Communication models and Communications In Contemporary Society

What Reasons Do We Have to Communicate?

Models of communication are conceptual models used to explain the human communication process. The first major model for communication came in 1949 and was conceived by Claude Elwood Shannon and Warren Weaver for Bell Laboratories. Following the basic concept, communication is the process of sending and receiving messages or transferring information from one part (sender) to another (receiver).

The Communication Process can be broken down into several commonly accepted steps that are comprised of the following components:

The Sender – This is the individual or group who is initiating the message.  This message can be verbal or non-verbal, can be ongoing or a one-off, can be conscious or unconscious.  The Sender can also be referred to as the Communicator.

The Receiver – There must be a message sent if there is one to be received.  The Receiver – sometimes known as the Interpreter – is the individual or group to whom the message is sent.  Sometimes, a message received was one that was not necessarily intended to be.

The Message – This is the particular content that is sent and received. 

The Channel – (or Medium) is the means by which the message is sent.  Some common channels are: spoken voice/telephone/radio/television, written word, computer,

The Context – This is the setting or environment in which the message is conveyed

Feedback – This is the response by the Receiver as to the success of the communication

The Models of Communication

The purpose of a “model” is to offer a visual representation of a concept with the intent of facilitating the understanding of it. Traditionally speaking, there are three standard models of the communication process: 

·      Linear

·      Interactive

·      Transactional

Each offers a slightly different perspective on the communication process.

Models of the Communication Process

The Linear Communication Model

Shannon and Weaver were the first to present the Linear Model of Communication in 1949′s The Mathematical Theory of Communication.  We’re going to discuss more about these two in our imminent Theories of Communication article. Suffice to say that this theory has become less relevant in inverse proportion to the advances of communication technology, specifically non-linear forms of electronic communication where it’s not always clear who is the sender and who is the receiver.

There’s a bit of a debate about the Linear Communication model and how it recognizes (or doesn’t recognize) the concept of feedback.  The linear model’s behavior is belied by its name, where a sender encodes a message via a channel and the message is decoded by the receiver.  It is straight-line communication found typically in mass communication; think television, radio, newspapers, etc. According to this model, there is no means for immediate feedback.

Interactive Communication Model

Simply put, the Interactive Model takes the Linear Model and multiplies it times two with a quick flip of the return message. It now allows for a feedback element because after a message is encoded and sent to the decoding receiver, the roles then reverse and the receiver encodes and sends a response to the original sender who has now turned receiver.  It sounds more confusing than it is.  Envision an exchange of text messages whereby your friend sends you a message and you respond to it.  The same thing happens during a telephone call, or even an email exchange.  A message is sent and received, then the roles reverse.  That is the Interactive Model. models of communication

Transactional Communication Model

The Transactional Model becomes more sophisticated yet. This model depicts face-to-face interaction, or “trans-action” as a dynamic and changeable process that is not limited to simple definition.  In the Transactional Model, receiver and sender can play the same roles simultaneously, as sometimes happens, as messages can be sent back and forth simultaneously.  It appears chaotic and ineffective, but sometimes communication is just that.  Throw in some noise, and it would be a wonder whether any message is conveyed successfully in this environment.

Berlo's SMCR Model of Communication

In 1960, David Berlo postulated Berlo's Sender-Message-Channel-Receiver (SMCR) Model of Communication from Shannon Weaver's Model of Communication (1949). He described factors affecting the individual components in the communication making the communication more efficient. This model also focuses on encoding and decoding which happens before sender sends the message and before receiver receives the message respectively.

Components of Berlo's Model of Communication

Berlo's Model has mainly, four components to describe the communication process. They are sender, message, channel and receiver. Each of the component is affected by many factors.

S -Sender

Sender is the source of the message or the person who originates the message. The person or source sends the message to the receiver. The following are the factor related to sender and is also the same in the case of receiver:

·       Communication Skills:
Communication skills of a person is a factor that affects the communication process. If the sender has good communication skills, the message will be communicated better than if the sender's communication skills are not good. Similarly, if the receiver can not grasp the message, then the communication will not be effective. Communication skills include the skills to speak, present, read, write, listening, etc.

·       Attitude:
The attitude of the sender and the receiver creates the effect of the message. The person's attitude towards self, the receiver and the environment changes the meaning and effect of the message.

·       Knowledge:
Familiarity with the subject of the message makes the communicated message have its effect more. Knowledge on the subject matter makes the communicator send the message effectively.

·       Social Systems:
Values, beliefs, laws, rules, religion and many other social factors affect the sender's way of communicating the message. It creates difference in the generation of message. Place and situation also fall under social systems.

·       Culture:
Cultural differences make messages different. A person from one culture might find something offensive which is very much accepted in another culture.

M-Message

A message is the substance that is being sent by the sender to the receiver. It might be in the form of voice, audio, text, video or other media. The key factors affecting the message are

·       Content:
Content is the thing that is in the message. The whole message from beginning to end is the content.

·       Elements:
Elements are the non verbal things that tag along with the content like gestures, signs, language, etc.

·       Treatment:
Treatment is the way in which the message is conveyed to the receiver. Treatment also effects the feedback of the receiver.

·       Structure:
The structure of the message or the way it has been structured or arranged, affects the effectiveness of the message.

·       Code:
Code is the form in which the message is sent. It might be in the form of language, text, video, etc.

C-Channel

Channel is the medium used to send the message. In mass communication and other forms of communication, technical machines might be used as a channel like telephone, internet, etc. But in general communication, the five senses of a human being is the channel for the communication flow and it affects the effectiveness of the channel.

·       Hearing- We receive the message through hearing.

·       Seeing- We perceive through seeing. We also get non-verbal messages by seeing.

·       Touching- Many of the non-verbal communication happens from touching like holding hands.

·       Smelling- We collect information from smelling.

·       Tasting- Taste also provides the information to be sent as a message.

R- Receiver

Receiver is the person who gets the message sent in the process. This model believes that the thinking pattern and all other factors mentioned above must be in sync to that of the sender for the communication to be effective. The message might not have the same effect as intended if the receiver and sender are not similar. The receiver must also have a very good listening skill. Other factors are similar to that of the sender.

·       Communication skills

·       Attitudes

·       Knowledge

·       Social Systems

·       Culture

Criticisms of Berlo's SMCR Model:

·       There is no concept of feedback, so the effect is not considered.

·       There is no concept of noise or any kind of barriers in communication process.

·       It is a linear model of communication, there is no two way communication.

·       Both of the people must be similar according to all the factors mentioned above.

Bibliography

http://thecommunicationprocess.com/models-of-communication/

https://www.businesstopia.net/communication/berlo-model-communication

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Models_of_communication