Solutions To Barriers Of Communications example essay topic

Human communications brings society and people together. It is therefore very important that the receiver decodes the intended message sent correctly. Wrong decoding of messages, or misunderstanding as we call it, can be disastrous. Therefore, we must never overlook the concern to have effective communication, to avoid misunderstandings and mishaps. The medium preventing the right message being sent across is called barriers.

Often, we do not know if information we receive is fact or fiction. We often overlook the importance to know whether a certain rumour or news article is true, due to the fact the world is always moving and busy, we do not have time to indulge in hunting for the truth. How do we determine the information that we received is fact of fiction? We often tend to receive information and messages blindly; believing that what people say or what we see on the news is true. But what we do not know is that information we receive is usually second hand knowledge.

Most of what we "know", or receive, are actually second hand knowledge and information, which are normally obtained from others. In this process of passing information, the intended message might change or be manipulated. Rumours and gabfests we received from others, news reported by Channel News Asia, are they actually true? How do you evaluate the quality of the information? Just because a document appears online doesn't mean it contains valid information. In fact online information demands close scrutiny.

Facts are usually what we see. It's up to you to cast a critical eye, sorting fact from fiction, actuality from opinion. Why is this important? The world abounds with all sorts of information, but unless you can be reasonably sure of its source and accuracy, be wary.

One example is when a person who doesn't like Thomas tells you of his bad doings, do you believe it? Thus a healthy dose of skepticism sometimes is good. In evaluating the accuracy of the information, we must know who is the person sending it, whether the content is an opinion, fact or lie, and how current is the information. Here is an example of the evaluation of a human conversation: John and Thomas had a heated argument in class prior to this conversation. John saw Judy, a girl Thomas likes and tells her these: John: Judy, you should steer clear of Thomas in the future, because he is a violent chap.

Judy: Violent? I always thought he was gentle. How did you know he is violent? John: I saw him grabbing a girl by her collar in the canteen when the girl sliced into his queue 6 months ago. Judy: Oh God, I will never talk to him again. Thanks for informing me.

In the conversation above, John is the sender. He had an argument with Thomas beforehand, therefore when he sees the girl Thomas likes, he begin to badmouth him to pull Thomas down. John begins to distort facts and tells Judy " I saw him grabbing a girl by her collar in the canteen when the girl sliced into his queue". This is a lie. .".. when the girl sliced into his queue 6 months ago".

We doubt the accuracy of the information as the date is too far back. As you can see, information sent can be a lie, a fact, or simply just rumours. There is a need for us to make an effort to find out whether certain information is authentic, as disasters might happen if we do not clarify and confirm its authenticity. One example is the killings of 24 Afghans who were believed to be part of the terrorist network. Unmanned robotic machines spotted them, and they were ordered to take these men down.

As a result of lacking in accuracy in the information, the men killed were just normal villagers. his shows the effect of poor communications, resulting in fatal disasters. This brings me to the factors of having an effective communication, and how to overcome its barriers, in order to avoid unnecessary arguments and disasters. When we communicate, we want our messages to be understood by the sender. Therefore, effective communication is important. Effective communication only exists when there are no barriers to it. Effective communication includes good oral communication skills, active listening, and overcoming the barriers.

Oral communications is one of the simplest, and common form of communications used. Humans started talking from about 70,000 years ago, and since then, we have not stopped talking. Good oral communication is how a person presents himself / herself by speaking. It is essential in job interviews, public relations and in our daily lives. The National Association of Colleges and Employers conducted a survey of hundreds of employers to determine the skills they desire in potential employees. The results show that oral communication skills were the most important thing they look for, among others such as analytical skills.

Another survey has shown that employees who possess good speaking skills have a higher success rate in getting a job. Bad oral communication skills can This shows us how important it is in having good oral communication skills when you enter the society, whether in work, or in public relations. When people talk, you listen. As important as oral skills are, active listening by the other party is required to achieve effective communication.

Factors in receiving a spoken message include listening for the whole meaning, watching for body language, concentrate and avoid making assumptions and feedback. Listening for the whole meaning will cut down misunderstandings often created by partial listening. This happens when people do not listen to whole statements, and comment even though they only got half the message; when you receive or listen for a message, remember to look out for body language, if there is. For example, when talking face to face, if a person tells you something with his / her head down, there is a possibility that he / she might either be sad, or lying. Thus body language is sometimes essential to determine what a person says is actually a fact or fiction; Concentration in listening to a message enables people to understand, and able to pass out information correctly; Distractions such as watching the television when instructions are given, can lead to sever consequences; Making assumptions is another hazard to having effective communication. When a message is not interpreted or given out clearly, people tend to make assumptions when they do not clarify.

This often leads to misunderstandings; The feedback element is also very important. When someone do not understand, or have doubts over what is said, the need to clarify or ask, is called feedback. Feedback also includes suggestions, and other positive inputs. Effective communication takes effect when there are no barriers. These barriers block out the intended message being decoded properly. Barriers can be categorized into 2 types.

The first is the physical barriers. Differences in languages, level of talk, in status and resistance to change, bias and prejudices, distance and information overload are physical barriers. Technological barriers are differences in mediums used to communicate and unpredictability of technologies. Physical Barriers: Differences in languages hinder communication when people of two different cultures and different speaking language come together. Both do not understand what the other party is trying to say; when people of two different backgrounds talk, they sometimes may encounter the difference in the level of talk. For example when an engineer talks to a biologist, both might not understand certain terms or jargon's used in the conversation, even though they speak the same languages; different levels of status can jeopardize effective communication too.

An example is when a boss gives instructions to the employee, the employee might not know the expectations of the boss, therefore committing mistakes. This will see the need to clarify matters; resistance to changed, bias ness and prejudices are both psychological mistakes. When a person is bias towards a situation or person, he / she will not speak in a standard point of view; Distance is a barrier when 2 parties cannot communicate effectively out of their "talking space"; Information overload means there is too much information to digest. When there is an information overload, people cannot communicate effectively because the information is too much to be passed on, as in the case when a sender forgets or leaves out certain information. Technological Barriers: Differences in usage of mediums occur when people communicate with different tools, and both do not understand each other. An example is when an impoverished third world country receives an email, not many people might be able to read it.

It has to be translated into a written mail, for the mass to understand. However in developed countries, this is not the case. Almost every family in developed Singapore now owns a computer and internet connectivity, therefore they can use email to their advantage, unlike third world countries. Solutions to barriers of communications vary. For barriers such as differences in languages, level of talk, in status and distance they can be solved when people can find a common ground to speak on. For example, getting a translator can solve differences in languages.

Barriers such as resistance to change, bias and prejudices are psychological barriers. They can be overcome by changing the thinking of the person, and adopting a standard point of view when talking. Information overload can be overcome when messages are memorized in stages, or written down, to ensure the brain has enough allowance to work. Technological barriers can be overcome when people start to learn and upgrade themselves. In the case of poor countries, the sender should conform to their style of receiving messages, for example using mail rather than email. Good communications is essential to success.

If you are a good communicator, you can tell your friends, workers, relatives, teachers what you think, what you need, and how you feel in ways that are appropriate and are likely to produce positive results. With better communication skills, you can get more help, cooperation and recognition you will need to achieve goals.