Critical Skills: Communication

Communication is an exchange of information or the expression of ideas or feelings. Written and spoken words are fundamental to communication, but tone, gestures, and body language also are part of the message. Listening is a vital element, since without it no real exchange can take place. Yet the process is far from perfect, as individual experiences, interpretations, and context affect each communication event.

Mass communication via the Internet, television, radio, and print is also charged with complexity. As various media compete for attention, the audience is bombarded with attention-grabbing words, pictures, colors, and sounds. The actual purpose of most media is to sell something, whether products or ideas, with news, entertainment, or sports serving to attract the audience. People must learn to interpret, resist constant efforts to persuade, and think critically about messages from news providers, advertisers, political organizations, and other sources.

Communications skills are necessary for academic and professional success, since without the ability to listen, understand, analyze, comment, and write, a student would not be prepared to meet the requirements of college and an employee would not be able to handle the responsibilities of most jobs. But communication skills are vital outside of school and the workplace, too. Making and keeping friends, cooperating on sports teams, volunteering in the community, and interacting with family all require the ability to communicate effectively. Poor communication has a negative impact on personal relationships and the ability to function at school or work and in the community. In fact, research shows that children who have poor communications skills have fewer friends and are less likely to resolve conflicts without resorting to violence.

Teaching institutions try to address the needs of their students and ensure their competence in both oral and written communication. Educational standards such as the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), Deeper Learning Standards (DLS), and Career Cluster Essential Knowledge and Skills Statements (ESS) all include communications skills in their guidelines. Collaborative learning also is listed in all three. For example, high school level Common Core standards address several types of discussions, formats, and approaches for learning communications skills.

Academic researchers continue to study communication and its relationship to academic, professional, and personal success. Language and communication techniques and venues continue to change, reflecting developments in the culture and refinement of technology.

Core Skills & Competencies

Some basic skills are required for communication, and the more they are developed, the more effective they can be in a person's education and professional life. Speaking well involves a good command of vocabulary, proper pronunciation, correct grammar, and effective use of voice, gestures, and expressions. But unless the speaker also listens, asks questions, and shows interest in what others are saying, two-way communication does not take place.

In a lecture setting, the student needs skills in active listening and body language that reflects attention and interest. Students are expected to not only listen, but also to take notes accurately as needed. They must be able to analyze terms and language for meaning, often on more than one level; respond appropriately with questions or comments; and demonstrate comprehension through discussion, essays, or examinations.

Asking pertinent questions—whether to clarify a point or to gather more information—is a skill students need to establish relationships with their instructors and enhance their learning experiences. For example, students reading a poem must look beyond the surface meaning of the words to interpret images, find symbolism, or infer metaphorical messages. Asking the instructor for clarification can help immensely, but many students pass up opportunities for fear of looking foolish. Yet questions are a direct means of obtaining the needed information that can help the entire class.

One of the most feared forms of communication is speaking in front of a group; in fact, surveys of Americans have often shown it is the number-one fear, with death coming in second. Public speaking is a highly desirable skill, however, and instructors often require oral presentations in an effort to teach it. The fact that so many people fear speaking before a group makes it a skill worth learning, according to Forbes magazine, because it provides so many advantages to the person who can do it. For example, whether asking questions in the classroom, contributing ideas in meetings, or making a professional presentation, those comfortable with speaking project professionalism, confidence, and leadership. The audience almost always responds positively to strong public speakers and authorities take note. Speaking up helps students increase composure, and practice builds confidence. The key to successful presentations is thorough knowledge of the subject matter, which allows a speaker to follow a basic outline during the presentation. Using other basic communication tools such as gestures and eye contact with the audience helps establish a rapport and hold the group's attention.

Just as academic success depends on core skills, so does professional achievement. The same abilities—speaking intelligently, listening, asking questions, and offering comments or ideas—are also vital in the workplace. Skill in communication helps build relationships, which is a strong advantage in job interviewing, for example. Areas such as customer service, sales, media, business, and education require the ability to communicate as a central responsibility. Less obvious is the need for communication in technology, bookkeeping, or auto repair. However, the accountant who can make an effective oral report to the board of directors or the mechanic who accurately orders parts, explains a repair, and maintains records is also using communication skills to enhance job performance.

Knowledge of interactive media is increasingly an important type of communication skill in both education and the workplace. The Internet gives students access to journals, books, and library collections, allowing research and interaction with professionals from a home computer. Online advertising, sales, and customer service are nearly universal in business, so job applicants to most positions are expected to have some level of Internet skills.

Research & Theory

According to The Handbook of Communication Skills the earliest essay (3000 BCE) and the earliest book (2675 BCE) in existence both address the topic of communication. The first advises an Egyptian pharaoh on effective public speaking and the second, also from Egypt, examines communication in general. The study of basic and advanced communication skills has been widespread throughout recorded history and continues today.

Classical ideas on communication include the authoritarian theory, which was based on the philosophy of Plato. It puts mass media under the control of a ruling class to ensure control over the middle and lower classes. Its opposite, libertarianism, emerged in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries and maintains the right of free speech for all citizens. Additional political theories involving communication developed over the centuries include the social responsibility theory, which advocates free expression within the limits of one's conscience; Communist theory, which sees mass media as a means to educate the public; the development communication theory, under which the media assist government in meeting economic, social, and cultural goals; and the democratic participant media theory, which challenges the idea of media controlled by bureaucracy or commercial interests and advocates free access to communication.

Additional theories, such as the stimulus-response theory, the one-step and two-step flow theories, and the uses and gratification theory, address the influence of media, communication and social relationships, and people's use of media to satisfy their needs. The stimulus-response, or "magic bullet," theory, which emerged prior to World War I, suggests that the behavior of the masses can be controlled through media. The one-step flow theory describes media directly reaching the audience without the influence of social groups, while the two-step theory includes opinion leaders, who interpret information from the media and choose what to pass on to followers. Many of these theories developed before television was available. Sociologist Elihu Katz proposed the uses and gratification theory in 1970 to explain that people choose media to meet their needs for information, personal identity, social interaction, and entertainment.

As an academic discipline, communication overlaps virtually all subjects and skill areas. Research supports the idea that communication education is a key element in personal development, career success, and community involvement. According to the Journal of the Association for Communication Administration, the study of both oral and written communications must begin early and continue through college. Students who receive adequate education in communication report having more confidence and improved critical thinking skills. However, students do not necessarily recognize the amount of professional time they may spend in meetings, delivering presentations, writing reports, and discussing projects with coworkers. One study noted that students in law school did not receive adequate education in nonverbal communication, which is extremely important in reading the body language of clients and witnesses during interviews.

Theories of communication continue to range from the basic to the highly technical. Frank Dance, a professor of communications, attempted to simplify the concept by defining it as having three parts: level of observation, or whether a definition is general or specific; intentionality, or how a message is meant to change behavior; and judgment, regarding the success or failure of a message's purpose. However, in the world of scholars debate goes on about whether a single definition of communication can work in all contexts. Perspectives on communication come from many fields, including psychology, business, political science, biology, and literature. Most universities now have separate departments of communication, which consider the skill central to the organization of human society, while other disciplines address it in relation to their own studies.

Bibliography

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