Chapter 1

What is Communication?
● Communication - the creating and exchanging of meaning through symbolic interaction.
● Verbal communication - communication with words like speaking and writing
● Speech communication - communication with vocalized words like speaking
● Nonverbal communication - all types of communication without words

Communication Model
1) Common Code
● Shared language - communicators must use the same code in order to communicate
● EX: Native Spanish speakers might not understand Spanglish

2) Sender
● the person who encodes the message / the creator of the message
↓
3) Message
● Feelings, thoughts, ideas, energy, or information exchanged between the sender and
receiver
↓
4) Receiver
● the person who decodes the message / the person who interprets the message
↓
5) Feedback
● the reaction or response to a message / “return message”
● There is ALWAYS feedback in communication; silence also counts as feedback.

6) Internal Noise
● Anything that blocks communication and is inside the mind
● Gets in the way of the message, preventing communication
● EX: thinking, hunger, illness, daydreaming

7) External Noise
● Blocks communication but is outside the minds of the participants / “setting”
● EX: phone-ringing, announcements, knocking, tapping pencil, others talking, music

8) Understanding
● Comprehension
● A clear idea of the message as the sender intended it to be received
● the final outcome of communication
● Without understanding, communication cannot take place
Chapter 2
Communication has three distinct elements:
● Process - the tools and actions work together to achieve results
● Meaning - thoughts, ideas, and understandings that are created, exchanged, and shared
by communicators
● Symbols - stands for an idea or feeling

Context
● the situation within which something exists or happens / can help explain situation
● Context helps for communicators to act or speak appropriately depending on the
environment of the situation.

Sender-Receiver
● the person who sends a message to someone / encoder
● If you are the person beginning the give-and-take of the interaction, you are the
sender-receiver.
● Sender becomes the receiver by the feedback.

Receiver-Sender
● the person who receives the message / decoder
● This person watches as you, the sender-receiver, approach and listen to your
explanation. The feedback indicates that your message has been received.

Message
● One of the most important parts of the process
● the information that is exchanged between communicators / to convey meanings and
feelings between senders and receivers
● Be careful when sending messages because they are open to interpretation or
misinterpretation.

Channel
● the space in which the message is being transmitted
● EX: face-to-face dialogue, a phone, an email, a letter, voicemail or answering machine
messages
● To provide the means of transmitting a message
● As a communicator, it is important to choose a proper channel to communicate.

Noise
● Anything that interferes with a message and is usually temporary
● Internal noise - interference that originates from within the communicator (EX: being
sleepy, cold, sad, angry, or preoccupied)
● External noise - distraction in the channel or in the physical environment (EX: the
constant talking of a classmate that interferes with the ability to do work)
Barrier
● Any obstacle that blocks communication
● Internal barrier - barrier that originates from within a communicator (EX: ignorance,
prejudice, defensiveness, competitiveness / stops the communicator from
communicating)
● External barrier - exists in the channel or in other parts of the communication process
(EX: two people who don't speak the same language)

Feedback
● One person’s observable response to another’s message
● Feedback can be verbal and nonverbal. (EX: a smile, “hello” wave, a nod)

Encoding
● the mental process sender-receivers of assigning meaning and language to data
● Once a stimulus from one of the senses is relayed to the brain, the brain immediately
begins organizing the data and tries to assign meaning to it.

Transmitting
● the physical process of sending verbal and nonverbal messages
● Choosing which channel to use
● Once you’ve encoded a message, you can transmit it to someone else.

Acquiring
● the physical process receiver-senders use to take in the sender’s message
● involves many senses at once (EX: smelling a friend’s fragrance, see a person’s smile,
or shake hands)

Decoding
● the mental process receiver-senders use to create meaning from language
● take symbols such as words and gives them meaning

Understanding
● A comprehension to the message and a flow of communication between the sender and
receiver
● Both sender and receiver need to understand the code in order to have full mutual
understanding.

Chapter 3
● The communication process is a set of steps in which a message is sent and received
from one person to another. It consists of encoding, transmitting, receiving, and
decoding from a sender to a receiver.
Interpersonal Communication
● Interpersonal Communication - the foundation of the communication process because
it’s the act of one person sending a message to another
● Interpersonal Skills - skills that help people relate and communicate with one another

The sender is the individual outputting the message the receiver is the individual accepting the
message. If there is a breakdown in any part of the communication model, miscommunication is
likely to occur.
1. Encoding takes place when a sender puts information into a format to be transmitted.
2. Transmitting occurs when the information the sender encoded is sent to the receiver.
3. Receiving happens when the encoded message that was transmitted is received.
4. Decoding occurs when the encoded message is deconstructed into a format that can be
understood by the receiver.
Filter - modifies, disrupts, or distorts a communication message / When we receive a message,
our brains process our thoughts in a way that is specific to us and our background of
understanding.

Feedback Loop
● Feedback loop - a communication process in which the receiver repeats back to the
sender what he or she heard
● If what the receiver repeats back is not the message the sender intended to share, the
sender can modify his or her message and communicate again until the appropriate
message is received.
● The feedback loop works most effectively when the sender uses Standard English.

Chapter 4
● When you communicate, you share or make common your knowledge and ideas with
someone else / Communication is the sharing of meaning by sending and receiving
symbolic cues.

Five Levels of Communication

1) Intrapersonal Communication
● type of communication a person has with themselves, thus the prefix “intra-” which
means within
● As soon as a human being awakens, he begins an internal thought process and
dialogue, almost always silent, but sometimes aloud.

2) Interpersonal Communication
● Takes place between two people
● This type of communication varies depending on the relationship between the two
individuals.

3) Group Communication
 ● Occurs when three or more individuals, who have a common goal, interact either
formally or informally.

4) Public Communication
● Takes place when one or more individuals communicate with a large group in a more
“one-directional” approach

5) Mass Communication
● Occurs when extremely large groups receive information, like a television audience
watching a new broadcast, as well as the intermittent commercial advertising or internet
● Never face-to-face

Chapter 5
● Interaction of three or more interdependent members working to achieve a common goal

Components of Group Communication

1) Members
● Three or more members

2) Interaction
● Group members use verbal and nonverbal messages to generate meanings and
establish relationships.
● Group communication requires interaction.

3) Common Goal
● Defines and unifies a group
● A clear, elevated goal:
○ separates successful from unsuccessful groups
○ guides action
○ helps set standards
○ helps resolve conflict
○ motivates members

4) Interdependence
● Each group member is affected and influenced by the actions of other members.

5) Working
● Group members work together to achieve a common goal.

Basic Elements of Communication Process

1) Members
● Recognized and accepted as belonging to a group

2) Messages
 ● Ideas, information, opinions, feelings

3) Channels
● Media used to share messages

4) Feedback
● Response or reaction to a message

5) Context
● Physical and psychological environment

6) Noise
● Anything that interferes with or inhibits communication

Basic Types of Groups

● Primary Groups
● Social Groups
● Self-Help Groups
● Learning Groups
● Service Groups
● Civic Groups
● Work Groups (committees, work teams)
● Public Groups (panel discussion, symposium, forum)

Advantages of Working in Groups

● Group Performance
● Member Satisfaction
● Learning
● Cultural Understanding
● Creativity
● Civic Engagement

Disadvantages of Working in Groups

● Time, Energy, and Resources
● Conflict
● People Problems

Balance and Group Dialectics

● Group Dialectics - the competing and contradictory components of group work
● Balancing Group Dialectics - the challenge of taking a both/and rather than an either/or
approach to resolving dialectic tensions in groups
● Individual Goals ↔ Group Goals - Personal goals are compatible with group goals.
● Conflict ↔ Cohesion - Cohesive groups are committed, unified, and willing to engage in
conflict.
 ● Conforming ↔ Nonconforming - Members value group norms, but are willing to change.
● Task Dimensions ↔ Social Dimensions - Members want to get the job done and also
value their social relationships.
● Leadership ↔ Followership - Effective leadership requires loyal and competent
followers.
● Structure ↔ Spontaneity - Members recognize the need for structured procedures and
the value of creative thinking.
● Engaged ↔ Disengaged - Members expend energy and work hard, but also need rest
and renewal.
● Open System ↔ Closed System - Members welcome input and interchange, but also
protect the group and its work.

Chapter 6
● Teamwork - cooperative action of a group of people in order to achieve a goal
● Advantages of Teamwork: provides wide variety of talents which can be used to
accomplish a task; generates more ideas for solutions and options to solve problems;
improves communication skills; promotes listening skills; detects problems faster;
strengthens bonds between team members; provides exposure to different points of view
● Disadvantages of Teamwork: slows down problem-solving process due to discussion
and disagreements (especially in large teams); challenges employees who prefer
working alone or not comfortable with working with others; allows some team members
to do less work than others

● Teams - also known as multidisciplinary teams, which are teams comprised of individuals
with different skills, talents, qualifications, and roles

● Skills - knowledge and abilities one gains throughout life / can be learned, but must be
practices in order to remain viable

● Talents - natural abilities an individual is born with / can be enhanced with practice, but
will still show some ability

Emotional Intelligence
● Emotional Intelligence - ability to understand one’s own and other’s emotions and to use
this information as a guide to thinking and behavior
● Manage emotions to attain specific goals to keep calm in a crisis and help others do the
same as well as know how to convey important messages with the correct amount of
emotion

Leadership Styles
● Autocratic - also known as authoritarian leadership / when a leader has all of the power
and decision-making authority
● Bureaucratic - when everything is done according to plan
 ● Democratic - a participant style which allows team members to be included in the
decision-making process
● Laissez-Faire (“let it be”) - leader gives little to no direction to team members but
provides support
● Transactional - leader rewards work or punishes members for not working
● Transformational - also known as charismatic leadership / leader is a visionary and
appeals to a team’s ideals and values

Chapter 7
Team
● Team - group of three or more people who work together to achieve a common goal
● “Team” and “Group” are interchangeable
● Group - a number of individuals forming a unit for a reason / Team - a collection of
accomplished people coming together for a common goal that needs completion

Teams in the Workplace

● Teams can be formal or informal.
● A formal team comes together for a specific purpose and has an appointed leader.
● An informal team is usually made up of volunteers and may be considered a social
group.
● Teams can be functional or cross-functional.
● A functional team is brought together for a specific purpose.
● A cross-functional team, or task force, brings representatives from various factions
together to solve a specific problem.

Leadership
● Leadership - the ability to motivate a group of people toward a common goal
● Leader - a person who has a vision, a drive, and the commitment to achieve that vision
while having the skills to make that vision happen / have to apply leadership knowledge
and skills to carry out the process

Leadership Traits/Qualities
● Honesty - people want to follow a truthful and sincere leader
● Forward-Looking/Visionary - figuring out where to go from where you are now
● Competent/Skilled - demonstrates you are well qualified in a way that people notice
● Inspiring - fill others with the urge to do something
● Intelligent/Developing - committed to continual learning (both formally and informally)
● Collaboration - to work with another person or group in order to achieve or do something
● Decisive - able to make choices quickly and confidently / very clear and obvious
● Courageous - ability to do something that you know is difficult or dangerous
● Confident - a feeling or belief that you can do something well or succeed at something
● Assertive - having or showing a confident and forceful personality
● Mindful - aware of something that may be important / bearing in mind
 ● Interpersonal Skills - skills that help people communicate and work well with others
(critical thinking skills, verbal skills, nonverbal skills, listening skills, collaboration skills
(including compromising))
● Time-Management Skills - practice of organizing time and work assignments to increase
personal efficiency

Conflict-Resolution Model
● Step 1 - Acknowledge conflict and define the problem.
● Step 2 - Analyze and discuss the issue, list the facts, get opinions on the issue.
● Step 3 - Break up into groups or brainstorm as a group for potential solutions.
● Step 4 - Solve the problem and come up with solutions.
● Step 5 - Evaluate alternatives and reach a consensus.
● Step 6 - Implement the solution and then follow up.

Chapter 8
Listening Process
● Hearing - a physical process
● Listening - an intellectual process that combines hearing with evaluating
● Steps:
○ Receive
○ Decode
○ Remember
○ Evaluate
○ Respond
● Passive Listening - casually listening to someone talk / appropriate when you do not
need to interact / passive listeners are more interested in hearing and less interested in
listening
● Active Listening - fully participating as you process what a person says
● Prior Knowledge - experience and information a person already possesses
● Evaluate - judge the accuracy and truthfulness of spoken words
● Types of Active Listening:
○ Appreciative Listening - listening for enjoyment
○ Critical Listening - occurs when specific information or instructions are needed
○ Empathetic Listening - occurs when the listener puts themselves in the speaker’s
place
○ Reflective Listening - occurs when the listener demonstrates an understanding of
the message by restating what was said
○ Deliberative Listening - determining the quality or validity of of what is being said

Listening with Purpose

● Identify purpose for listening
○ Specific information
○ Instructions
○ Requests
 ○ Persuasive Talk
● Literal - the person speaking means exactly what the words indicate
● Inferential - you are to draw a conclusion from what is said

Becoming an Active Listener

● Focus on the message
○ Recognize the purpose of the person speaking
○ Concentrate on what he or she is saying
○ Take notes if necessary
○ Evaluate and assign meaning to what you hear
○ Relate the new information to prior knowledge
○ Skepticism - having a degree of doubt
○ Use your knowledge of the speaker to your advantage
● Listening requires discipline
○ Arrive early
○ Sit in the front
○ Show attention - use body language / build rapport (feeling of harmony or accord)
○ Take notes - comprehend, evaluate, translate or summarize the information /
determine if it’s important enough to write down / do not substitute note-taking for
listening
○ Fight barriers
○ Provide feedback

Chapter 9
Listening 101
● Listening - the process of hearing and focusing your attention to understand and
remember an oral message
● Four steps required:
○ Hearing - function of the ears, intake of information
○ Focusing Attention - concentrating on the speaker and what they’re saying
○ Understanding - attaching meaning to the speaker’s message
○ Remembering - being able to accurately recall and paraphrase something you’ve
heard

Active Listening
● Typically occurs in a formal situation, such as school, interviews, and work
● Allows listeners to acquire information, solve problems, and persuade or dissuade the
speaker
● Requires complete attention on the speaker and strong listening skills

Casual Listening
● Typically occurs in an informal situation, such as when we are with our friends
● Includes listening for pleasure, amusement, recreation, and relaxation
● Allows listener to relax and enjoy the conversation
 ● Sometimes called passive listening

Reasons for Listening

● To relax - such as listening to good music
● To obtain information - adults gain an estimated 90% of the information by listening
● To express interest - says the person you are listening to is important
● To discover attitudes - helps identify the speaker’s true feelings through nonverbal cues

Reasons for Not Listening

● Distracting interruptions
● Thinking about something else
● Disagreeing with the speaker
● Assuming what the speaker will say
● Having difficulty hearing or understanding the speaker (for example, a foreign accent)
● Misunderstanding the speaker

Poor Listening Habits

● Stereotyping the speaker or message being delivered
● Dismissing subjects as uninteresting
● Faking attention
● Looking for disruptions
● Listening for details rather than main points
● Failing to notice body language and facial expressions

Chapter 10
● Listening - a physical and psychological process that involves acquiring, assigning
meaning, and responding to symbolic messages from others / more than just hearing
sound and understanding language

● Hearing - the physical process of receiving sound

● Interpreting - the process in which you personalize the sender’s message to determine
meaning for you / the message lies in the receiver because they determine the actual
meaning of the message

Responding
● Responding - the listener’s internal emotional and intellectual reaction to a message
● Steps to Responding:
○ Respond emotionally
○ Respond intellectually
○ Analyze and evaluate response
○ Encode choices

● Active Listening - the listener participates fully in the communication process

 ● Passive Listening - the listener does not actively participate in the interactions / also
called “casual” listening that think they can absorb information even when they don’t
contribute to the conversation

Impatient Listening
● Impatient Listening - short bursts of active listening are interrupted by noise and other
distractions / forgets details or instructions because they have “tuned out” and give
comments at inappropriate times
● Types of Impatient Listening:
○ Anticipatory listening - anticipates what speaker will say and rushes to respond
○ Defensive listening - main goal is to argue
○ Combative listening - main goal is to “win” or put down
○ Distracted listening - pays attention to the first part, assumes what will be said,
and thinks of something else

5 Types of Active Listening

● Critical Listening - listening to comprehend ideas and information in order to achieve a
specific purpose or goal / also known as “comprehensive listening” because you’re trying
to comprehend

● Deliberative Listening - listening to understand, analyze, and evaluate messages so you

can accept or reject a point of view, make a decision, or take action / also known as
“evaluative listening” to evaluate for future action

● Empathetic Listening - listening to understand, participate in, and enhance a relationship

● Appreciative Listening - listening to enjoy or appreciate a speaker’s message or

performance on an artistic level

● Reflective Listening - listener demonstrates understanding by repeating information

Chapter 11
● Verbal Communication - the words we use
● Nonverbal Communication - bodily actions and vocal qualities that typically accompany a
verbal message

Importance of Nonverbal Communication

● Only 7% of a message’s effect is carried by words / listeners receive the other 93%
through nonverbal means
● Over 65% of the social meaning of the messages we send to others are communicated
nonverbally

Characteristics of Nonverbal Communication

 ● Intentional or Unintentional
● Ambiguous
● Primary
● Continuous
● Multichanneled

Functions of Nonverbal Communication

● To provide information
● To regulate interaction
● To express or hide emotion and affect
● To present an image
● To express power and control

Express Emotion or Affect

● Facial expressions and gestures that augment the verbal expression of feelings.

Types of Nonverbal Communication

● Kinesics
● Paralanguage
● Vocal Interferences
● Spatial Usage
● Self-presentation Cues
● (Basically everything except the words)

Kinesics
● Eye Contact
● Facial Expressions
● Emoticons
● Gesture
● Posture
● Touch
○ Essential to a healthy life
○ Communicate power, empathy, and understanding

Paralanguage
● Pitch
● Volume
● Rate
● Quality
● Intonation
● Vocal Interferences
○ Extraneous sounds or words that interrupt fluent speech (“uh,” “um,” “you know,”
“like”)
○ Place markers
 ○ Filler

Spatial Usage
● Proxemics - study of space or distance within communication
○ Intimate distance
○ Personal distance
○ Social distance
○ Public distance

Improving Nonverbal Communication Skills

● When sending messages, be conscious of nonverbal behavior, be purposeful in use of
nonverbals, make sure nonverbals are not distracting, match verbal and nonverbal
communication, and adapt to the situation.
● When receiving messages, don’t automatically assume, consider the gender and culture
and individual differences, pay attention to all aspects of nonverbal communication, and
use perception checking.

Chapter 12
Nonverbal Communication - system of symbolic behaviors that includes all forms of
communication except words (EX: waving, laughing, and sighing)

Functions of Nonverbal Communication

● Relates to verbal communication / reinforces, contradicts, and acts as a substitute for a
verbal message
● Conveys emotional and relationship dimensions of message / messages about feelings
and relationships

Characteristics of Nonverbal Communication

● Subconscious - usually not aware of the messages we send nonverbally
● Contextual - depends on the situation in which it occurs
● Ambiguous - interpreted differently by different people
● Cultural - specific nonverbal message commonly used in one culture may send a
completely different message in another culture

Types of Nonverbal Communication

● Paralanguage - the study of the variation of the voice like tone and loudness
● Kinesics - the study of gestures in communication
○ Refers to the use of the body in communication / “body language” or “body talk”
● Proxemics - the study of distance in communication

Pitch
● Pitch - the highness or lowness of sound on a musical scale
● High Pitch - stress, fear, tension, excitement, frustration, or uncertainty
 ● Medium Pitch - when you speak normally in conversations, discussions, and
presentations
● Low Pitch - expresses a wide range of emotions from sadness to uncertainty to
tenderness to concern

Facial Communication
● Eye Communication - direct eye contact often will be viewed as a sign of honesty and
credibility / avoiding eye contact is viewed as dishonest

Spatial Communication
● Spatial Communication - space and distance
● Intimate Distance - making a quiet or confidential comment to someone or when you
carry on a private conversation
● Personal Distance - friends, family members, and some coworkers
● Social Distance - logically the most appropriate distance for interpersonal and small
group interaction in professional and social contexts
● Public Distance - formal presentations

● Artifacts - articles of adornment you use to decorate yourself and/or your surroundings

Chapter 13
Creating Writing Style and Tone
● Writing Style - refers to the way in which a writer uses language to convey an idea /
reflects decisions made by the writer / creates tone
● Tone - impression of the overall content of the message
● Judge writing based on the four Cs of communication to help writing show respect and
sensitivity and leave the reader with positive impression
● Use formal language
○ Formal Language - language that is used in a workplace environment and in
professional communication / Standard English is the norm
○ Informal Language - language used in a casual situation without applying the
rules of grammar and with friends and family / texting language / slang
expressions
● Consider meaning
○ Meaning can vary according to context.
○ Connotation - meaning apart from what the word explicitly names or describes
○ Euphemisms - express unpleasant ideas in pleasant terms
○ Condescending Language - assumes an attitude of superiority
● Choose positive or neutral language
○ Easier to get results with a positive tone
○ Many words automatically cause negative reactions
○ Maintain integrity when writing a negative message with a positive tone
● Apply sensitive language
 ○ Bias-free words are neutral words imparting neither a positive nor negative
message
○ Gender, ethnicity, and age should not be inferred from language
○ Do not use offensive, outdated terms

Choosing Words
● When choosing words, be precise
○ Readers can better understand the message
○ Makes writing more interesting
○ Simple, everyday words attract and hold attention
● Select familiar words
○ Check whether words quickly and clearly convey the message
○ Aim to create a document that is easy to read and understand
● Use jargon sparingly
○ Adapt language to fit the situation, or all of the facts and events that affect the
message
○ Jargon - language specific to a line of work area or expertise / can include
technical terminology or vocabulary, may not be understood outside of the field,
may speed up communication if the reader knows it, and can create barriers if
the reader does not know it
● Avoid buzzwords and clichés
○ Do not try too hard to impress readers
○ Popular words may not be current nor appropriate for the audience
○ Do not use clichés which are overused, commonplace, trite language
○ Find new ways to express old ideas
● Adjust to the needs of the audience
○ Tone may be formal or informal depending on the audience
○ If the audience is well-known, it is acceptable to use personal pronouns
○ Use of personal pronouns may be inappropriate when representing a business or
organization

Structuring Clear and Concise Sentences

● Balance sentence length
○ Short, simple sentences are more understandable than long, complex ones
○ Too many short sentences can be boring
○ Aim to make sentences short and clear without being choppy / join clauses / add
phrases
○ Read aloud to gain a different perspective
● Choose active or passive voice
○ Active voice comes across stronger in tone and is best used when the message
is direct
○ Passive voice should be used with thought
● Write concise sentences
○ Good business writing has no frills
 ○ Every word and sentence should contribute to the message in a meaningful way
○ Concise writing does not waste time of the writer or the reader

Writing Effective Paragraphs

● Effective paragraphs
○ are a series of well-written, coherent sentences arranged in a meaningful order
○ have three main parts: topic sentence introduces and summarizes main ideas to
be presented, developmental sentences include important information about the
main idea, closing or summarizing sentence provides a summary of the main
idea
● When writing paragraphs, apply logic
○ Present and connect ideas so they make sense to the reader
○ Determine if writing is logical by asking: does the first paragraph introduce the
topic, are the points made in a logical sequence, and does each paragraph build
on the previous one
○ Follow the writing process to establish a logical flow
● Control paragraph length
○ Paragraph length varies according to subject and construction
○ Keep the audience in mind that readers want short, clear paragraphs and long
paragraphs can usually be broken
● Avoid redundancies
○ Redundancy - repeating a message
○ Confusing and irritating for the reader
● Transitions - words, phrases, and sentences that connect ideas
○ connect thoughts between sentences and paragraphs
○ prepare the reader for what is coming
○ move the reader from one idea to another
○ aid in the understanding of the message
○ add balance to sentence length
● Choose direct or indirect approach
○ Direct approach is most often used in business writing
○ Indirect approach prepares the reader for bad news
Chapter 14
What is Public Speaking?
● Public Speaking - giving an oral presentation before a class or another group of people,
a special form of interaction common in education. You will likely be asked to give a
presentation in one of your classes at some point, and your future career might need it.
It’s important to learn public speaking skills.

Overcoming Anxiety
● Understand anxiety - accept that anxiety happens and continue with the process
● Reduce anxiety by preparing and practicing - you need to practice a lot, especially do
decrease anxiety
 ● Focus on what you’re saying, not how you’re saying it - the audience wants to listen to
the content of your speech, not the tiny details of how you’re saying it
● Develop self-confidence - as you prepare, you will make notes you can refer to during
the presentation and more practice will increase confidence in the content

Guidelines for Presentations

● Analyze your audience and goals
○ Be sure you are clear about the goals for the presentation. Are you primarily
presenting new information or arguing for a position? Are you going to do an
overview or go over a detailed report? Review the assignment and talk with the
instructor if you’re unsure. Your goals guide everything in the presentation: what
you say, how much you say, what order you say it in what visual aids you use,
whether you use humor or personal examples and so forth.
● Plan, research, and organize your content
○ Organizing a presentation is similar to organizing topics in a class paper and
uses the same principles. Introduce your topic and state your main ideas (thesis),
go into more detail about specific ideas, and conclude your presentation. Look for
a logical order for the specifics in the middle. Some topics work best in
chronological (time) order or with a compare-and-contrast organization. If your
goal is to persuade the audience, build up to the strongest point. Put similar ideas
together and add transitions between different ideas.
● Draft and revise the presentation
● Prepare speaking notes
○ Speaking notes are a brief outline for your presentation. You might write them on
index cards or sheets of paper. Include important facts and data as well as
keywords for your main ideas, but don’t write too much. If you forget things later
when you start practicing, you can always add more to your outline. Be sure to
number your cards or pages to prevent a last-minute mix-up.
○ Your closing mirrors the opening. Transition for your last point to your brief
summary that pulls your ideas together. You might end with a challenge to the
audience, a strong statement about your topic, a personal reflection, and more.
Just make sure you have a final sentence planned so that you don’t have to
fumble at the end.
● Practice the presentation
● Deliver the presentation
○ Remember, your audience is on your side. If you’re still nervous before your turn,
take a few deep breaths. Rehearse your opening lines in your mind. Smile as you
move to the front of the room, looking at your audience. You’ll see some friendly
faces smiling back encouragingly. As you start the presentation, move your eyes
among those giving you a warm reception, and if you see some kid looking bored
or doing something else, just ignore them. But don’t focus on one person in the
audience for too long, which could make them nervous or cause them to look
away.
Chapter 15 (check slides for more info)
Persuasive Speech
● Persuasive Speech - a presentation that aims to change others by prompting them to
think, feel, or act differently
● Change people’s attitudes; the strength towards or against people, policies, or ideas;
and how people act

Characteristics of Persuasive Speech

● Persuasive speech is “interactive”
● Persuasion is NOT the same as coercion, or force.
● Persuasive impact is usually gradual

Three Cornerstones of Persuasion

● Ethos - the perceived personal character of the speaker
○ you have integrity, credibility
○ you can be trusted
○ you have goodwill toward them
○ you know what you’re talking about
○ you are committed to the topic
● Pathos - emotional proofs, or reasons to believe in something
○ Listeners need to not only understand your ideas but also feel something about
them.
○ Personalize the issue problem, topic
○ Appeal to listeners’ needs and values
○ Bring material alive
● Logos - rational or logical proofs
○ Logical Proofs - arguments, reasoning, and evidence to support claims
○ Evidence - examples, testimony, statistics, analogies, visual aids, and etc.

Building Credibility
● Credibility = Ethos
● A willingness of others to believe that a person has personal integrity, is positively
disposed toward them, and can be trusted.

Types of Credibility
● Initial Credibility - expertise and trustworthiness listeners recognize BEFORE a
presentation (based on positions, achievements, experiences)
● Derived Credibility - expertise and trustworthiness listeners recognize as a result of how
speakers communicate during a presentation
● Terminal Credibility - credible speakers have at the end of a presentation (cumulative
expertise, goodwill, and trustworthiness listeners recognize in a speaker)

How to Build Credibility

● State your qualification
 ● Show that you care about listeners
● Appeal to listeners’ emotions
● Reason carefully
● Use effective and ethical supporting materials
● Use verbal and nonverbal communication to show that you care about the topic
● Respond to questions with open-mindedness and fairness

Principles of Speech Organization

● Introduction should capture the audience's attention, provide a clear thesis statement,
preview what you will cover.
● Internal summaries of main points should be provided.
● Smooth transitions between points and parts of a speech are needed.
● Body should be organized to reinforce the thesis and show unity of ideas.
● Conclusion should summarize main points and end with strong closing statements.

Chapter 16
Informative Presentation
● Speaker seeks to inform the audience
● Provide the audience with new information
○ Professor’s lecture
○ Newscast
○ Youtube tutorial
○ Cooking lessons

Persuasive Presentation
● Speaker seeks to convince the audience to change their attitudes or beliefs
● Encourage them to take action
● Speaker gives facts and information in order to convince the audience
○ Sales pitch
○ Politician urging you to vote
○ Infomercial

Motivational Presentation
● Speaker encourages or inspires the audience
● Seek to convince the audience but they use emotion or feelings to achieve this
○ MLK “I Have a Dream” speech
○ Dalton Sherman
○ Steve Jobs “Stanford Commencement Ceremony”

Manuscript
● Entire speech is written down and speaker reads the speech to the audience
● Advantage : no danger of forgetting material
● Disadvantage : no eye contact, no voice variety
Memorization
● Speaker delivers a prepared manuscript speech from memory
● Advantage : effective eye contact
● Disadvantage : speaker may forget parts of the speech

Impromptu
● Speaker has little or no chance to prepare the speech and they choose the words as
they proceed
● Advantage : requires little or no preparation
● Disadvantage : delivery is usually difficult, awkward, and choppy

Extemporaneous
● Prepared outline and note cards are used and speaker delivers prepared ideas but
doesn’t not read or memorize the speech
● Advantage : conversational style, effective eye contact
● Disadvantage : delivery could be choppy unless transitions used effectively