Barriers and other variables of the communication

“To effectively communicate, we
must realize that we are all
different in the way we perceive the
world and use this understanding as
a guide to our communication with
others.”
-Tony Robbins

At the end of the lesson, you are expected to:
 identify the different barriers to
communication
 differentiate barriers of communication; and
 suggest ways to remedy the barriers to
communication.

In the previous lesson, the five major
elements of communication process were
identified. However, there are other
elements which are equally important to talk
about since they can also affect the
communication process as a whole.
Technically termed as interference, these are
the barriers which bog down the completion
of the said process.

A number of reasons may be cited for
failure to communication effectively. Some of
these are language-related and have to do with
the message. Communication cannot be said to
have taken place if the message was not
understood and responded to as intended. To
prevent this, avoid the following factors that
could distort the message:

 Among Filipinos, there are
sounds in English which are
considered critical. Thus, they
are hard to produce which
eventually results to
mispronunciation.
 When a speaker does not say
the intended word, this could
result in wrong interpretation
of the message

 This also happens when the receiver fails to
take note of the context in which the word are
said.
 For non-native speakers, pronouncing ‘map’ as
‘mop’ would change the meaning of the
message, “ We need a map as we stroll along
the Sydney Harbor.”

 Communication breakdown could also result
from a lack of awareness of the pronunciation of
a given word in the different varieties of English.
 In Australian English the word ‘today’ is
pronounced /təˈdaɪ /.
 Imagine the interpretation of the utterence “ I
am going to the hospital today” stated in
Australian English.

 Different meanings attached to a word could
also result in communication breakdown.
 There are words which give denotative and
connotative meaning.
 DENOTATIVE meaning refers to the
designated meanings of the word given in the
dictionary
 while the CONNOTATIVE meaning has to do
with personal meaning attached to the word.

 The denotation of a word is the minimum
definition that is needed to indicate what it
means, and this requires specific reference
to the physical object, entity or idea to
which the word refers.
 In contrast, the connotation of a word
includes all the evaluation, reactions and
emotional experiences that anyone may
associate with it.

 For instance, the word ‘home’ denotes a
house, apartment, or other shelter that is
the usual residence of a person, family,
or household.
 On the contrary, for most of us, the word
‘home’ connotes the place in which one’s
domestic affections are centered.

 Other language-related barriers include the lack
of organization of ideas.
 Organization of ideas is important, especially in
public speaking.
 When ideas presented are loosely incoherent,
listeners will not be able to connect and
understand the message.
 This will eventually result to losing the attention
of the audience. Still another is the sudden shift
in topic.

 Changing topics during extended talks
can hamper communication.
 It is always encouraged to use
transitional devices to allow your
audience to follow and process your
presentation or speech more effectively.

 Another barrier of effective communication has
to do with the interactants.
 The interactants are the source and the
recipient of the message.This is mainly
psychological in nature.
 We take more kindly to feedback given by
persons we like and admire.
 On the other hand, we negatively react and
resist accepting a message given by a person we
dislike.

 More often that not, our reactions to message
are conditioned to some extent by our opinion
of and feelings for the sender of the message.
 Moreover, our emotions influence much on the
way we word our message during interaction.
 This fact reminds us to always be mindful of
every word that comes out from our mouth.
 Take for instance, when we have a fight with
someone, we hardly listen and accept his/her
explanation.

 Share presupposition is vital during interaction.
Both parties need to have background knowledge
of the topic at hand.
 When the other does not have anything to say
about the topic at hand, one cannot expect to get
appropriate reaction about it.
 Miscommunication will surely creep in situation like
this. Take note, we usually ask first if the other party
knows something about topic at hand; otherwise
we exhaust ourselves explaining about it so he or
she would have an idea.

 Delivery of the message is another variable
that could affect communication.
 The volume of one’s voice and his rate of
speaking, pacing, could have an effect on the
intelligibility and clarity of the message.
 Said softly, it would be barely audible and
uttered too fast, it may not be picked up at all
by the listener.
 It is always good for us to be sensitive with our
audience so they can clearly get the message
we wish to get across.

 Finally, the situation or context could also cause
communication breakdown. Physical noise is likely
to distort a message or render it incomprehensibly.
 Having a conversation in an area where
construction is going is not a good idea.
 Furthermore, the size of the room and the size of
the audience are other situation-related factors
that could impede effective communication.
 Therefore, the use of equipment to amplify your
voice would be necessary.

Barriers to Communication Ways to Avoid Barriers to Communication
1. Mispronunciation
2. Meaning attached to words
3. Sudden shift in topic
4. Personal Biases and
Prejudices
5. Lack of shared
presupposition on the part of
the sender and receiver of the
message.
6. Delivery of the message
7. Situation or Context

Direction: MESSAGE RELAY. In this activity, you will be
working in groups. The group leaders will approach the
teacher. The teacher will whisper a message to the group
leaders. When the teacher says pass, each group leader will
then whisper the same message to the first member of the
group. Once again, the teacher will say “ Pass the message”
and the first member of the group will them whisper the
message to the second member of the group. The cycle
goes on until the message reaches the last member of the
group. When the teacher says “ Write the message”, you are
to write the message in this sheet of paper.
YOU ARE NOT ALLOWEDTO MAKE ANY ERASURES IN
THIS ACTIVITY.

Barriers and other variables of the communication

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