what distance comes under proxemics. People are very protective of their personal space, particularly the area that Mehrabian calls the “intimate space” (i.e., 6 to 18 inches). This is a zone generally reserved for family, close friends, or romantic partners.
7. Physiological Changes
With nonverbal communication closely related to emotion, the physiological reactions are often the most associated with anxiety and discomfort. Sweating, blushing (or flushing), and teary eyes are all dead giveaways that someone is ill-at-ease.
OR What are the barriers to Communication? How can we overcome these barriers? (10)
Common Barriers to Communication:
- The use of jargon. Over-complicated, unfamiliar and/or technical terms.
- Emotional barriers and taboos. Some people may find it difficult to express their emotions and some topics may be completely ‘off-limits’ or taboo. Taboo or difficult topics may include but are not limited to, politics, religion, disabilities (mental and physical), sexuality and sex, racism and any opinion that may be seen as unpopular.
- Lack of attention, interest, distractions, or irrelevance to the receiver. (See our page Barriers to Effective Listening for more information).
- Differences in perception and viewpoint.
- Physical disabilities such as hearing problems or speech difficulties.
- Physical barriers to non-verbal communication. Not being able to see the non-verbal cues, gestures, posture and general body language can make communication less effective. Phone calls, text messages and other communication methods that rely on technology are often less effective than face-to-face communication.
- Language differences and the difficulty in understanding unfamiliar accents.
- Expectations and prejudices which may lead to false assumptions or stereotype. People often hear what they expect to hear rather than what is actually said and jump to incorrect conclusions.
- Cultural differences. The norms of social interaction vary greatly in different cultures, as do the way in which emotions are expressed. For example, the concept of personal space varies between cultures and between different social settings.
Over Coming Barriers to Communication
Overcoming Physical Barriers
- If you send a lot of email or digital messages, make sure you are surgical in your word choice.
- Open-concept offices, face-to-face interaction
- Video conferencing adoption
Overcoming Cultural Barriers
- Determine whether a specific behaviour or attribute is a requirement of the job.
- Identify whether or not you can reasonably accommodate the cultural difference.
- Determine how best to accommodate the cultural difference.
- Learn about other cultures.
- Ask your employees for insight
Overcoming Language Barriers
- Translate all relevant documents
- Use an interpreter
- Provide language classes
- Use both telling and showing methods of training.
- Use visual methods of communication
- Use repetition.
- Never raise your voice or over-enunciate your words
- Use simpler words with fewer syllables.
- Learn the basics of your employee’s language.
Overcoming Perceptual Barriers
- The audience may make assumptions about you or the situation; perhaps you are new to the organization, or the situation is a challenging one. To get your message past these barriers, provide evidence to support your claims and enhance your credibility.
- It is equally important to be aware of one’s own nonverbal behaviours and be sensitive to how they may be perceived. For instance, maintaining eye contact when communicating indicates interest.
Overcoming Interpersonal Barriers
- Use simple words to convey the message.
- Learn the art of listening.
- Keep composure while communicating.
- Provide constructive criticism.
Overcoming Gender Barriers
- Educate Team About Gender Bias
- Create Safe “Identity Workspaces”
Q.2. Define Communication. Explain briefly the different types of communication.
Communication is a process of exchanging information, ideas, thoughts, feelings and emotions through speech, signals, writing, or behavior. In communication process, a sender(encoder) encodes a message and then using a medium/channel sends it to the receiver (decoder) who decodes the message and after processing information, sends back appropriate feedback/reply using a medium/channel.
Types of communication based on the communication channels used are:
- Verbal Communication
- Nonverbal Communication
Verbal Communication
Verbal communication refers to the the form of communication in which message is transmitted verbally; communication is done by word of mouth and a piece of writing. Objective of every communication is to have people understand what we are trying to convey.In verbal communication remember the acronym KISS(keep it short and simple).
Verbal Communicationis further divided into:
▪Oral Communication
▪Written Communication
Nonverbal Communication
Nonverbal communication is the sending or receiving of wordless messages. We can say that communication other than oral and written, such as gesture, body language, posture, tone of voice or facial expressions, is called nonverbal communication. Nonverbal communication is all about the body language of speaker.
Nonverbal communication helps receiver in interpreting the message received. Often, nonverbal signals reflects the situation more accurately than verbal messages. Sometimes nonverbal response contradicts verbal communication and hence affect the effectiveness of message.
Nonverbal communication have the following three elements:
Appearance: Speaker: clothing, hairstyle, neatness, use of cosmetics
Surrounding: room size, lighting, decorations, furnishings
Body Language: facial expressions, gestures, postures
Sounds: Voice Tone, Volume, Speech rate.
OR List and explain the factors involved in the process of communication. (10)
The factors or elements involved in process communication are briefly discussed below:
- Sender: The person who initiates or begins communication are called the sender or communicator. Sender is responsible for an intended message and encoding of the message. The sender therefore creates the message out of reaction developed in his mind.
- Source: For communication, there must be a source of information. Although a sender is the immediate source of information, the ultimate source is stimuli which stimulates the sender to communicate.
- Purpose: Communication never happens without any purpose or objective i,e. Communicator must have some intentions in his mind for which he is interested to communicate with one or more than one person.
- Encoding: It is the process of putting thoughts and ideas of the message into symbolic form. It is also termed as ‘mental wrapping’ of the communication.
- Message: When there is any interest or intention or idea in the mind of communicator, he makes encoding of such which is known as message. Thus a message is an encoded information which is communicated to the receiver or destination. If there is no message, there will be no communication.
- Medium: When the information or message has been encoded, a sender then selects media. Media means through which something is communicated to others. The media for oral communication are conversation, telephone calls , conference, meeting and others. Written communication uses media like newspapers, letters, e-mail, report, memo, chatting etc.
- Decoding: It is the process through which receiver provides meaning to the message sent by the sender i. e., it helps the receiver to interpret or understand the sending message. Such decoding depends on the knowledge and perception of the receiver, past experience with the similar communicator, personal desire etc.
- Receiver: A receiver is the person or body who receives the message sent by the sender. The receiver is the destination that may be an individual or an organization. When the receiver receives the message, he decodes the message to create a meaningful idea from the message received. In case of two way communication, the receiver is required to provide response to the original sender of the message.
- Feedback: It is the response of receiver to communicate to the original sender to create two way communication. Feedback ensures proper and mutual understanding between sender and receiver. It can be written, spoken, signaled or given through other means. It requires the same step-by-step process as followed by the initial sender. There are need to follow some principles of feedback to make effective communication.
- Noise: It is the distortion during the communication process which causes disturbance to the message sent. As a result, receiver can get a different message than what the sender has sent. Generally, environment noise is any element or activity that disturbs, confuses or makes the communication process more difficult.
Q.3. Effective communication skills are key to the path to success. Discuss the Positive Communication techniques that you would practice. (5)
(Note:- Answer to these question has 19 points you can write 5-7 only for a 5 Marks questions, I have added them all as I think, these might be helpful in your real life too.)
Effective communication skills are key to success, here are few communication techniques that I practice:-
- Utilize the power of silence
Crafty communicators make use of silence when they feel that their subject is holding back. By utilizing the power of silence, they encourage their dialogue partner to pick up the thread of the conversation.
- Mirror your partner (body language, tone and energy level)
Great communicators establish comfort and trust by meeting listeners on their level. By means of calibrating their tone and body language, proficient communicators are able to skillfully establish an evenly matched conversation.
Mirroring the partner’s body language and tone can also assist in easing arguments in challenging conversations.
- Be a flexible listener
Listening attentively helps proficient communicators to identify the (hidden and) underlying motifs of a person. In many cases, to fully understand what a person is communicating, we need to carefully note how they transmit certain messages.
The skill of being a flexible listener also comes in handy, because it allows communicators to know the right time to address sensitive subjects and when to better avoid them.
- Request feedback
The simple act of confirming the mutual understanding of the message is a powerful tool well-known to proficient communicators.
Additionally to simply asking for confirmation, those who excel at communication also seek the input and feedback of their peers. Doing so allows them to get their listeners involved and makes them feel valued and heard.
- Cultivate curiosity
By developing a natural interest in the people you communicate with, you’ll quickly build up mutual trust and respect. Not only this, but curiosity will also help you to better understand the motivations of other people.
The willingness to learn more about the people around you can also help you to form deep bonds with them. Even more importantly, it switches our focus from continuously trying to dominate a conversation back to actually listening.
- Try to forget yourself (ego suspension)
Excellent communicators are people who are able to resist the urge to follow this standardized pattern. Instead of trying to dominate the conversation, they encourage others to talk more about themselves and their story. They’re genuinely interested in all the details and everything that happened to the other person. In doing so, these communicators easy connect with others and quickly gain their trust.
These skillful communicators have understood that people have a natural tendency to tell their stories and they know how to effectively make use of it.
- Stay positive
Another important communication technique lies in the maintenance of a positive attitude during conversations. A positive attitude sets the stage for productive conversations. Good communicators know that being constructive is crucial for every kind of conversation. They understand that harsh criticism or negativity only causes their counterpart to build up defenses. And when this happens, people shut down. It is therefore even more difficult to convey the intended message.
- Communicate with enthusiasm
Enthusiasm truly is contagious. You can make use of it not only to communicate more effectively, but also to communicate in a more powerful and engaging manner.
Enthusiasm greatly aids powerful communication. Effective communication consists of using well-timed doses of enthusiasm to make the spoken message a lot more powerful. People are more likely to respond positively to enthusiastic speakers that are able to address their feelings.
- Use the compelling power of humor
When used correctly, humor can be an effective tool in your communication arsenal. It can help you to quickly get your point across. It can be applied as a tool to skillfully communicate that the communicator is not angry about the subordinate, but has to address some critical issues.
Humor can also be used to effectively communicate negative messages without being offensive.
- Make use of open-ended questions
In many situations, simply asking a question that can be easily answered with a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ is not enough. Especially when you’re confronted with introverts, open-ended questions are an important tool you can use. Asking open-ended questions communicates not only your interest in the person, but also encourages them to talk about themselves. In general, however, open-ended questions allow you to gain important insights about the person and their specific needs and dreams. This kind of information is crucial for communicators that want to effectively address their listeners. Otherwise they risk being at cross purposes.
- Express your approval of others
Giving other people approval in an honest fashion can be especially effective to win them over to your side.
- Understand the importance of eye contact
When speaking, skillful communicators make sure that they keep the right amount of eye contact to maintain the attention of their listeners.
- Eliminate filler words
Every once in a while, almost all of us involuntarily use certain filler words, such as:
- um
- uh
- like
- so
- yeah
- I mean
- you know
- ok
When it comes to effectively conveying your ideas to other people, competence and trustworthiness are essential. For this reason, try to avoid these words as best as you can.
- Communicate openly and reveal things about yourself
Speaking to people who do not reveal anything about themselves can be a quite uncomfortable experience. This holds especially true when we get the feeling that our discussion partner only tries to spy on us.
Effective communication also consists of telling your own stories and revealing things about yourself. This does not have to mean that you have to talk about your innermost secrets. Happenings from your regular life are just fine. By revealing things about yourself and your personality, you can effectively connect with others and build a relationship.
- Avoid information overload
Whenever we communicate, we almost always focus on conveying the message in a clear manner. Effective communication, however, also requires that the flood of information can be properly processed by the recipient. Confronting listeners with too much information at once can overwhelm them quickly. In these cases, you can deliver the message as clearly and precisely as you want, but it will never fully reach the listener. Effective communicators make sure that they do not stimulate their peers with too much information. Instead, they focus on exchanging information in a concise manner and keep it to the point. Additionally, by using questions they keep their listeners engaged and attentive.
- Communicate that you’re on the same team
By using words such as ‘we’, ‘our’ and ‘us’ you can skillfully communicate to your listeners that you’re on the same side.
- Be empathetic
By developing a good understanding about the circumstances and difficulties of their counterparts, one can communicate the intended message in a more appropriate manner. Without this kind of emotional awareness, one would risk falling prey to various kinds of communication mistakes and traps.
Another important dimension of empathy lies in the communicator’s ability to estimate other people’s reaction to their communicated messages. Effective communicators skillfully adapt their message based on the personality of the person they’re speaking with. This can be especially important when they are dealing with a counterpart who is likely to get emotional.
- Mention the other person’s name
Addressing your listener by name can prove to be an excellent communication technique. Doing so will communicate your attentiveness and the fact that you have taken the time to memorize their name. Besides stating their name, the way you pronounce the name can be equally important.
Skillful communicators are capable of saying the name of their listener in a manner that conveys respect and appreciation. And in doing so, they are able to elicit positive feelings in the person they speak to. After all, the name of a person is an incredibly important and powerful word to them.
- Speak as an equal rather than a superior
There’s nothing that makes people disregard your ideas than talking down to them. Efficient communicators focus on delivering the message, not their status. And even in situations when they are in a position of authority, they speak to others as an equal to increase their commitment and establish trust.
Q.4. Discuss the barriers to effective Listening. What can we do to improve listening? (5)
Common barriers of Listening and how to improve listening:-
1) Distractions
The most obvious and probably the most significant barriers to listening in today’s world are various distractions. Sadly, many of us can’t seem to be part of a conversation without constantly glancing at our phone or laptop.
When you’re having a conversation with someone, it’s best to keep these distractions away and focus on the person in front of you.
2) Noise
Trying to communicate in loud environments is highly ineffective. Even if you can manage to communicate with a large amount of background noise, you won’t be able to understand much or have a good, meaningful discourse.
The issue of background noise is especially common during telephone conversations. For example, many people think they can tackle important conversations while they’re commuting. In most cases, however, the noise levels are too high for effective communication, not to mention the fact that it can cause strain to the person on the other end as well.
3) Interruptions
The fact that nothing good comes from interrupting someone while they’re speaking is one of those cardinal rules of communication we’re all taught as children. People are so eager to be heard that sometimes they interrupt conversations to state their own opinion.
However, not only is it considered rude, but it’s also one of the biggest barriers to effective listening. To avoid making this mistake, try to wait until the other person has finished talking before saying your own ideas out loud.
4) Prejudice
Prejudice can cloud your judgement and make you turn a blind eye towards valuable information or good people. When you live and work in a multicultural environment, it’s vital to leave all your prejudices behind when you’re communicating with others.
For example, if you assume a person is unintelligent (or even less intelligent than you) because of the country of his origin, you’re blinding yourself. You need to give everyone the benefit of doubt and listen to what they have to say.
5) Lack of interest
Often times, we find ourselves trapped in a conversation that simply can’t hold our interest. In such cases, we’ll be tempted to drift off in our own thoughts or focus on something else – which, unfortunately, can be a barrier to listening.
If the discussion isn’t important, steer the conversation to a different direction. If it is important, however, try to focus on the relevant points and note them down.
Q.5. What are the characteristics of a good speech? (5)
Speech is generally, the most effective medium of delivering the message in meeting, seminar, conference etc. Speech refers to delivering the message through words of mouth or spoken words in front of the audience gathered in a meeting, seminar or conference.
Characteristics of a good Speech:-
- Clarity
Clarity is an essential feature of a good speech. Speech should be clear and unambiguous so that the audience can understand it easily. If it is not clear enough to express its meaning to the audience, it will become ineffective. - Definiteness of Message
The message of the speech should be definite and relevant with the subject matter. - Conciseness
The audience becomes impatient to a long speech. Hence, speech should be as concise as possible. However, it should not incomplete. - Interesting
Speech should be delivered in an interesting and pleasing way so that the audience is motivated to pay attention. In order to make the speech interesting, various stories, examples, quotations and jokes can be cited. - Informal Touch
Though speech is a formal address, it should be presented in a personal and informal way. - Considering the Audience
Speech is delivered to a specific audience. So the speaker should actively consider the expectations, interest, and nature of the audience. - Speaking Slowly
An ideal speech is one which is delivered slowly and in usual tone. It helps the audience to hear and understand the message clearly. - Free from Emotions
Another important feature of good speech is that it should be delivered in an unbiased and unemotional way. Speaker’s emotion may drive him away from the main theme. - Use of Body Language
Good Speech goes with necessary body language. Therefore, at the time of delivering a speech, the speaker should use various nonverbal cues. - Ensuring Participation of Audience
A good speech is one which ensures participation from the audience with the speaker.That means the audience will ensure their attention through effective listening, expressing their solidarity with the speech and so on.
Q.6. What are the different types of listening? Explain briefly. (2+3=5)
Different Types of Listening
Discriminative Listening
This is the most basic type of listening. It involves identifying the difference between various sounds. It also enables one to differentiate between familiar and unfamiliar language. The subtleties of accent and pronunciation typical of a language can be identified by this kind of listening.
Comprehension Listening
This type of listening involves something more than just differentiating between various sounds. It involves attaching meaning to what is being listened to, that is the message is comprehended. It may also include comprehending the non-verbal messages being conveyed intentionally or unintentionally by the speaker.
Evaluative Listening
This is also called critical listening. This involves not only comprehending the message but also evaluating and analyzing the message being received in light of one’s own background. It involves judging the acceptability of what is said depending on how logical one finds it to be.
Attentive Listening
It involves paying attention to the words that are being spoken rather than understanding the head and the heart of the person speaking. It involves making a conscious effort to listen attentively and decode the message. The concentration is on the verbal part of the message rather than the non-verbal aspect.
Pretence Listening
This involves more hearing than listening. It means pretending through facial expressions that one is listening to the communicated message when actually one is not.
Selective Listening
Listening is done only partly or selectively. It involves selecting the desired part of the message and ignoring the undesired part of the message. The attention of the listener is not focused and the listener keeps switching off and on.
Intuitive Listening
It is a higher form of listening. It means listening through the intuitive mind by silencing the other forms of internal dialogues going on simultaneously.
Q.7. Make sentences to bring out the meaning of the following: (5×1=5)
(a) Career/Carrier
He is not really suited for a teaching career.
If goods are lost in transit, the carrier will be liable for damages.
(b) Great/Grate
It is a great art to laugh at your own misfortune.
Grate the remaining white chocolate and sprinkle on top.
(c) Plane/Plain
Flying a plane is wonderful, you have no idea.
The problem is quite plain to us.
(d) Dye/Die
For a change, why not dye your T-shirts?
More die by food than by famine.
(e) To/Two/Too
There is no end to learning.
One honest word is better than two oaths.
It is never too old to learn.
Q.8. Write short notes on the following (any two): (2×2 ½ =5)
(a) Proxemics
Proxemics is the study of how humans use space when we’re communicating. How close we stand to someone, whether we touch them, and how comfortable we feel are all part of the study of proxemics.
In order to understand more about proxemics, we need to discuss different kinds of spaces. There are four kinds of distance that people generally use in communication. This can vary by place, and different cultures have different standards. These are known as realms of personal territory. Let’s talk about these now.
- Public space is the space that characterizes how close we sit or stand to someone, like a public figure or public speaker. So, if you are at an event listening to a professor give a lecture, you are probably about 12 – 25 feet away.
- Social space means we’re getting a little closer, about 4 – 12 feet away. This is the kind of space you’re probably in if you’re talking to a colleague or a customer at work.
- Personal space is even closer. In this case, you’re probably about 1 – 4 feet away from someone. This is reserved for talking to friends or family.
- Intimate space is for people who you are very close to. In this case, you’re probably less than a foot away and you might even be touching the other person. This is the space you’re in with a romantic partner, for example.
(b) Audience Analysis
Audience analysis is the process of gathering information about the people in your audience so that you can understand their needs, expectations, beliefs, values, attitudes, and likely opinions.
Audience analysis involves identifying the audience and adapting a speech to their interests, level of understanding, attitudes, and beliefs. Taking an audience-centred approach is important because a speaker’s effectiveness will be improved if the presentation is created and delivered in an appropriate manner. Identifying the audience through extensive research is often difficult, so audience adaptation often relies on the healthy use of imagination.
- Audience analysis should be conducted so you can acknowledge your audience and their beliefs, knowledge, and attitudes.
- Audience analysis should guide your choice of a topic so that you select a topic that is relevant and useful to them. Controversial topics can be excellent topics, but be sure to consider your audience when selecting your topic and deciding how to approach it.
- Audience analysis requires that you adapt to the needs of your audience; this includes considering cultural diversity, making your message clear, avoiding offensive remarks, and speaking with sincerity.
(c) Telephone etiquette in brief
Telephone is an important device with the help of which people separated by distance can easily interact and exchange their ideas. Got a brilliant idea and want to convey it to your friend staying out of the country, use the telephone. Telephone is one of the easiest and cheapest modes of communication.
Telephone etiquettes – An individual needs to follow a set of rules and regulations while interacting with the other person over the phone.
These are often called as telephone etiquettes. It is important to follow the basic telephone etiquettes as our voice plays a very important role in creating an impression of our personality, education, family background as well as the nature of job we are engaged in. The person giving the information is called the sender and the second party is the recipient.
A few key things to remember when it comes to phone etiquette:
- Using phrases such as “thank you” and “please” are essential in displaying a professional atmosphere.
- Listen actively and listen to others without interrupting.
- Don’t make people dread having to answer their phone or call your department.