Elements of Communication OR Factors of Communication OR Components of Communication
Question No.3: What are the factors of communication? Explain briefly.
Answer: Factors of Communication
The process of communication consists of following six factors.
1. Context:
It is the situation with in which communication takes place. A same message can give us different meanings depending upon the different situations. Context is a very vast field. It includes country, culture, organization and internal and external stimuli.
Ø The External Stimuli:
Stimuli are the plural of stimulus which means prompt. What prompts a sender to transmit his message is called “Stimuli”. External stimuli include fax, telephonic call, mail or meetings etc. Response to external stimuli may be written or oral depending upon the situation.
Ø The internal Stimuli:
The internal stimuli have a very complex influence on how a person, sender or receiver translates ideas into a message. When a person communicate, his communication is influenced by his attitudes, opinions, emotions post experiences, likes and dislikes job status and education etc. The most important is his ability to analyze his receiver’s culture, needs, skills and viewpoints etc.
All these aspects of context should be kept in mind to make communication more effective.
2. Encoder or Sender:
A person who sends a message is called the “Encoder”. An encoder may be a writer or a speaker. The role of encoder is very important. His duty is to send the message properly, correctly, clearly and precisely. He should not use vague ideas or words which may give birth to misunderstanding. “The use of right word is more important than the right argument”.
The encoder must be careful in the selection of words and should have the idea of how to convey his message to the receiver.
3. Message:
It is the idea that the sender wants to convey to the receiver. We can say message creates a bond between the sender and the receiver. That’s why, a message should have clarity and consistency in expansion. It should be so clear so that it may avoid any type of ambiguity and misunderstanding.
4. Medium or Channel:
Medium or Channel is a source to convey the message. Its choice depends upon the nature of the message. The written medium is preferred when the message is long, technical or formal in nature. Oral medium is preferred when the message is urgent or personal or needs immediate feedback.
Written media used in an organization is in the form of memos, reports, boards and company magazines etc. Oral communication is in the form of staff meetings, face to face discussion and telephonic etc.
External written communication is in the form of letter’s, reports, mail and faxes etc. Oral communication outside the organization is in the form of telephone, face to face discussions and television etc.
5. Decoder or Receiver:
The receiver of the message is known as the “decoder”. He may be a reader or a listener.
Ø Decoding:
The receiver assigns different meanings to the message conveyed by the sender; this process is known as “Decoding”.
So many factors affect the decoding of a message. These factors are experience, emotions, attitude and knowledge of the receiver. A receiver can easily understand the message of the sender if the message is with in the range of receiver’s knowledge. But it is the major problem in the decoding of a message because all of us have different experiences about different things.
Therefore, the understanding of a message depends upon the experiences of the receiver.
6. Feed Back or Response:
Feedback is an essential part of successful communication. It is the receiver’s response to the sender’s message. Feedback provides continuity to the communication. Both sender and receiver need feedback. It also stimulates further communication. Feedback may be oral or written. Feedback may be in the form of receiving the ordered items. It is very necessary to provide adequate feedback. It helps in the development of effective working relationship. It is also helpful in the productivity of business.