COMMUNICATION PROCESS

Communication is a process, and if the process breaks down, communication will fail. In this
lesson, you'll learn about the communication process. We'll also discuss how the concept of noise
can disrupt this process.
Communication is the process of conveying information between two or more people.
The communication process is the steps we take in order to achieve a successful
communication.

Communication Process
The communication process consists of several components.
A sender is the party that sends a message. Lindsey, of course, will be the sender. She'll also
need the message, which is the information to be conveyed. Lindsey will also need to encode her
message, which is transforming her thoughts of the information to be conveyed into a form that
can be sent, such as words.
A channel of communication must also be selected, which is the manner in which the message
is sent. Channels of communication include speaking, writing, video transmission, audio
transmission, electronic transmission through emails, text messages and faxes and even
nonverbal communication, such as body language. Lindsey also needs to know the target of her
communication. This party is called the receiver.
The receiver must be able to decode the message, which means mentally processing the
message into understanding. If you can't decode, the message fails. For example, sending a
message in a foreign language that is not understood by the receiver probably will result in
decoding failure.
Sometimes, a receiver will give the sender feedback, which is a message sent by the receiver
back to the sender. For example, a member of Lindsey's team may provide feedback in the form of
a question to clarify some information received in Lindsey's message.
Communication Process
The communication is a dynamic process that begins with the conceptualizing of ideas by the
sender who then transmits the message through a channel to the receiver, who in turn gives the
feedback in the form of some message or signal within the given time frame. Thus, there are
Seven major elements of communication process:

1. Sender: The sender or the communicator is the person who initiates the conversation and has
conceptualized the idea that he intends to convey it to others.
2. Encoding: The sender begins with the encoding process wherein he uses certain words or non-
verbal methods such as symbols, signs, body gestures, etc. to translate the information into a
message. The sender’s knowledge, skills, perception, background, competencies, etc. has a great
impact on the success of the message.
3. Message: Once the encoding is finished, the sender gets the message that he intends to convey.
The message can be written, oral, symbolic or non-verbal such as body gestures, silence, sighs,
sounds, etc. or any other signal that triggers the response of a receiver.
4. Communication Channel: The Sender chooses the medium through which he wants to convey
his message to the recipient. It must be selected carefully in order to make the message effective
and correctly interpreted by the recipient. The choice of medium depends on the interpersonal
relationships between the sender and the receiver and also on the urgency of the message being
sent. Oral, virtual, written, sound, gesture, etc. are some of the commonly used communication
mediums.
5. Receiver: The receiver is the person for whom the message is intended or targeted. He tries to
comprehend it in the best possible manner such that the communication objective is attained. The
degree to which the receiver decodes the message depends on his knowledge of the subject
matter, experience, trust and relationship with the sender.
6. Decoding: Here, the receiver interprets the sender’s message and tries to understand it in the
best possible manner. An effective communication occurs only if the receiver understands the
message in exactly the same way as it was intended by the sender.
7. Feedback: The Feedback is the final step of the process that ensures the receiver has received
the message and interpreted it correctly as it was intended by the sender. It increases the
effectiveness of the communication as it permits the sender to know the efficacy of his message.
The response of the receiver can be verbal or non-verbal.
8. Noise: It refers to any obstruction that is caused by the sender, message or receiver during the
process of communication. For example, bad telephone connection, faulty encoding, faulty decoding,
inattentive receiver, poor understanding of message due to prejudice or inappropriate gestures, etc.

Note: The Noise shows the barriers in communications. There are chances when the message
sent by the sender is not received by the recipient.

The five main processes of communication.

Process # 1. Sender:
Communication starts with the sender, who is the initiator of the message. After generating an
idea, the sender encodes it in a way that can be comprehended by the receiver. Encoding refers
to the process by which the sender translates his thoughts into a series of verbal and non-verbal
actions that he feels will communicate the message to the intended receiver. For example,
translating the thought into any language.

Process # 2. Transmission:
The information that the sender wants to communicate is transmitted over a channel through
which the message travels to the receiver. A channel connects the sender to the receiver.
Channels for communication may include a memorandum, a computer, a telephone, a telegram,
or a television.
The choice of a channel depends on the communication situation. For instance, when dealing with
confidential information, direct face-to-face interaction or a sealed letter are more effective
channels than a telephone conversation.

Process # 3. Noise:

Noise is anything that has a disturbing influence on the message. Since noise hinders
communication, the sender should choose a channel that is free from noise. Noise may occur at
the sender’s end, during transmission, or at the receiver’s end.

Examples of noise include:

ii. A poor telephone connection

iii. An inattentive receiver

iv. Faulty decoding (attaching the wrong meaning to the message)

v. Prejudices obstructing the poor understanding of a message

vi. Gestures and postures that may distort the message

Process # 5. Receiver:
The receiver is the person to whom the message is transmitted. In order to decode the message,
the receiver has to be ready to receive the message. That is. the receiver should not be
preoccupied with other thoughts that might cause him to pay insufficient attention to the message.
Decoding refers to the process of translation of symbols encoded by the sender into ideas that can
be understood.

Communication can be considered effective only when both the sender and the receiver attach
similar meanings to the symbols that compose the message. For example, a message in technical
jargon requires a recipient who understands such terms. Communication is not complete unless it
is understood by both the sender and the receiver.

Process # 6. Feedback:
A message generated by the receiver in response to the sender’s original message is known as
feedback. Feedback is necessary to ensure that the message has been effectively encoded,
transmitted, decoded and understood.

It helps a sender evaluate the effectiveness of his message, so that he can modify his subsequent
messages. Feedback also confirms whether there has been any change in the behavior of the
individual or in the organization as a result of communication.