Critical Skills: Listening

Critical listening is a form of listening that involves consciously paying attention to what people are saying, analyzing what is being said, and incorporating the input into the discussion at hand. This technique incorporates aspects of intentional listening and critical thinking. It is important in relationships, both personal and business related. Critical listening is a skill that does not come naturally to many people and must be learned. Those who foster their critical listening skills generally are more successful in business situations and make good leaders. They also tend to have better personal relationships. The ability to make people feel heard and valued through critical listening creates strong connections with team members, family, and friends.

Background

Listening is not always seen as a skill. Anyone with at least one functioning ear can do it, yet there is more to it than just hearing and interpreting sounds. People engage in many types of listening on a daily basis, often without consciously thinking about the differences. The main types of listening involve listening for information purposes, listening to foster or strengthen a relationship, listening for appreciative purposes, and critical listening.

Listening for information is the type of listening done by students in a classroom or lecture hall. The listener is absorbing the information shared by a teacher. This also is the type of listening done when receiving instructions given by a flight attendant or directions from a police officer. The key skills needed are concentration to pay attention to what is being said and memory to help retain the information and connect it to other information already known such as recalling the gas station passed earlier, which the police officer uses as a landmark in providing directions. It also requires an appropriate vocabulary to understand what is being said.

Listening for relationship building requires a different application of the skills used for informational listening. The listener still needs to concentrate, remember, and have a sufficient vocabulary to understand what is being said. Listening to someone for relationship purposes also requires a sustained level of attention and the ability to convey to the other person that he or she is being listened to and heard. This requires demonstrations of attentiveness through eye contact, responsiveness, and empathy. By actively engaging with the other person, offering appropriate comments and gestures and agreeing when possible, the listener helps validate what the other person is saying. This makes the other person feel valued and supported, strengthening the relationship.

Appreciative listening is for enjoyment or entertainment purposes. It includes listening to music, television, movies, speakers, comedians, and so on. This form of listening places fewer requirements on the listener. Like all listening skills, however, it can be improved. People can learn to appreciate listening to different forms of music, for instance, or develop a fondness for a particular speaker.

Critical listening involves aspects of all these types of listening. The listener needs a good vocabulary, sufficient concentration, and the ability to remember what is being heard so that information is absorbed. The listener also needs the skills of someone listening for relationship building, making eye contact and responding empathetically to what the speaker is sharing. It also is important to be able to learn to appreciate the different ways people share information. Additionally, the listener needs to be able to analyze what is being said and use it to further the discussion, determining what is important to the matter being discussed and responding in a way that includes the input of others.

Overview

The ability to listen well is an important skill. Poor listening skills can have a significant cost. Failure to listen to material in a classroom can result in low grades. Not listening thoroughly to what a flight attendant says can be a problem if something happens during the flight. A parent who does not listen carefully to a child may miss signs of a problem in the child's life. A person who does not pay attention to his or her spouse can find the relationship in trouble.

Many factors affect a person's ability to listen critically. Someone who is not giving full attention to the conversation because of distractions or some form of overload—for example, background noise or a mind that is racing to tasks that need to be completed—will not be able to listen critically. Neither will someone who is planning a response while the other person is still speaking. Human brains generally are not good at this type of multitasking and tend to prioritize attention to what the person wants to say rather than what the other person is saying.

To listen critically, a listener needs to remain focused on the conversation. This can be helped by making eye contact with the person and actively acknowledging what is being said with affirmative responses, including "um-hum" and "I see," and clarifying questions. While doing so, the critical listener will look for overall themes and concepts in what the other person is sharing. It also is important to be attentive to what is not being said. For instance, if a person is promoting a new project and sharing the benefits, a critical listener will ask about potential drawbacks and problems.

An effective critical listener is able to organize the material being shared, identifying patterns and connections. It also is important to determine the validity of the information or identify information that might need confirmation or clarification. This evaluation is the "critical" part of critical listening.

Critical listening is not listening to find what might be wrong with what the person is saying. Any faults or shortcomings that are identified should be tactfully questioned. In other words, it is important to separate the information from the person delivering it. The critical listener will be able to make accurate and critical assessments of the material without criticizing the speaker.

Being organized and methodical in the approach to a listening session can help critical listening such as being prepared and having a thorough understanding of the matter at hand. This helps in forming good questions and drawing good connections between topics and ideas. These skills can be enhanced with practice. Striving to remain focused on conversations is the most important aspect of critical listening and any other form of listening.

Bibliography

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