Which is an example of “noise” as the term is defined in the textbook?

This outline can be a helpful study tool to assist you in seeing the order and sequence of the chapter and the relationship of ideas.  Use it to take notes as you read and/or to add concepts presented in lecture.

1. Human communication is the process of creating meaning through symbolic interaction.
   1. Communication is a continuous, ongoing process.
   2. Communication is symbolic and arbitrary and allows people to think and talk about the past, explain the present, and speculate about the future.
2. Types of communication include intrapersonal, dyadic or interpersonal, small group, public, and mass.
3. Communication is used to satisfy physical, identity, social, and practical needs.
4. The communication process can be diagrammed as a linear or transactional model but transactional is more sophisticated and accurate.
   1. The linear model (doing communication to another) consists of a sender encoding a message through channels, despite noise, that the receiver decodes with the help of fields of shared experiences or environments.
   2. The transactional model (communication done with others) reflects fluid, simultaneous interaction of sending and receiving by communicators using feedback that can be observed and interpreted.
5. Effective communicators have communication competence.
   1. Communication competence is defined as the ability to achieve one’s goals in a manner that maintains or enhances the relationship.
   2. Competent communicators realize there is no one ideal way to communicate. Relationships and environments affect competent communication as a process through trial-and-error and observation.
   3. Competent communicators choose from a repertoire of a wide range of behaviors and options; the communicator selects the most appropriate behavior with empathy and an appreciation of the other’s perspective by constructing a variety of frameworks for viewing an issue.
6. Ethical, knowledgeable communicators recognize common misconceptions.
   1. Communication does not require complete understanding, nor does it solve all problems.
   2. Communication itself is neither good nor bad; this is because the meaning or interpretation rests in people, not words.
   3. Communication is not simple, and more is not always better.

Mathematicians Claude Shannon and Warren Weaver defined communication as comprising the following five general components:

1. An information source (i.e., sender). This produces a message; in an oral conversation, the information source is simply the speaker.
2. A transmitter. This encodes the message into signals.
3. A channel. Signals are adapted to this channel for transmission.
4. A receiver. This "decodes" (i.e., reconstructs) the message from the received signals.
5. A destination. This is where the message arrives; in an oral conversation, the destination is simply the listener.

This diagram shows the five steps of the communicative process identified by Shannon and Weaver.

Distractions—i.e., noise—can disrupt the flow of information between any of these five stages. That is to say, issues in communication pertaining to distraction could affect the sender, the message itself, the channel it is being sent through, or the recipient of that message.

Communicative Interference

Every organization faces certain barriers to communication. Shannon and Weaver argue there are three particular layers of communication problems:

• Technical: How accurately can the message be transmitted?
• Semantic: How precisely can the meaning be conveyed?
• Efficacy-related: How effectively does the received meaning affect behavior?

These layers relate to a variety of types of noise that can interfere with communication.

Environmental Noise

Environmental noise is noise that physically disrupts communication, such as very loud speakers at a party or the sounds from a construction site next to a classroom.

Physiological-Impairment Noise

Physical conditions such as deafness or blindness can impede effective communication and interfere with messages being clearly and accurately received.

Semantic Noise

Semantic noise refers to when a speaker and a listener have different interpretations of the meanings of certain words. For example, the word "weed" can be interpreted as an undesirable plant in a yard or as a euphemism for marijuana.

Syntactical Noise

Communication can be disrupted by mistakes in grammar, such as an abrupt change in verb tense during a sentence.

Organizational Noise

Poorly structured messages can also be a barrier. For example, a receiver who is given unclear, badly worded directions may be unable to figure out how to reach their destination.

Cultural Noise

Making stereotypical assumptions, such as unwittingly offending a non-Christian person by wishing them a "Merry Christmas," can also detract from communication. Because of this, it is important that each side of a conversation understands the culture of the other party.

Psychological Noise

Certain attitudes can also make communication difficult. For instance, significant anger or sadness may cause someone to lose focus on the present moment.

By acknowledging and adjusting to noise, a communicator can make it more likely that their message will be received as intended.

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Barriers to effective communication can distort a message and its intention, which may result in failure of the communication process or damage to a relationship. These barriers include filtering, selective perception, information overload, emotions, language, silence, communication apprehension, gender differences, and political correctness.

By definition, diversity brings a wider range of views, and having a wide range of views is essential to an organization's success. In addition, as teams are becoming increasingly global, diversity can help an organization or team understand its place in its surroundings.

But a diverse team environment can also cause challenges. Some individuals' views may challenge those of the larger team. Preconceived notions about differences in other people—such as racism, sexism, ageism, homophobia, etc.—disrupt work processes and can prevent teams from achieving their goals. Because of this, diverse teams must keep several important considerations in mind at all times to ensure effective communication.

Communicating in Diverse Teams

The main benefit of a diverse background is that it fosters a creative environment. The main pitfall is that differences between team members can lead to destructive conflict, most often due to communicative failures. As a result, companies must equip their employees with the tools to prevent potential conflicts before they ever arise.

The most effective way to ensure proper communicative efficiency in diverse teams is to improve intercultural competence. Intercultural competence is simply the ability to communicate with different groups and cultures effectively and appropriately—"effectively" meaning that shared goals are being accomplished, and "appropriately" meaning doing so without violating the values, norms, relationships, or expectations of others.

Intercultural competence is a widely studied area of organizational communications and behavior. One model outlines the three following components as being at the core of a culture-savvy individual: regional expertise, language proficiency, and cross-cultural competence.

This figure underlines three useful perspectives to keep in mind when working with diverse teams. People should work to understand relevant languages, regions, and cultural predispositions to avoid communicative misinterpretations.

Other Issues in Diversity

Of course, intercultural considerations are only some of the issues that arise in diverse teams. Further differences such as sexual orientation, gender, political views, age, and special needs are also highly relevant and are critical to consider for communicative success.

The greatest takeaway here should be the power of empathy. The ability to recognize someone else's perspective (and therefore how they may interpret what you say) is absolutely central to avoiding issues in communication between different groups. In any communicative setting, whether you are speaking or writing or listening or reading, keep in mind the possible interpretations of individuals whose perspectives and predispositions may differ from yours.

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